Wine-Based Therapies Are the Latest Wellness Trend

Pinot Noir body wraps and soaks in wine-filled tubs are among the innovative ways to enjoy the drink’s healing properties. Yet harnessing wine for health is hardly new. The ancient Romans used the liquid as an antiseptic to heal wounds, purify water and clean their mouths. In the 14th century, some used it to fend off the deadly black plague—although its efficacy proved lackluster.

One of the earliest records of using vinotherapy for skin care took root in France, says Kelly Lewis, cofounder of the new Willamette Wine Spa, which will open in Oregon this month. “They started realizing that vintners’ hands weren’t really aging,” she says. “Their hands looked remarkably young.”

After that, wellness researchers explored the benefits of wine on skin. “From that observation came the science behind vinotherapy,” she says. “Grapes and grape seeds are high in resveratrol and vitamin E.” That means participating in skincare-based vinotherapy can help fight inflammation and eliminate free radicals in the body. Some research even suggests drinking nonalcoholic wine could improve skin health.

Lewis’ facility will be among the first spas dedicated entirely to vinotherapy in the U.S. It’s set in Oregon’s verdant Willamette Valley, a patchwork of rolling hills and oak forests with hundreds of wineries. During the experience, guests are greeted with a glass of local wine—Willamette Valley is particularly celebrated for its world-class pinot noirs—before selecting their spa ritual. Treatments include a grape-based body scrub, massage with grape-seed oil, facial, and soak in a vino tub filled with wine and other antioxidants.

The tubs typically use red wine, says Lewis, and the soaks are private. “You will go from the tub to the table directly. You’re not moving from room to room,” she says.

The goal is to introduce guests to the benefits of vinotherapy, and to the Willamette Valley region as a whole—in an impressively sustainable way. “We’re talking to a lot of local vineyards about using product that would have otherwise been wasted,” she says. “A lot of wineries have wine that, for whatever reason, they can’t sell. It’s not spoiled, it’s just not to taste like they want, but it still has perfect properties for our treatments.”

Lewis says vinotherapy is enjoying a new boom. “There’s a resurrection, and I hope to be part of that resurgence by coming at it with fresh ideas,” she says. And beloved wine regions around the world are also exploring the growing vinotherapy movement.

In Portugal’s Douro Valley, the world’s oldest demarcated wine region, travelers can sip port wine one day, then soak up its myriad healing qualities the next. The Six Senses Douro Valley, a hilltop manor house perched above vine-decked terraces, runs wine-based wellness experiences in its tranquil spa. Among the most popular is Warming Schist Vinotherapy, an offering that incorporates grape-seed pearls and port for a full-body exfoliation, followed by a massage incorporating schist stones—a thin layered rock—to ease tension. The treatment ends with a relaxing mini facial.

Visitors to Washington, D.C., can add a dose of wellness with a stay at luxury Salamander Middleburg, a resort set in Virginia’s wine country. The region, tucked between the Potomac River and the undulating Blue Ridge peaks, is less than 50 miles from the U.S. capital. The Salamander helps travelers unwind with a 90- or 120-minute pinot noir body wrap, a treatment that integrates minerals and antioxidant properties from the region’s grapes. Don’t miss the one-hour Vino Radiance Facial for an added glow.

Down in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, guests at the Hilton Vallarta Riviera can enjoy the Eforea Spa’s vinotherapy ritual, which incorporates the polyphenols and tannins in grapes to boost skin through facials and body treatments. The spa also offers wine-infused body masks, scrubs and moisturizers.

And the 86-room Dawn Ranch, set beside a redwood forest in the world-renowned wine hub of Sonoma County, California, takes a mindfulness-centered spin on wine therapy. Its wine tastings feature an array from local wineries. The property also collaborates with a certified nature therapy guide to host a forest bathing experience.