Who doesn’t enjoy having wine delivered straight to their door? Especially now, with many of us locked down and forced to stay in our homes, wine delivery is more satisfying than ever. Below are our two favorite picks for wine club plans, with an examination of what those services entail.
WSJ Wine
Wall Street Journal Wine Club offers you access to a fantastic partnership with one of the world’s most renowned direct-to-home wine merchants joining forces with the infamous Wall Street Journal. Available on this site is a wide variety of unique, quality wines with very reasonable pricing, many of which originate from smaller producers located all around the globe. These wines are always sourced straight from the vineyard, resulting in guaranteed quality and bursting flavors.
WSJ Delivery Service
WSJ comes with a highly revered wine delivery service. Keep reading to discover the pros and cons.
Pros
- It’s cheap, sometimes equating to as little as $5 a bottle for quality wine!
- There are often deals for existing customers, like occasional free gifts.
- Delivery is available to over 30 states.
- An in-house wine sommelier who can be called for advice.
- All orders are covered by the WSJ Wine guarantee of satisfaction, meaning you have a 100% money-back guarantee.
- You are given notice of your next case 2-3 weeks before it will be shipped.
- Each delivery comes with tasting notes, so you know exactly what flavors you are tasting.
Cons
- The price of shipping is not included in the initial membership payment (although shipping is reasonably priced).
- Unfortunately, the only option for the frequency of delivery is quarterly. The more avid enthusiasts may find this a little too infrequent.
VineBox
VineBox is a longstanding online wine club with thousands of excellent reviews. What makes VineBox unique is the fact that it delivers wine by the glass, as well as its use of a closed-nitrogen environment to prevent the wines from ever coming in contact with oxygen during repackaging. This guarantees that your wine will maintain its entire flavor from bottling till the moment you decide to open it. Plus, the exclusive by-the-glass service that VineBox offers means that you can try more obscure options without risking buying an expensive, full-sized bottle.
According to the website, only around 1% of the wines that are tasted by the Vinebox team are chosen to be added to a curated box, so there is a real guarantee of quality here.
Pros
- VineBox has a great track record of keeping in touch with clients and making recommendations based on previous purchases
- It often receives rare shipments that are recommended to you, resulting in customers of VineBox commonly trying luxurious bottles that would otherwise be out of reach
- You can delay a case for a few weeks if you are on vacation or otherwise not wanting to receive your package
- Customers can skip cases entirely if they want to. You only pay for what gets delivered
Cons
- Heavy shipping restrictions
- Not much information available as to what goes into an order
The Bottom Line
If you are expecting good quality affordable wine to be delivered on time with no surprises, then both these sites are ideal for you. For those looking to try as many different wines as possible, and to extend their palate in the process, VineBox would be a good choice, whereas WSJ may be more suited to those looking to enjoy a quality bottle each week.