Comments on: Wine Clubs

By: ccarpita

ccarpita — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

When I think wine clubs, I get this image in my mind:

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Wine clubs are generally good for the enthusiast, but they shouldn’t happen at the expense of all other patrons.

By: Philip

Philip — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

Thanks John - I really think a lot of the perceived value to a consumer is wrapped up in the intangibles: things like the newsletters, the personalization, the christmas card. All these things make the user feel special, supportive and like an insider.

By: oceank8

oceank8 — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

Earlier I mentioned my beef with wine clubs: sometimes the discounts are so extreme it makes me angry and I, as a non member, don’t buy any wine. I feel that this tends to be the minority though.

That said, I will say that I actually like wine clubs when executed properly. I agree with what you have said and find it funny that I fit very nicely into all your categories. I am a member of three wine clubs and all for very different reasons. The biggest thing is I HAVE to really like the wine! I am a member at Leonesse because I live about 10 min. away, they have great wine, and a wonderful restaurant. I get a discount on wine both in the winery and in the restaurant (with NO markup on restaurant wine!). I can bring up to 4 people a day for free tastings (normally costs $10 per person). They also have great member only events. I am also a member at Carlsbad Coastal Winery because they make excellent wine. They are a small establishment that I live about an hour from and I know some of the people that work there, it makes me feel apart of the in crowd. My third club is with a wine retailer. I try to get in there at least once every two weeks and I buy most of my wine there. I get a small discount and there are many fun events. The main reason I joined this one was for the purpose of variety, I am able to try many things that I might not have otherwise. I enjoyed reading your blog and agree with all your reasons for joining wine clubs.

By: HondaJohn

HondaJohn — Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0000

I agree with all the comments here … my goal was to outline how clubs and allocations work and why people are part of them. Some clubs do better jobs than others. As people have indicated, well run clubs make people feel part of something special. Poorly run wine clubs create animosity and push non-club members away.

However, my feeling is that most clubs don’t really offer too much that is really ’special’ or different from other clubs. What I am saying is that, for me, ultimately the wine is the most important thing. If I can get wine I really like and get it at a discount then I’m happy.

I was hoping to hear about wineries in Australia, Europe, South America or South Africa … does anyone know if they have similar concepts?

By: mark

mark — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 21:01:02 +0000

Great information here, John. Thanks for getting the word out — should help us navigate much better. Now I need to go about picking my favorite wineries!