The stylish trunk’s thick foam padding helps ensure your favourite Barolos, Champagnes and CNdP’s won’t break before you get to the party
Rimowa is about to make traveling with wine a little easier—and a lot more stylish.
Next month, the German brand known for its tough-as-nails aluminium luggage, will start selling a new trunk-style suitcase designed to hold 12 bottles of wine—and to keep them all from breaking during your journey. The case, which spent years in development, was designed for serious connoisseurs who want to take fine wines from their own cellars on the road, or stock up when they visit Sonoma or Ribera del Duero. And like the most-anticipated vintages, those in the know have already been anticipating getting their hands on one for a while.
LeBron James, a devoted wine collector who’s also a Rimowa brand ambassador, got the first of the cases in late September and previewed its design on Instagram. And earlier this month, Rimowa teamed up with Wine Access, an online vintner that specialises in helping people get great bottles that might not end up in their local bottle shops, to show the case to winemakers and other specialists at an event in Napa Valley, California. (At the launch party, the case was put on display filled with bottles made from grapes grown by Andy Beckstoffer, the region’s farming-focused eminence grise.)
If having a specialised piece of luggage just for traveling with wine seems like going overboard, at least one world-renowned wine expert says Rimowa’s new case solves a major headache for serious collectors.
“Until now, wine lovers had to pack bottles in a regular suitcase, check a flimsy styrofoam-based carrier, or ship the wine ahead of time,” said Vanessa Conlin, one of 56 Masters of Wine in the United States and Wine Access’s chief wine officer, in an email to Robb Report. “Shipping can be problematic with delays and wide temperature variability, and bringing wine onboard in a less secure case can lead to breakage.”
The case is part of Rimowa’s Classic collection, whose old-school design harkens to the company’s earliest aluminium wares. It opens neatly like a book, and each side has spaces for 6 bottles, separated by inches of thick foam padding. The bottles are secured with a long, solid strap that snaps into place so they don’t bump into each other if you encounter a little turbulence.
“And since it holds 12 bottles, there is no need to pick and choose only a few wines,” Conlin added. “Plus, the case holds larger and different-shaped bottles for wines like Champagne (my favourite!).”
The case’s security, build quality and versatility—to say nothing of its good looks—will set you back US$9,900 when it launches in November. And if you want to give your friends and loved ones a test of the best bottles in your cellar over the holidays, or on your next vacation, that’s a small price to pay to ensure they arrive intact.
This article was first published on Robb Report USA
