WINELINE VACU VIN WINE KEEPER: THE NEXT GENERATION.

Byline: Larry Lipson

I've been using the Vacu Vin system for several years to keep opened bottles of wine relatively fresh.

It's a relatively simple procedure: Push in the rubber stopper to replace the cork, then stick the plastic hand pump over it, pump it a few times until the air's out and, presto, the wine remains in decent condition for as much as two weeks or longer. And it costs as little as $5.

But there's now a new, non-manual, push-button system available that is basically the same process. However, the pump works electrically, with a red light going on a few seconds after all the air has been pumped out.

It's called the Epicurean-Presorvac Wine Saver and, with a 6-foot-long cord, 12-volt plug adapter and two wine stoppers, it runs about $60.

There's also a battery-operated rechargeable version that comes with four wine stoppers for another $20.

And for those who want nothing but the best, there's a combination wine and champagne saver priced at $120 that utilizes a chrome-plated, drip-free stopper-pourer that actually reduces what the manufacturer calls ``the common and inelegant `glub, glub' sound of wine being poured.''

Of course, what is common and inelegant to some is music to the ears of others.

Count me as one of the latter.

Available nationwide, the new wine saver can be found at selected gourmet and specialty shops and at some wine retailers. It can be purchased online at www.bedbathandbeyond.com and www.internationalwineaccessories.com. The combo edition is available at Williams-Sonoma stores nationally. Information: [phone] or www.epicurean-int.com.

SPAGO'S WINE GUY: Kevin O'Connor, sommelier at Spago in Beverly Hills, is collaborating with wine import specialist Matt Licklider on a new label. Their three 2005 Lioco debut wines are a Monterey County Michaud pinot noir ($38.99), an Alexander Valley Stuhlmuller chardonnay ($19.99) and a Monterey County Michaud chardonnay ($31.99).

They're available at Mission Wines, 1114 Mission St., South Pasadena, [phone] or www.missionwines.com.

NEW RELEASES: Lexia ($6.99), the soft (10percent alcohol) and sweet (4.24percent residual sugar) 2006 muscat white from Australia's Alice White now has a 2007 red Lexia companion (also $6.99) in time for Valentine's Day, a touch less sweet (4percent residual sugar). Information: www.alicewhite.com. ... From Napa's much heralded Grgich Hills come two 2003 estate reds, the cabernet sauvignon ($58) and merlot ($38). Information: [phone] or www.grgich.com. ... Italy's Ruffino brings us its 2003 Fonte al Sole sangiovese-merlot blend ($9) and Aziano 2004 chianti classico ($12.99). Information: [phone] or www.ruffino.com. ... The newly released top-of-the-line Wolf Blass Platinum Label 2003 Barossa shiraz ($85) was one of five Blass wines poured at an Australia Week press luncheon at Grace restaurant in L.A. recently. Wine information: [phone] or www.wolfblass.com.

FINDING THAT BOTTLE: Claiming to be the largest Internet source of world-wide wine pricing and availability is Auckland, New Zealand-based Wine-Searcher.

Also with an office in London, it lists more than 2million offers from more than 8,000 wine retailers, auction houses, wineries and distributors.

So, if you're looking for a wine, odds are you'll find it somewhere in the world where you can buy it, thanks to Wine-Searcher. Information: www.wine-searcher.com or phone [phone].

E-MAILBOX: From reader Michael Westmore regarding a Wineline column lead item on Napa cabernet ports: ``Recently in Temecula (Calif.), after following a windy, bumpy, dirt road, we arrived at a little winery called Providence Family Winery (40225 Berenda Road, Temecula; [phone].)

``In their little wine bar, I discovered a sparkling cabernet which is red but they call it white. All hail the cabernet grape. I have been collecting wine for the past 20 years, but I found this new (bottling) to be tasty and refreshing, well worth a case to go.''

Larry Lipson, [phone]

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