Lumin is an online cosmetics company dedicated to providing premium skin and hair & body products to men who are looking to take their skincare routine to the next level. This Los Angeles-based business offers nothing but the best beauty products, including paraben-free, cruelty-free, and dermatologically tested products created for self-conscious gentlemen who understand the importance of skincare.

While it is primarily a subscription-based service, Lumin also offers a buy-once option for men who are unfamiliar with the brand and wish to test it out first. If you are curious to find out more about the company, its products, and how its business model works, continue reading this thorough Lumin review.

How Lumin Works

Like we previously mentioned in this Lumin review, you can subscribe or opt for one-off orders and get skin and hair & body products listed in Lumin’s online shop. As a first-time customer, you can use Lumin’s special free trial option, where you get to pick a set of products, customized for your skin type and age group, and receive them for free. It is important to keep in mind that you do not pay for the products with the free trial, but you do need to cover the shipping costs. Once your trial expires, your subscription will automatically renew unless you decide to cancel.

As far as the subscription itself goes, the procedure is fairly simple. You select the product/products you wish to purchase and opt for the “subscribe and save” option. This allows you to save 20% on any purchase you make. With a subscription, the products are delivered to you every two months or you can opt for a six-month bulk option that allows you to save 34% on your purchase.

By ordering products and entering your shipping and billing information, you automatically activate your subscription. If at any point you wish to cancel your subscription or delay your next order, you can do so by accessing your account at the bottom of the home page. Note that cancelations only apply to future orders, not the ones already made.

One-time buyers follow the same ordering procedure as subscribers, but instead of choosing “subscribe and save,” you should opt for the “buy once” option.

It is good to know that Lumin is very flexible when it comes to cancelations or returns. If you receive your order but do not wish to keep it or if you forget to cancel your subscription and get an unwanted order, Lumin is happy to provide a 100% refund on unopened packages.

What Makes Lumin Different

Men usually do not have that many options when it comes to quality skincare that does not cost an arm and a leg. What makes Lumin stand out is that it provides premium products made of natural ingredients at affordable prices, delivered to your home address. You get to choose between individual skin and hair & and body products and three different skincare sets.

With Lumin, you get to personalize every order by filling out your age and skin type. Moreover, the beauty brand provides detailed information about the key ingredients of every item and the way the product can help you with various skin conditions.

Furthermore, Lumin features reviews and testimonies provided by real users who wanted to share their experiences with the products they used. For more information and the latest news regarding new products and promotions, you can join Lumin’s Instagram and Facebook community and subscribe to its newsletter.

It is also worth mentioning that Lumin offers a special discount for men serving their country. If you are a firefighter, a law enforcement officer, a nurse or a doctor, a member of the military or a non-profit organization, email Lumin’s customer support staff for information on available discounts.

What You Get

We previously said in this Lumin review that you can choose between individual products and sets. Individual products are divided into skin and hair & body sections. The sets section features only sets designed for different skincare routines.

Individual Skin Products

The products featured in this section are:

• Ultra-Hydrating Moisturizing Balm
• No-Nonsense Charcoal Cleanser
• Dark Circle Defense
• Reload Exfoliating Rub
• Anti-Wrinkle Defense
• After Hours Recovery Oil
• Touchless Face Mist
• Repairing Face Mask
• Eye-Puff Deflator
• Charcoal Pore Strip and
• Anti-Fatigue Eye Patch

All these products are made from natural ingredients, including ginger root extract, activated charcoal, shea butter, rosemary extract, green tea extract, apple extract, licorice root extract, caffeine, and others, that are used for protection and treatment of different skin types and for providing much-needed care on a daily basis.

Hair & Body Products

In this section, you get to choose from four products, including:

1. Keratin Recovery Shampoo
2. Keratin Recovery Conditioner
3. Advanced Repair Scalp Treatment and
4. Clarifying Body Wash

Some of the ingredients in these products include tea tree leaf oil, peppermint oil, jojoba oil, aloe vera, and keratin, all of which help repair and strengthen hair follicles, clean and protect the scalp against damage caused by pollution, and clean, nourish, and protect the skin from dryness.

Sets

The sets section contains four different sets of products intended for different skincare routines. You get to choose from:

1. Classic Maintenance Set, which is designed for athletes, beginners, and men who prefer low maintenance routines.
2. Age Management Set, which is intended for men who wish to delay early signs of aging like wrinkles and under-eye bags or repair any damages caused by extensive sun exposure.
3. Correction Trio Set, which is perfect for men who are over-worked and wish to cover the signs of being sleep-deprived like dark circles under the eyes or dull skin tone.
4. The Complete Collection, which contains Lumin’s complete collection of skincare products along with a microfiber washcloth and a case designed for storage.

