VinGardeValise Piccolo A Premium Luggage Choice For Wine Tourists

Need a safe way to transport your wine in style? This dual purpose bag has you covered.

Don’t Leave Home Without It

As you might suspect, we do a lot of traveling to wineries and wine country. If we are going by car, this usually means we have an empty cardboard case in the back of the car to fill up with bottles as the trip progresses.

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If we are going by plane, we sometimes take a large piece of “wine luggage,” which is basically a case carton with Styrofoam inserts that is has a fabric cover with a handle and wheels.
And then there was our trip to South Africa. For that adventure, we actually emptied our suitcase of clothes along the way as we filled up our suitcase with bottles enclosed in bubble wrap. There’s got to be a better way – and indeed there is.

Dancing In The Streets

When my VinGardeValise^® Piccolo arrived, I unpacked it and literally was dancing with it around the house. This is how a traveler transports their wine in style.

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VinGardeValise® bills itself as the safest way to travel with your wine. I’ve had my eye on it for quite some time. It is a suitcase specially fitted with foam inserts and pads to protect your wine when the bag is checked on your flight.

There are three different models: the Grande (12 bottles), Petite (eight bottles) and Piccolo (five bottles). The advantage of the Piccolo is that it is sized to fit in an airline overhead compartment. You can carry it on going to wine country and check it coming back, maybe saving a baggage charge.

First Impressions

What caused me to start dancing was the overall feel of quality of this product. If I never drank another bottle of wine (which is unlikely), this would be a piece of luggage I’d be proud to own. It has a durable hard-shell exterior that is reinforced in multiple stress points. Your VinGardeValise® even includes burst straps made from seatbelt material.

There are double handles that look rock-solid on two sides. An integrated TSA-compliant lock is easy to set and helpful to secure your bag during your flight and hotel stay.

This is a “spinner” with 360^o Hinomoto wheels, generally found on the most expensive luggage. I verified their silky roll during my dance through our living room and sunroom. The telescoping handle is made from aircraft-grade aluminum.

The design for VinGardeValise^® is just so well thought out, the suitcase exudes premium quality. The attention to detail shows. VinGardeValise® products feature a 10-year manufacturer’s warranty, in case you have any doubts. All replacement parts and shipping are free.

The Inner Game Of Wine

While the outside is impressive, the inside is where the Piccolo needs to perform. The suitcase has two main sections, one is for your clothing and non-wine items. The other side has a foam insert for you to pack in five bottles. As any wine lover knows, bottles come in all shapes and sizes. It also seems that ultra-premium wineries are determined to have the biggest, bulkiest bottles – as if the weight itself would earn a 95-point rating.

I packed in a variety of bottles to test it out. The main challenges come from non-standard bottles, like really tall Riesling bottles or very wide Pinot Noir or sparkling wine bottles. It’s ideal for standard Bordeaux-shaped bottles (straight sides, high shoulders) and Burgundy-style bottles (lightly sloped, pear-shaped). The storage area can be adjusted by removing small pieces of pre-sliced foam to accommodate the wider or taller bottles. Getting the bottles in just-so could take a little effort, but once in place, they are as secure as Fort Knox.

There is an inch-thick foam pad that is secured by straps over the wine area. For good measure, there is a second foam pad placed over the clothing compartment.


VinGardeValise® also offers optional foam inserts to boost your versatility. There are inserts available for magnum bottles, wine glasses, craft beer, even a do-it-yourself insert. They also offer a wine chiller sheet to help keep your wine from getting too hot during its journey.

The weight when empty is less than eight pounds. Fully loaded with wine and a few clothes, it weighs in at about 25 pounds.

If you are going on a weeklong excursion, you’ll need another bag to complement the Piccolo. The clothing compartment is suitable for a weekend trip but not much more.

VinGardeValise® Piccolo is a thing of beauty. As wineries begin the reopening process, now is the time to pick up this essential travel tool. You’ll be dancing down the airport concourse.

Full Disclosure: We received this product as a marketing sample.