Clandestine parcels aside, this month’s all about Chile, so our April contest needed a related theme. Our first thought was a big pot of Mum’s chilli con carne but transport and keeping it warm was always going to be an issue (ok, really bad play on words in any case!).

Thankfully, with the unusually long and chilly winter we’ve been having (ok, we really have to stop now with the cheesy puns), our good friends in Santa Alicia sent us over a couple of Chilean ponchos to keep us warm in the Curious Wines warehouse. You could prise Matt’s from his cold dead hands but, preferring to keep him alive and warm, we’ve put the other one up for this month’s contest, along with a couple of bottles of our favourite Chileans’ finest.

(It’s not Mum’s chilli, but it’s a good second best.)

How to Enter: All you have to do to enter the contest is join (or already be a member of) our monthly newsletter. We’ll draw a winner at random in April when our next newsletter goes out. You are of course completely welcome to un-join the minute after the draw is done, but we like giving discounts, special deals and free stuff to our members, so we hope you’ll stick around!

Congratulations to Aoife Porter, winner of our March contest! Prizes on the way to you Aoife.

Sticking with our Spanish theme for the month of February, and continuing our love of matching great wine with great food, we’ve got some our most lovely Spanish wine and the Bible of Spanish Cooking to give away in this month’s competition.

From Phaidon Press comes Simone Ortega’s 1080 Recipes, the definitive book on traditional and authentic Spanish home cooking, and a bestseller in Spain since its publication almost forty years ago. Add in two bottles of our splendid Valliciergo Rioja, a red and a white, and you’re all set for the perfect Spanish night in.

How to Enter: All you have to do to enter the contest is join (or already be a member of) our monthly newsletter. We’ll draw a winner at random in March when our next newsletter goes out. You are of course completely welcome to un-join the minute after the draw is done, but we like giving discounts, special deals and free stuff to our members, so we hope you’ll stick around!

After a season of giving, giving, giving, kick back in January and say “Mine, all mine!” with a bottle of festive bubbly, a snappy Viognier you won’t want to share, a fun pack of very nifty wine markers, and a winter warmer treat to relax by.

We’re offering you the chance to cozy up to some of our favourite bottles and spend a great night in to celebrate surviving the holiday season with:

• 1 x Domenico de Bertiol Prosecco - our incredibly easy drinking Prosecco;
• 1 x Dignité Viognier 2007 - all soft French fruit and spice;
• 6 x contemporary wine markers so you know which glass really is yours all yours;
• A collection of relaxing, unisex bath treats just right for soaking off the holiday excess from Lush.

After the hustle and bustle of the holidays, nothing could be nicer!

How to Enter: All you have to do to enter the contest is join (or already be a member of) our monthly newsletter. We’ll draw a winner at random in January when our next newsletter goes out. You are of course completely welcome to un-join the minute after the draw is done, but we only send one newsletter per month and we like giving discounts and free stuff to our members, so we hope you’ll stick around!

To get your holiday season started in style and celebrate our 25% off all Champagne and sparkling wine offer, we’re putting together a basket of Christmas joy for our December contest.

We’re offering you the chance to win this divine box of Christmas treats to for a quiet night by the fire or a night in celebrating with friends:

• Two bottles of our favourite festive Champagne and sparkling wine;
• A box of super-snazzy Christmas crackers;
• A luxury biscuit tin filled with sinful yumminess;
• Two champagne flutes for toasting the season.

That’s Christmas practically sorted! (Or at least the “merry” part of it…)

How to Enter: All you have to do to enter the contest is join (or already be a member of) our monthly newsletter. We’ll draw a winner at random in mid-December when our next newsletter goes out. You are of course completely welcome to un-join the minute after the draw is done, but we only send one newsletter per month and we like giving discounts and free stuff to our members, so we hope you’ll stick around!

To celebrate our first Dublin Wine Tasting and the fact that Joyce Austin of New Zealand Boutique Wines has returned all the way from Auckland to host it, we’re giving away one Taste New Zealand prize pack:

We’re offering you a chance to win two tickets to our New Zealand Boutique Wine Tasting on the 6th of November in Dublin, complete with a lovely prize pack:

• Two tickets to New Zealand Boutique Wine tasting
• 2 x our favourite bottles of New Zealand wines direct from our new inventory
• One handcrafted, Lignum Vitae hardwood wine stopper* with an inset New Zealand coin.

So if you feel like a New Zealand adventure, this ones for you - it’s a lovely package of new experiences, new tastes and unique wine accessories!