Gift Options

The only gift option Lumin offers is the above-mentioned Complete Skincare Gift Set that features the entire collection of Lumin’s skincare products, including a moisturizing balm, a charcoal cleanser, an exfoliating rub, a dark circle defense cream, an anti-wrinkle serum, and recovery oil. Also included in the set are a deluxe microfiber washing cloth and storage case.

Pricing

The prices of Lumin products depend on whether you order items individually or within a set and whether you decide to subscribe or opt for one-off purchases. Here is an overview of the company’s prices:

Individual Skin Products

Individual Hair & Body Products

Sets

• Price: $10.00
• Shipping cost:
• Ships from: United States
• Ships to: Worldwide

Delivery

Lumin provides worldwide delivery. The shipment costs are calculated at check-out and vary depending on the location. The delivery time also varies depending on location, but you can expect your order to arrive anytime between 2-18 business days.

Lumin Pros And Cons

To make sure Lumin meets all your standards and expectations, it is important to know its biggest advantages and disadvantages. With a short overview of its pros and cons, you can easily decide if Lumin is the right company for you.

Based in California, Winc is a direct-to-consumer winery sourcing special artisanal wines often produced in small batches. This wine club provides extraordinary wines at reasonable prices according to the preferences of its clients. You can explore Winc further in our detailed Winc Review. What is good to know is that you are not stuck with your Winc membership – you can change the wines you get in the boxes, skip a month whenever you wish, and even cancel your subscription at no additional cost.

Changing The Wines

Changing the wines you get in your Winc box is as easy as it gets. Here is what you should do:

1. Click the box icon on the website (top right of the screen). A pop-up window will appear to edit your box;
2. You may add wines with the (+) button or subtract them with the (-) button. If you would like to remove wines, use the (Remove) button to do the necessary editing;

After making the changes, you are free to place a new order. If there is no fresh order, you will receive your wine box on your next delivery date.

Winc suggests that you modify the content of your box at least 48 hours before the set date of your next order.

Skipping A Month

With Winc, you can skip a month at any time without any extra charges. All you have to do is:

1. Go to ‘Skip a Month’ under the ‘My Membership’ section of your Winc account;
2. A pop-up will appear with the ‘Continue to Skip’ button.

While you are free to skip a month whenever it suits you, in order for the changes to go into effect, you must let the company know about your intention to skip at least 48 hours prior to your scheduled order date.

If you receive an order that you do not want, you have two options at your disposal:

1. If you are unsatisfied with the received bottles, get in touch with Winc to sort it out.
2. If you want to send the bottles back, you also have to contact the company. Orders returned to Winc are subjected to a fee, which may go up to the total value of the delivered/returned wines.

Canceling Your Winc Subscription

Winc is happy to offer its customers alternatives to cancelation, but if you wish to cancel your subscription, you have to contact the company. You can get in touch with the support staff via the live chat feature on the official website or phone at (855) 282-5829.

It is important to know that Winc does not have 24/7 customer support. Its representatives are available Monday to Friday from 6 AM to 5 PM PT and Saturday to Sunday from 7 AM to 4 PM PT.

In case you need some help choosing the next wine club to join, we are happy to introduce you to a great selection of Winc alternatives. Take a look at our list of the best wine clubs and explore the exciting range of options before you.

Refund Policy

If you are unhappy with your order, you should get in touch with Winc and the company’s representatives will do what they can to resolve the issue. Note that returned wines may be subject to a $20 restocking fee.

Good wine can be rather pricey and surprisingly difficult to find. If you are looking for an easy way to get premium-quality, hard-to-come-by wines at a good price, wine clubs are a perfect solution. Browse our selection of the top 5 wine clubs and find the one that best fits your taste and budget.

Wine of the Month Club was born in 1972 out of Paul Kalemkirian’s vision of creating a customer-oriented wine shop that offers only the best wines on the market. In the following years, Mr. Kalemkiarian’s son Paul Jr. expanded on the initial idea by delivering hand-selected wines to customers’ doorsteps. That is how Wine of the Month Club became the very first wine delivery service in the world.

Wine of the Month Club is value-oriented and takes great care of its customers. That’s exactly why it has managed to maintain such a long tradition. Read this comprehensive Wine of the Month review to find out more about the company and it exquisite service.

Wine Selection & Quality

While doing research for our Wine of the Month Club review, we found out that the company’s cellar holds an extraordinary selection of wines from all over the world. Mr. Paul Kalemkiarian tastes more than 400 wines every month in order to pick only the best for his customers. There are 11 different clubs with special offers for you.

