Budget indulgence: bathing in red wine (why just drink it when you can soak in it?)

Delluva Spa, New York, NY

Every budget trip needs one big splurge. I found mine in lower Manhattan.

Delluva is New York's first vinotherapy spa. That is, all the spa's products are all based on wine grapes which, vinotherapists say, have been shown to have powerful anti-aging effects. All I knew was that I'd soon be lazing in cabernet, pinot noir, or perhaps merlot, and I would definitely have a story to tell.

As I booked my hydrotherapy treatment, I imagined being lowered into an aged cask. This worried me a little. Would I need a bathing suit? Would I be alone, or would I have to share? Fortunately, the spa's website answered my concerns. I could bring an old bikini or use disposable bottoms provided by them. All the baths are individual. I was ready.

I arrived at Delluva's softly-lit reception lounge and was greeted by the co-owners who opened the spa barely over a week ago. Everything, from the wine-scented candles in the shop to the chandelier made of overturned wine glasses, is pristine. I filled out a lengthy questionnaire about my health, and stepped through a sliding door into the locker room--a dusky-colored, narrow place equipped with a large shower and wine-based shampoos and soaps.  I emerged in my bikini, wine-red spa slippers and robe, and was escorted to my room.

Here, on a massage table under a golden lamp, I lay between two ultra-thick purple towels. My aesthetologist, Patience, lightly rubbed down my skin with grape seeds. As my muscles relaxed, she explained that after this exfoliation, she would step out so that I could take a shower (the shower, practically a room unto itself, waited beside the massage table). Then, "Just wrap yourself in a towel, and step into the bathtub," Patience said. Across the room, elevated on an alter-like platform, was the tub. It was filled with purplish water. ("Powdered grape skins," Patience would explain.)

Once alone in the room, I examined the design details. There was no wooden cask, but the walls were completely covered in tiny, translucent garnet glass tiles. Rather than being in the cask, it seemed, the idea was to be in the wine. Utter indulgence!

I strolled to the tub, and after determining that I was indeed meant to take the towel in with me, lowered myself into the water. It was hot, but not too hot; softly scented and ready for lazing. Tubside, I was brought grapes to eat and fine tea to drink. A dish of ice and wet washcloths was set out within arm's reach, should I get overheated. Cooled, moist eye pads that smelled lightly of tamarind waited in another dish. Piped in from the speakers overhead: new age violins.

And then there were the hydro jet buttons. I pressed one. The water rolled like a pot of soup, so high that at first, I thought I'd be swept out of the tub with it. Slowly, I relaxed and got used to the bubbling flow, and when Patience came in to check (and to see if I wanted more Oasis tea, making me feel like Cleopatra), she explained that the room is a "wet room," which means that it's fine if the water hits the wall and floors.  In other words, I could bathe in wine, eat grapes, drink tea, perfect my skin, and mess up the room at once. I was a rock star.

After the bath, I returned to the massage table where I was covered in a light "pinotage" oil. My skin was left so smooth that I'd continue to stroke my chin to feel the softness throughout the day.

When I left the bath-and-massage room, I was led to the "relaxation room," where I could help myself to beverages, wine, natural granola, dried fruits and truffles. I sat in a snug armchair with my feet on an ottoman, utterly pampered.

The experience cost $120 for an hour. While not cheap, it is a comparative bargain: the closest vino spa is in California, and comparable treatments there start at $165. At the end of the day, I described the bliss to a thrifty friend who instantly decided that this would be a worthy cause for $120 she'd been saving.

Perhaps best of all, next time she sips a glass with a friend, she can say, "This isn't bad, but to tell you the truth, I prefer to bathe in it."

Comments

[Posted on Jan 15, 2009 9:16:38 AM by massage tables]

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Thanks for providing this information.

[Posted on Oct 28, 2010 9:47:37 PM by jordan 12]

Once you turn on the Tv set after having a day's hard working, if the exceptional anchor made an appearance and introduced you sufficient enjoyment and pleasure, I do believe, everybody would have an entertainment.

[Posted on Feb 16, 2011 2:21:50 PM by Grace at day spa]

More folks would rather drink red wine than bathe in it.
Some would drink it even if the beautiful woman is still bathing in it.