Top five wine stamps

Start your wine-themed stamp collection with our guide to five top wine-related stamps issued over the years.

You can read much more about collecting wine-themed stamps in the October 2015 issue of Stamp & Coin Mart.

With a history stretching back thousands of years, wine production makes a fascinating thematic collection, with scope for including stamps from around the world on various topics including vineyards, wine cellars, wine festivals, the history of the drink and, of course, the enjoyment of consuming the finished product.

1 The root of the art of winemaking (known as oenology) literally begins at ground level, with the growing of the grapes that will be at the heart of the finished product. including Liechtenstein, who in 2003 issued a set of twelve viticulture stamps showing the journey from grape production through to wine tasting.

2 Once the grapes have been harvested, they are taken to the winery for an initial ferment; the grape skin is included in the process for red wine, whereas the skin of the grape is removed for white wine. Traditional methods of extracting the juice from the grape have featured on several stamps over the years, including Chile’s 2008 Festival of the Grape Harvest also features non-mechanised grape pressing, with two vineyard workers treading the grapes in a large barrel. 

3 The 2005 Europa theme of ‘Gastronomy’ gave collectors plenty of delicious designs, some of which included wine accompanied by national dishes. while France presented a feast of food, with a proud chef looking on, glasses of both red and white wine included.

4 Once the wine is completed to the winemaker's satisfaction, bottling takes place, a process shown on several stamps including in Portugal’s 2006 Wines of Madeira set which has an illustration of a wine cellar with barrels and bottles.

5 Of course, the history of wine is incomplete without a look at the final product and the people who have enjoyed it over the centuries. Great Britain’s memorable 1973 Christmas issue featured the carol Good King Wenceslas and showed a wassail bowl, the age-old symbol of sharing drink and hospitality.

Find out more

The Wine on Stamps Study Unit is a specialist study group with members in eleven countries, which is dedicated to the hobby of collecting stamps and associated philatelic material related to wine, grapes, viniculture and viticulture. To find out more, visit the website.

Extract taken from our in-depth feature on creating a wine thematics, to be published in the October 2015 issue of Stamp & Coin Mart.