Classic Series Wine Club

This is where it all began! This is the first club and the club with the longest tradition. Every month, every other month or quarterly, you get two vintage wines from a famous winery located in California or a lesser-known one from New Zealand or Hungary, for example. Wine of the Month Club sends two bottles in a box, one red and one white wine, but you can also choose two reds or two whites, it’s up to you.

California Series Wine Club

California Series Wine Club presents the best of Californian wines. Two best values of Californian red wines are sent to your home each month, every other month or every third month. This club celebrates marvelous wineries from Napa, Santa Barbara, Sonoma, and all the other wine growing regions in California. If you love red wines from California, this is the club for you.

Vintners Series Wine Club

If you like trying new flavors and enjoy quality wines, you should take a closer look at this club. Vintners Series features a wide range of wines from all over the world. Mr. Kalemkiarian tends to choose one domestic and one imported wine for you each month. You can order one red and one white wine, two reds or two whites every month, every other month or quarterly.

Limited Series Wine Club

This is a special selection for special occasions. Limited Series Wine Club brings first-class vintages to all wine lovers. Two bottles are carefully selected and sent to your doorstep every month for 12 months. You can decide whether you want to receive two reds, two whites or one white and one red wine. No matter the type, you always get limited edition wine brought from the cellars of the most distinguished wineries.

Cellar Series Wine Club

For all of you who want to have a couple of extra bottles of wine in your home, Cellar Series Wine Club is a perfect solution. Wine of the Month Club sends you six bottles of various hand-selected wines from Classic, Vintners or Limited Series. Shipments include four red and two white wines, but you can also choose to get only reds or only whites.

Case Series Wine Club

The latest addition to the Wine of the Month Club portfolio features 12 bottles of handpicked wines delivered every three months. The case contains 4 white and 8 red wines accompanied by The Tasting Room newsletter.

Mystery Case Club

With this club, you get 12 handpicked bottles (8 reds, 4 whites) of the company’s Classic, Limited, and Vintners Series for just $99.00. If you prefer all whites, the price remains the same. The shipment of all reds costs $119.00.

Napa Series Club

Napa Series Club definitely doesn’t need any special introduction. Napa Valley wines hit the world stage at the Taste of Paris in 1976 and they have been growing in popularity ever since.

Wine of the Month Club scours the regions for the best wines every single month and provides you with a choice of either two reds or one red and one white wine.

Bordeaux Series Club

With this club, Wine of the Month Club provides you with high-quality wines from the chateaux of Bordeaux without charging you over $1,000 per bottle. You can choose between two reds or one white and one red.

Rose Series Club

Wine of the Month Club staff tastes and evaluates hundreds of different Roses made from dozens of grapes and coming from dozens of regions. The club offers two bottles of exquisite Roses with every shipment.

Pinot Noir Series Membership

If you opt for this club, you get two selections of the top Pinot Noir the Club can find. The staff tastes hundreds of vintages and brings you the best two bottles with each order.

What Makes Wine Of The Month Club Different

As we mentioned earlier in this Wine of the Month Club review, this is the first wine delivery club in the United States (and the world). The club’s tradition and extensive member base are the true testaments of its service quality.

What makes Wine of the Month Club stand out is that the wine curation process is performed by the first man of the company himself. Paul Kalemkiarian Jr. is a great lover of fine wines and shares only the very best with the members of his club.

All wines are delivered with newsletters, which provide essential information about the vintages you receive. Apart from the origin certification, you also receive some expert tips on cellaring and free recipes for dishes that complement the complex flavor of your chosen vintage.

Lastly, the company policy and relationship with the customers can best be perceived in its very motto: “You never pay for the wine you do not like.” If you have any complaints about your shipment, you can inform the Club and your money will be refunded or you’ll get a replacement, whatever suits you better.

Gift Options

If someone you love or want to impress loves wine, you don’t have to think of their birthday gifts anymore. Wine of the Month Club cellars offer all the gift options you’ll ever need.

You can choose between one-time wine gifts and gift memberships. One-time gifts can include various wines of different types and origin. You can send one bottle, a wine basket or an assortment of 2, 6 or 12 wine bottles in a box. There’s a whole section of fine wines that can be sent as a gift to your loved ones or business colleagues.

If you’re not certain about the kind of wine your friends prefer, you can also choose to send them some wine accessories or simply give them a gift certificate in the amount of your choice. With one-time gifts, there are no limitations on the number of bottles, gift certificates or wine accessories you can purchase.

If you know your friends or family members love quality wines, a monthly delivery may be the perfect present regardless of the occasion. In that case, you can select one of the company’s gift memberships. There are currently 11 different clubs to choose from, which can accommodate even the most refined of tastes.

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Pricing

Wine of the Month Club only selects the most value-oriented wines for you every month. It makes sure you get high-quality wines at below-retail prices.

