Wine clubs: How to identify the ones worth joining
Too often, popular wine clubs “have little to do with wine,” said Eric Asimov in The New York Times. If wine is arriving at your doorstep via subscription services associated with NPR, The Wall Street Journal, Turner Classic Movies, or yes, The New York Times, you are really paying to associate yourself with a lifestyle brand while the company doing the actual choosing and shipping of the wine is a licensee that serves several of those corporate clients. “Nothing is necessarily wrong with these wines. They might be tasty and satisfying.” But “from a wine lover’s view,” the problem with such clubs is “an almost complete lack of transparency about the wines.” Often, the provider buys unsold lots of wine and slaps a new proprietary label on each bottle. The consumer, in many cases, can’t even tell who made the wine or where the grapes were grown.
Fortunately, there are other options, and “the range of good wine clubs is vast.” If you love a particular wine shop or wine producer, look into its club offerings. Wine importers also run solid clubs. Always, the “great dividing line” separating worthy from unworthy clubs is whether the wines can be traced to a specific place and producer. Many fine independent wine clubs have popped up over the past decade, including these standouts: Plonk Sommelier Etty Klein seeks unusual bottles from around the world and focuses particularly on organic and biodynamic wines.
Winestyr Chicago-based Winestyr features artisanal offerings from “an excellent array of American producers,” with the majority in California.
Natural Action This nonprofit startup combines a love of California natural wines with an emphasis on supporting racial justice. It directs proceeds to diversifying the industry.