As a person who loves binging The Real Housewives and throwing dinner parties, I naturally, have a lot of wine on deck. Like to the point where I have had to purchase another bar cabinet to store my bottles.
I’ve learned over the years that the easiest way to make sure you have an unlimited supply of wine is to sign up for a wine subscription service. For those unacquainted, there is a surfeit of companies that will deliver bottles of wine to your doorstep every month. In addition to satisfying your wine craving, these services help beginners build a cellar, and they’re perfect for any wine novice looking to understand and expand their palate.
We’ve compiled a list of the best wine club delivery services and subscriptions, whether you’re looking to gift one to someone else or you just want to keep them all to yourself. But, while you can’t go wrong with any of our expertly selected picks, we do have one we recommend above the others.
If you’re looking to support independent winemakers while consuming some truly unique yet affordable wines you likely won’t find at your local liquor store, Naked Wines is the service for you. The 12-year-old company invests in over 150 indie winemakers and sells their high-end bottled wine for relatively low prices, but it works a bit differently than traditional wine clubs.
Every month you’ll deposit $40 into what’s called a wine savings account, and earn the title of an “Angel investor.” The money builds up in your account until you use that accrued credit on your wine orders. In the meantime, that monthly $40 helps Naked Wines fund and support independent winemakers around the world.
For starters, we love the idea of not only supporting indie winemakers but also integrating customers into that business model. Maybe it’s corny, but it’s a nice feeling knowing that you may have helped produce that bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon you’re sipping on. It’s also what allows you to enjoy such delectable world-class wines at an extremely discounted price.
According to the brand, this direct relationship between wine drinkers and winemakers is what helps cut down a lot of traditional industry costs, allowing winemakers to offer customers savings of up to 60% off. So while you’re not getting a box of wine bottles automatically sent to your door every month, the site’s Angel members save 40-60% on their orders and even receive other incentives like free samples.
This system is also ideal if, you know, you don’t want to have to buy a second or third storage cabinet to keep your influx of wine. I have many friends who frequently forgot to pause or cancel their wine subscription services and end up with a mammoth-sized mountain of bottles with nowhere to put them. But with Naked Wines, you can buy wine whenever you want, and you don’t have to worry about more wine showing up at your door when you’re still working through bottles you already have.
But more importantly, how is the wine?
Maybe it’s all the exclusivity talking, but I immensely enjoyed the distinctive selection of wines I drank. To be fair, I’m no wine snob — I love a bottle of Barefoot. But it was nice to drink and share high-quality wine from winemakers I, and my guests were unfamiliar with.
Of course, like any wine subscription service, or subscription service in general, there is a lot of trial and error. You can’t be 100% sure you’ll love a particular bottle of wine. Though, we’d argue that is part of the fun subscription-based services: trying something new! Still, it’s your money, and you don’t wanna waste it on something you think tastes like total garbage.
Which is another facet of Naked Wines that we love: the shopping experience is extremely user-friendly. You can filter through the site’s expansive wine selection by style (say if you’re more into smooth reds over sweet whites), type of grape, country of origin and price point. But if you want to make sure you’re getting the best of the best, you can also search by top-rated wines, critically acclaimed wines, fine wines and best-sellers.
Naked Wines currently ships to all U.S. states, except for Arkansas, Delaware, Mississippi, New Jersey, Rhode Island, Utah, Hawaii and Alaska. If you don’t live in one of those eight states (or have a buddy in another state you can ship your box of wine to) we have an exclusive Naked Wines offer for you. Use this link to claim $100 off your first 6-pack of wine with shipping included, and begin your new life as a sophisticated wine drinker and philanthropic investor.
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