The Classic Series Wine Club membership costs $24.96 per month for two bottles of wine. If you want two bottles of Californian wines delivered to your doorstep, your monthly membership will amount to $29.96. The price of a shipment from Vintners Series is $34.96 and wines from the Limited Series Wine Club are $45.96 a month.

Wine of the Month Club recently expanded its portfolio to include Cellar Series (around $74.88 for 6 bottles), Case Club Series (around $149.76 for 12 bottles), Mystery Case Series (around $99.00 for 12 bottles), Napa Series (around $49.99 for 2 bottles), Bordeaux Series (around $49.99 for 2 bottles), Rose Series (around $39.99 for 2 bottles), and Pinot Noir Series (around $80.00 for 2 bottles).

Taxes and shipping fees aren’t included in these prices, so your final bill will also depend on your current location. Shipping is free for all gift membership deliveries and the area of delivery doesn’t affect the price of the gift.

Membership at Wine of the Month Club is free per se. You only pay for your orders and associated shipping fees. Therefore, you can cancel your membership anytime without any penalties. Moreover, in case you don’t like the wine you receive, you can always ask for a replacement or refund, no questions asked.

Customer Support

Wine of the Month Club offers customer support services via phone or email. You can contact the support staff between 7 am and 5 pm (Pacific Time) to ask for information, change your order or cancel your membership. In case you can’t phone them or want to ask something after hours, you can fill a form online or simply send them an email.

Wine Of The Month Club Pros And Cons

To make sure Wine Of The Month Club meets all your standards and expectations, it is important to know its biggest advantages and disadvantages. With a short overview of its pros and cons, you can easily decide if Wine Of The Month Club is the right company for you.

Gold Medal Wine Club has been around for 25+ successful years. The secret to their success seems to lie in their admirable selection practices and incredible customer support. The wines in their offer are of the highest-quality and often quite rare, which makes them particularly appealing to wine enthusiasts and collectors. In this Gold Medal Wine Club review, we will take you for a tour around their cellars and show you the amazing variety of their offer.

Wine Selection & Quality

The members of Gold Medal Wine Club get to decide exactly what kind of wines they wish to receive and they are truly spoilt for choice. The focus of this wine club’s selection is primarily on award-winning, rare California wines. However, they also feature exclusive, Forbes-recommended imported wines from around the world. They are also proud to bring you the finest handcrafted wines created by independent winemakers, mostly from California, as well as an impressive selection of Pinot Noirs.

For members who particularly enjoy sparkling wines, they have introduced a Champagne Special. They carefully select one premium-quality Champagne to be featured in this section. Normally, it is directly imported from France and boasts one or several medals, as well as high rating, usually 92+ points.

As you can see, when it comes to the quality of their wines, they absolutely do not expect you to take their word for it. All the wines in their selection have won multiple awards at major competitions and they are highly-rated by some of the most renowned national wine publications, including Wine Enthusiast and The Wine Advocate.

If you wish to order from Gold Medal Wine Club, you should first become a member – it is absolutely free – and pick the wine club of your choice. The make-up of the wine boxes you receive depends on both your preferences and the club you choose. Let us take a look at the 6 wine clubs in the offer and explore their selections.

Gold Wine Club

The most popular club, Gold Wine Club brings you medal-awarded wines originating from the top boutique wineries in California. It offers both red and white wines, including well-known varietals such as Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Zinfandel. You can order 2 or 4 bottles and choose whether you wish to receive all whites, all reds or an equal number of both. Your delivery comes complete with an interesting publication on wines, The Wine Press.

Platinum Wine Club

A somewhat pricier and more exclusive selection of wines is found in the Platinum Wine Club. All wines in this club are rated 90+. They represent the premium work of the best winemakers in California. Here you can find some wines that can only be bought by members of Gold Medal Wine Club. The wines are mostly red, including varietals such as Pinot Noir, Syrah, and Cabernet Sauvignon. Again, you can order 2 or 4 bottles, mostly reds or reds only.

Diamond Wine Club

This wine club is as exclusive as it gets. It is limited to only 500 recipients. It features luxury wines rated 93 points or higher. The deliveries of 2 or 4 bottles of these exquisite wines are only made quarterly due to the rarity of the wines. The wines are almost exclusively red and include the finest examples of varietals like Cabernet Sauvignon, Pinot Noir, Red Blend, and Syrah.

International Wine Club

Recommended by Forbes, these exclusive imports are practically impossible to acquire outside the origin country. The wines are of the highest quality and include both whites and reds. A different country is featured in each quarterly shipment. You can order three bottles of these fine foreign wines and choose whether you wish to receive 2 reds and 1 white or all reds, with two bottles of the same wine.

