Terracotta wine cooler brick

The principle is an old one, and it works remarkably well!

Soaked for a few minutes in cold water before the meal, this porous terracotta brick takes in water, then releases it slowly by evaporation throughout lunch or dinner, keeping the bottle cool without any effort. Rosé, white, sparkling: anything that is drunk chilled has its place here.

Hand-thrown, with a slipped and glazed neck in a straw tone, it takes a standard bottle standing upright. Its plain outline sits as naturally on a laid table as on an outdoor bar. Made in France from dense, stable terracotta, it is a world away from the metal or plastic coolers seen everywhere: a table object in its own right, not a functional accessory to be hidden away.

For a wine lover who takes as much care over the table as the cellar, it makes a fitting, long-lasting gift.