Piper Collective

A new trend has emerged among the next generation of wine-lovers who want more than just a bottle in a cellar.

By Tamara Howie

Wine dealers are now getting creative, to give those who love a tipple a whole new experience when tasting wine.

Kelly Hope from Piper Collective says her clients can now taste their wines while learning to paint, or unlocking the bottle in an escape room.

“We find that a lot of new customers and the new generation of buyers all want an experience with their tasting – they want to spend their money on an experience along with the wine,” she says.

When Piper Collective began two years ago, Hope says they thought the wine storage facility would be the most popular part of the business, but soon found themselves transforming rooms in the two-story venue in Woolner into wine tasting spaces.

“We initially started online as a wine storage facility, but we found that people wanted to taste the wine before they bought it, so we turned downstairs into a tasting room,” she says.

While the classic wine and cheese tasting is offered every month, Hope has enjoyed finding fun and different experiences to offer her clients.

“In September we’ve got our standard wine tastings – six wines paired with cheese, but next month will be our busiest,” she says.

“We’ve got Carla Russo from The Artful Room coming in to do some watercolour lessons and we’ll match that with wine,” she says.

“She’ll explain the process of  painting and then we’ll do wine tasting in between. 

“We’ve also teamed up with Break Out NT so there will be wine in a locked box and participants will have to solve the mystery.”

Piper Collective also have a wine club with personalised service, where participants can receive six to 12 bottles of the selected wine each month. Cheers!

Wine Tasting – Rose and Champagne Fri 28 Sep | 6.30pm | Piper Collective, Woolner | $49 | pipercollective.com.au