Pinot Noir Wine Club

Particularly designed for lovers of the good Pinot, this club brings you ultra-premium, world-class, limited-production Pinot Noirs, with something new to taste with every delivery. Obviously, all wines are red, as the club offers only Pinots, and you can choose whether you wish to have 2 different bottles delivered or 4 bottles, with two bottles of the same wine.

Garagiste Wine Club

The name of the club comes from the French term for independent artisan winemakers and the club itself is created in honor of these amazing artist-entrepreneurs. The wines are handcrafted, created in limited amounts, and practically impossible to find elsewhere. The wines are mostly red and you can order 2 or 4 bottles every month, including mostly or exclusively reds.

What Makes Gold Medal Wine Club Different

The rarity and abundance of the wines this club offers are the main qualities that set it apart. What is also astonishing is how much you get to learn about all the wines they offer and wines in general, for that matter. Apart from giving you detailed information about every bottle, it also has a Resources section chock-full of valuable info. You can learn more about the featured wineries, discover wine regions, varietals, recipes, and ratings. You can also peruse the wine glossary, wine pairing recommendations, and their amazing wine blog.

What impressed us most while writing this Gold Medal Wine Club review were the bonus options featured in almost every club. For example, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond clubs offer you the possibility to order a Plus bottle – a rare gem in the world of wines – and discover more amazing, exclusive flavors. On the other hand, International Wine Club lets you order Gourmet Adventure Package, which features regional gourmet treats that go perfectly with the wines you have ordered. This is something you can rarely see in wine clubs and we applaud Gold Medal for their efforts.

Gold Medal Wine Club also has a great referral program. Whenever you successfully refer a friend, both you and your friend get a free bottle of fine wine. There is no limit on the number of referrals. Pair that with the Rewards Program that brings you greater discounts every time you shop – you can save up to $100 – and you get to enjoy much more wine than you pay for.

Gift Options

When you get to the checkout, you can notice the option to send the order as a gift. That means that whatever you are having, your friends can enjoy too, as a thoughtful gift from you. To make things even sweeter, Gold Medal Wine Club adds a free personalized gift card and free organza cloth gift bag to your first gift delivery.

Apart from wine, Gold Medal lets you send various gift sets and wine accessories that are perfect for any wine enthusiast. You can send sets of wines and treats, champagne and chocolate truffles, and tasting kits, as well as wine totes, adventure packages, cookbooks, pairing guides, and more. There is truly something for every wine lover here.

Pricing

Becoming a member of the Gold Medal Wine Club is completely free of charge and there are no cancellation fees, you can leave anytime. What is also great is that by joining the club, you automatically get 40% off the winery retail prices, which is quite a lot.

You can opt for a subscription that lasts until you cancel it or limit your subscription to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 12 shipments. The 12-shipment subscription comes with a gift that varies depending on the club. Gold Club members get 10% off and a free gift box, Platinum, Garagiste, and Pinot Noir club members get 5% off and a free gift box, International Wine Club members get 5% off while Diamond Club members get a free cork binder.

Gold, Platinum, Garagiste, and Pinot Noir clubs offer monthly, bi-monthly, and quarterly deliveries and Diamond and International clubs only ship quarterly, due to how hard it is to acquire the wines in their offer. The prices of deliveries depend on the club and the kind. If you order all reds, you pay more than if you order both reds and whites.

Every club lets you order 2 or 4 bottles, except for the International Club, where the only option is to order 3 bottles. The Gold Club charges $39 per 2 bottles and there is a 10% discount on 4 bottles, so you get them for only $70 or $71, depending on your choice of wines. The Platinum Club charges $79-$99 or $89-$109 for two bottles, depending on the kind, and gives a 5% discount on 4 bottles, so they cost $158-$198 or $178-$218. The prices at the Garagista Club are $65 – $85 or $75 – $95 for 2 bottles and there is a 5% discount on 4 bottles, so they amount to $122 – $162 or $141 – $181. The Pinot Noir Club charges $69-$79 for 2 bottles and $138 – $158 for 4 bottles. The Diamond Club charges $165 – $195 for 2 bottles and $313 – $370 for 4. The International club charges $65-$85 for three bottles of red and white wines and $75-$95 for all reds.

It is important to note that shipping is not included in the price. What is surprising is that the shipping costs are not stated on the website, so you can only find out how much you have to pay for shipping by talking to their customer support, as the shipping costs may vary depending on the location.

Customer Support

The people behind Gold Medal Wine Club work hard on making their customers happy, which is why it is no wonder they offer numerous ways for you to reach them. You can contact them via phone, fax or email or send your questions and comments directly through their website. Their answering service is available from 5 pm till 8 am PST every day of the week. You can also make use of the live chat, where their friendly staff is ready to promptly answer your questions Monday to Friday, from 8 am until 5 pm PST. All in all, whenever you decide to contact them, one of their services is available to quickly resolve your problems and answer any question you may have.

