IsVinea. What kind of a name is that, you might ask? Where did you come up with it? And how?
Well, the story goes like this…
Once upon a time, in 2016, two friends sat together enjoying a nice bottle of wine on the terrace adjoining their respective apartments in the Nachlaot neighborhood in Jerusalem. It was the perfect evening setting after a warm day of sightseeing.
Cool breezes swept by as they overlooked the nearby courtyard. Bougainvillea clung to stone walls while palms and olive trees dotted the interior. It was all woven together with lacey iron gates and balcony railings, enhanced with shades of blue. Beyond the entry archways, the golden glow of the setting sun brightened the old stones of the nearby buildings.
Purchased at the Mahane Yehuda Market, just around the corner and down the street, the locally made wine was the perfect companion for these two companions, Perry and Ron, whose passion was, and still is, wine.
Discussing this profound subject, they came to the conclusion that the only thing missing was a decanter. Because, as any wine drinker who is a wine lover knows, any wine is made better when decanted.
How could they fix this problem? A glass decanter was too big and heavy to pack in a suitcase. Plus it was breakable, a definite problem while traveling. Continuing to ponder this problem throughout their trip, they decided that something needed to be done about it.
Upon arriving back in the United States, we - as now, Katie and I were involved - set about designing a decanter that would fold flat to slip, neat and tidy, into a suitcase. More than a few dimensional re-configurations here; countless handmade prototypes there; along with design considerations and a hundred consultations and business meetings, et voila! Two and a half years later, The IsVinea Caravino Travel Decanter was a reality.
When our first sample run was produced, it revealed a few more dimensional problems. After resolving those, we were ready for a second run. This time, after some serious pondering, we plunged in and had the manufacturer print our design on them as well. If the dimensions were off, we’d just wasted precious funds having the design printed also.
We decided to take a chance, figuring that in the worst case scenario, we’d have to try again, and then spend our next 250 bottles of wine using up the dud decanters. Best case? We’d have a functionally great, and awesome looking decanter to offer.
A month later, with heavy sighs of relief, we stepped off our pins and needles as we poured a lovely bottle of red wine into our first real, travel decanter with the awesome Compass design. It functioned perfectly and looked great! It was easy to use, the no-drip design didn’t drip, and best of all, the whole point of it all was, it made the wine taste better. Just like a “real decanter”.
So proud and pleased, we were, with our design that we decided to create two more prints, our Leaf design and Deco design. These are, as I write, in process of shipping. We hope you’ll stay on the look-out for our new designs, as well as new accessories to accompany our decanter.
Oh! So what about the name! In pondering the name for our wonderful new company, we looked to its origins. Travel, friends, wine, adventure. Our great business adventure began in Israel sipping wine with friends, thus:
Is: Israel - place of origin
Vinea: wine - one thing we love
We Is Vinea - to add in the friend, and most important part
There you have it!
Take your decanter anywhere in the world, decant a bottle of local wine and enjoy with friends old and new.
The best way to travel is don’t leave home without your IsVinea Caravino Travel Decanter, the travel decanter that makes wine better.
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