How to Enter: All you have to do to enter the contest is join (or already be a member of) our monthly newsletter. We’ll draw a winner at random on the 4th of November when our next newsletter goes out. You are of course completely welcome to un-join the minute after the draw is done, but we only send one newsletter per month and we like giving discounts and free stuff to our members, so we hope you’ll stick around!

PS: Congratulations to last month’s winner Colin Bentley who was drawn this morning!

*This is a rare wood but this stopper is made from legal, permit-imported wood.

We like to think we give away fairly nice prizes here at Curious for our ever-popular monthly contests, but this is probably the best (or at least poshest) prize pack we’ve offered:

To celebrate the launch of The Good Wine Show we’re offering you a chance to win a Wine Show Weekend in Cork complete with free entry to the Good Wine Show on November 13th & 14th, one night in a luxurious Superior Room at the award-winning Clarion hotel, and a personalised wine and food Welcome Hamper for your room:

• Two tickets to The Good Wine Show, good for both days of the show
• One night at the 4* Clarion Hotel in Cork, where the show is being held
• One romantic Welcome Hamper complete with wine, glasses, bottle opener, and tasty treats from Cork’s finest local food purveyors.

Unlike some of our other contests, this one does have some terms and conditions attached to it. The prize is not transferable - win and use the whole kit and kaboodle or lose it, baby! The hotel stay is for a maximum of two people for one night on Friday, November 13th 2009 or Saturday November 14th 2009 - we’ll make arrangements directly with the winner and you can choose which night you’d like to stay.

How to Enter: All you have to do to enter the contest is join (or already be a member of) our monthly newsletter. We’ll draw a winner at random on the 7th of October when our next newsletter goes out. You are of course completely welcome to un-join the minute after the draw is done, but we only send one newsletter per month and we like giving discounts and free stuff to our members, so we hope you’ll stick around!

PS: Congratulations to last month’s winner David Conway who was drawn this morning!

We’re so excited about the launch of our Australian [yellow tail] range that we’ve gone Down Under to put together an unusual prize pack for this month’s contest.

Australia’s best export, excluding its wine, is arguably the mighty, mighty Tim Tam. In addition to being insanely addictive, these scrumptious biscuits are the subject of much lore regarding how to eat them and indeed, how to suck a beverage through them. (We do not suggest the Tim Tam Slam, however, which sounds revolting.)

Carrying on with our Aussie theme, we’ve also got a one-of-a-kind hand-made locket with three magnetic interchangeable lids featuring a kangaroo, a puffin and a koala. It comes on an adjustable length 30″ ballchain, and makes a perfect pouch for a special photo. The locket is packaged in a cute little tin, great for gift giving or storing your young…

• 2 x your choice of [yellow tail] wines
• 1 x a bumper pack of Tim Tams in every variety we can find
• 1 x interchangable locket

How to Enter: All you have to do to enter the contest is join (or already be a member of) our monthly newsletter. We’ll draw a winner at random on the 9th of September when our next newsletter goes out, and deliver your Land Down Under prize packthe day after (or whenever you’d like) free of charge. You are of course completely welcome to un-join the minute after the draw is done, but we only send one newsletter per month and we like giving discounts and free stuff to our members, so we hope you’ll stick around!

PS: Congratulations to last month’s winner, Maureen McCowen, who was drawn this morning!

Following our tips on how to store wine on the Look and Taste Show last month, we managed to acquire one of these super-smart Deluxe Wine Bottle Vacuum Sealers for our August contest.

This magical contraption keeps the genie in the bottle a little longer, stretching the life of your opened wines for several more days. To try it out, we’re also delivering one bottle of gorgeous Shiraz, a grape born in the land of Aladdin. And while we can’t promise you that rubbing the bottle will pop up a genie, we are giving you a beautiful hand-crafted mini-composition book to record your three wishes - or your tasting notes!

• 1 x Deluxe Wine Bottle Vacuum Sealer
• 1 x Glaetzer Wallace Shiraz Grenache 2006
• 1 x Magical Wish Book
• Unlimited chances to rub the bottle

How to Enter: All you have to do to enter the contest is join (or already be a member of) our monthly newsletter. We’ll draw a winner at random on the 5th of August when our next newsletter goes out, and deliver your Genie in a Bottle prize packthe day after (or whenever you’d like) free of charge. You are of course completely welcome to un-join the minute after the draw is done, but we only send one newsletter per month and we like giving discounts and free stuff to our members, so we hope you’ll stick around!

PS: Congrats to the winner of the July contest, Jonathan Smyth, who was drawn yesterday morning!

PPS: If you noticed the earlier version of this contest and wonder where it went - yes, we made it magically disappear to bring you an improved prize pack. Enjoy!.