Gold Medal Wine Club Pros And Cons

To make sure Gold Medal Wine Club meets all your standards and expectations, it is important to know its biggest advantages and disadvantages. With a short overview of its pros and cons, you can easily decide if Gold Medal Wine Club is the right company for you.

When we began our research for this Winc review, we had no idea that this wine club is unlike any other wine club nowadays. Not only do they deliver wines made all over the globe, they’re also winemakers themselves.

Winc wine club, formerly known as Club W, was founded in 2012. Today, Winc is headquartered in Los Angeles and run by co-founders Xander Oxman and Brian Smith, as well as members of their team. They’re dedicated to providing the finest wines to their customers.

Winc is the first wine club that sends wines according to your personal preferences. They respect their customers’ tastes and opinions and are doing their best to make the whole grape-to-glass process as enjoyable as possible.

Wine Selection & Quality

Winc is much more than your typical wine club. The people at Winc want to bring winemaking and the art of enjoying wine closer to their customers. In cooperation with experienced sommeliers and renowned winemakers, they’re dedicated to removing the veil of mystery and snobbism frequently associated with the world of wines. Winc is here to show that the extraordinary spectrums of wine flavors aren’t reserved just for the rich and blue-blooded.

Each customer gets personalized deliveries, tailored in accordance with their taste. Before signing up for Winc wine delivery, you take a quiz that helps Winc choose something special for your palate.

An excellent selection of wines from all over the world is waiting for you in the cellars of Winc wine club. First-class vintages are available to all members at affordable prices. Winc wants to make wine drinking a warm and lovely tradition, not a tiresome struggle of wondering whether you can afford to treat yourself with a bottle of superb wine once in a while.

Winc’s wine card introduces various winemaking gems. The offer is very rich and colorful, varying from Californian Chardonnay and South African Cabernet Sauvignon to French Champagne. Partners of Winc wine club are some of the best wineries from Chile, Argentina, South Africa, Spain, France, and New Zealand. A significant part of Winc’s wine list belongs to their winery and their partners from California. Winc has chosen to focus on small lots in order to bring the finest wines to their customers. They prefer smaller, artisan wineries that focus on quality rather than quantity. Ordering from Winc is simple, enjoyable, and free of the pompous atmosphere typically connected with elite wine clubs.

You can join Winc’s Select Membership Program if you want experts from Winc to make a personalized selection for you every month. As a Winc Select member, you receive at least 3 bottles of premium wine chosen by professionals from Winc wine club. While the experts are in charge of handpicking the wines, you can decide on the red-to-white ratio yourself. For example, you can get 4 reds, 4 whites, 3 reds and 1 white, 3 whites and 1 red or 2 of both. Winc Select Membership is free and you can cancel it anytime you want.

If you opt for a membership, exciting new wines that suit your preferences are delivered to your home every month unless you decide to skip a delivery. Skipping or canceling orders comes free of charge and can be done whenever you want by calling Member Service or via live chat.

It is important to note that you can order from Winc even if you are not a member. In that case, the minimum order is 1 bottle. However, keep in mind that members get discounts and save cash on shipping.

Speaking of shipping, Winc is currently unable to deliver wine to addresses in all 50 US states. Due to alcohol shipping restrictions and related limitations, Winc does not ship to Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Hawaii, Kentucky, Michigan, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and Utah.

What Makes Winc Different

The owners and employees of Winc are passionate wine lovers and winemakers. They offer you a unique chance to get superb wines from small lots in California, Portugal or Australia, among other countries. They’re real wine enthusiasts and prefer small wineries over mass-produced wines.

There’s a huge collection of blogs about wine, winemaking, vintners, and everything you need to know about wine on their website, which is great for people who are interested in finding out more about wine.

In addition to the wonderful blogs for wine education, there’s also a colorful palette of recipes for meals that perfectly match with the wines you order. There’s a wide range of various dishes, from appetizers and main courses to desserts. Winc offers a separate section of recipes for vegetarians or all those who like to avoid meat.

Gift Options

There’s no better way to show someone how much they mean to you than to surprise them with a bottle or two of extraordinary wine. Winc wine clubs can help you with that. You can choose between gift cards and gift boxes. To determine what option is best for you, you can try both and see what’s more appropriate for the special wine lovers in your life.

Gift Card

Winc gift cards are very convenient if you know that your loved ones enjoy wine but are not sure what type would be perfect for them. You can choose any amount above $60 and the recipient will be able to use it to purchase wines from Winc or become a club member. Gift cards can be delivered by mail or email, followed by your personal message to the recipient.

Gift Box

Gift boxes are a magnificent way to say thank you or congratulate someone. Winc gift boxes are very creative, valuable, and above all, diverse. You can send your beloved wine lover a bottle of superior wine accompanied with a box of delicious chocolate or caramels, two bottles of premium vintages or even 4 boxes of wine with wine accessories. All gifts are delivered in beautiful gift boxes with a personalized note you can write yourself.

Pricing

One of the greatest advantages of Winc wine club is the fact that they’re affordable. They offer high-quality wines that range from $13 to $40 per bottle. As previously mentioned in this Winc review, there is no membership fee, which is always great news.

If you order as a member and receive 4 or more bottles a month, shipping is free and you only have to cover state taxes. Members who receive 3 bottles per month pay a $9 shipping fee per delivery. Non-members pay a $15 shipping fee for each delivery.

Customer Support

In case you need some information, want to make some changes to your order or cancel your Winc membership, you can call the customer support service from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific Time Monday through Friday. There’s also a live chat that’s even available on weekends, from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Pacific Time.

Additionally, you can always check the Help section on their website, which also contains answers to some of the most commonly asked questions.

The company’s Terms and Conditions are transparent and can be found on the website as well. This section is very informative, especially if you want to join a wine club for the first time.

If you’re not in a big hurry, you can also write Winc an email or a letter.

Winc Pros And Cons

To make sure Winc meets all your standards and expectations, it is important to know its biggest advantages and disadvantages. With a short overview of its pros and cons, you can easily decide if Winc is the right company for you.

Based in California, Tour Guide Wines has been on the market since 2001. It was founded by WX, formerly known as Winery Exchange, which is one of the top 30 US wine companies according to Wine Business Monthly. Formerly known as the Revel Wine Club, Tour Guide Wines is now offering gifts, custom wine subscription boxes and much, much more.

Unlike many other wine clubs in the country, Tour Guide Wines does not primarily cater to wine connoisseurs with expensive tastes. It was designed with all wine lovers in mind and it offers handcrafted and award-winning wines at prices virtually everyone can afford.

While the club mostly focuses on California wineries, you can get wines from halfway across the world as well. Keep reading this Tour Guide Wines review to learn more about the wines on offer, membership rules, pricing, and more.

Wine Selection & Quality

With more than 80 different wines in its online shop, Tour Guide Wines has quite an impressive selection. It features a dozen varietals and over 30 brands. You can opt for wines from California, Oregon, Washington, Australia, and New Zealand.

The selection includes bottles from the cellars of some of the top winemakers in the world and you can experience the unique flavors of more than 25 multi-award-winning wines.

Aiming to satisfy different tastes, the club offers reds, whites, and a couple of rosés. More precisely, you can get Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Malbec, Merlot, Moscato, Petite Sirah, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Red Blend, Riesling, Rosé, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah, White Blend, and Zinfandel.

Some of the featured brands include Jamieson Ranch Vineyards, Bread & Butter, Chronic Cellars, and Jelly Jar. For customers with unique preferences, Tour Guide Wines offers all-natural, organic, sulfite-free, gluten-free, and even lower-calorie wines.

If you want to try out the wines before you become a member, you can purchase bottles of your choice individually, commitment-free. You can browse the selection by color, varietal, region, brand, sweetness level, and price and get wines that perfectly suit your desires. Should you decide to join the club, you get to create your own custom wine club and decide on all the key aspects of your membership.

Your Custom Wine Club

As a member, you have your wines curated by the Tour Guide Wines team in accordance with your preferences. You can decide what kinds of wines you want to get, how many bottles you want to get per delivery, and how often you want to have your wines delivered.

When signing up, the first step is choosing from 3 categories: All Wines, Organic, and Organic & Sulfite-Free. This decision determines how much your deliveries are going to cost. If you want to try out all the different wines the club has on offer, you pay a bit more than when you limit your choice to organic or organic and sulfite-free options only.

With the All Wines option, you can get 3, 4, 6 or 12 bottles per delivery. The Organic option brings you 4, 6 or 12 bottles in every shipment. Finally, the Organic & Sulfite-Free option provides 6 or 12 bottles per delivery.

Once you decide on the category and the number of wines in your deliveries, you can state your wine preferences. If you opt for All Wines, you can get all whites (plus occasional rosés), all reds, and both reds and whites. The Organic option brings you all reds or reds, some whites, and occasional rosés. If you want your wines to be both organic and sulfite-free, you can only get reds.

We have come to the last step of creating your custom club. All that is left for you to decide is how often you want your wines to be delivered. You can opt for monthly, bi-monthly, and quarterly shipments.

What is good to know is that you can skip a shipment or change the scheduled delivery date of an upcoming shipment whenever you wish. You can make changes online, directly through your Tour Guide Wines account.

You can cancel anytime you like as well. You just need to get in touch with the support staff via phone.

What Makes Tour Guide Wines Different

Like we mentioned at the beginning of this Tour Guide Wines review, one of the unique features of this club is that it makes good wine available to everyone, not only those with deep pockets. As a member, you can get wines that have won more than a few awards for less than $10 per bottle. Plus, every bottle comes with a satisfaction guarantee, so you can get a replacement or a refund if you do not absolutely love it.

The club’s wine selection is curated by a team of experts who are winemakers themselves. You can learn more about the team on Tour Guide Wines’s website and get to know the interesting people who are doing their best to enhance your experience.

If you are looking for some exciting wine facts, tips, and tricks, you can browse the Tour Guide Wines blog, read the latest news and interviews with winemakers, and get some great pairing advice. The company’s site further features a recipe section where you can learn how to make gourmet dishes that go perfectly with different varietals.

Although you do not have to be a member in order to enjoy Tour Guide wines, joining the club does come with various perks. You get to enjoy members-only discounts, you gain exclusive access to the latest promotions, and you get to be among the first to try out new wines.

If you happen to be passing through Paso Robles, California, there is one special membership perk that you may want to take advantage of. As a Tour Guide Wines member, you get VIP access to the company’s tasting room and tastings are on the house.

Gift Options

When choosing a thoughtful gift for a wine lover, you have 4 distinct options at your disposal.

First, you can opt for a wine club membership. The process is the same as when you sign up yourself. You simply provide your friend’s address instead of your own. In some states, you need to provide the gift recipient’s birth date as well, as it is important that the person is 21 or older.

Second, you can pick any wine or wines from the company’s online shop and send your picks along with a handwritten note, which is included in the delivery free of charge. This is a great solution if you know exactly what your friend loves.

If the gift recipient likes trying out new flavors and you want experts to handpick the wines for you, you can opt for a gift basket or a gift bundle. As we are writing this Tour Guide Wines review, there are about a dozen different baskets and bundles including between 2 and 12 bottles.

Finally, in case you want the gift recipient to choose the wines independently, you can purchase an electronic gift card in a denomination of your choice. Gift card values range from $25 to $250.

Club Membership & Pricing

With Tour Guide Wines, there are no signup, membership or cancelation fees. You only pay for the wine you enjoy plus potential shipping costs and taxes. As mentioned before in this Tour Guide Wines review, the pricing is quite affordable and even the most expensive wines do not go over $25 per bottle. Now, let us get more specific and see how much your deliveries cost depending on what you opt for.

If you choose the All Wines option, you get your wine for $12 to $13 per bottle. That is, you pay:

• $39 per delivery if you receive 3 bottles;
• $52 per delivery if you receive 4 bottles;
• $75 per delivery if you receive 6 bottles;
• $144 per delivery if you receive 12 bottles.

In case you want to get organic wines only, the price is exactly $9 per bottle. That means that your deliveries cost:

• $36 if you order 4 bottles;
• $54 if you order 6 bottles;
• $108 if you order 12 bottles.

Finally, if you choose to receive organic and sulfite-free wines, you once again pay $9 per bottle, which translates to:

• $54 per delivery if you get 6 bottles;
• $108 per delivery if you get 12 bottles.

If you are ordering as a guest and handpicking your wines from Tour Guide Wines’s online shop, you can expect to pay $11 to $25 per bottle. Members get to save 15% on individual wine purchases.

Finally, gift baskets and bundles cost between $18 and $145. They do not come with members-only discounts since their prices are already up to 20% lower than their retail values.

The club ships to 35 US states. It does not deliver to Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

Shipping comes free of charge with continental US orders including 12 or more bottles. If you order 1-11 bottles, you pay a $10 shipping fee per delivery if you live in the continental US. Alaska and Hawaii shipments never come with free delivery and shipping fees range from $35 to $85 for orders including 1-12 bottles. Extra charges apply to larger orders.

• Price: $14.00
• Shipping cost: 0-$85+
• Ships from: United States
• Ships to: United States

Customer Support

If you need some help, you can get in touch with Tour Guide Wines’s support staff via phone or email or by filling out the form on the Contact Us page of the company’s website. The staff is available to assist you Monday through Friday, from 9 AM till 5 PM PST.

Unfortunately, the service does not offer 24/7 live support. Funnily enough, it does encourage you to write a letter and send it to its headquarters in Novato, California. If you are one of the rare fans of snail mail, you can make use of this option as well.

In case you need some questions answered outside the company’s office hours, you can find quite a lot of useful information in the FAQ section of the Tour Guide Wines official website.

Tour Guide Wines Pros & Cons

To make sure Tour Guide Wines meets all your standards and expectations, it is important to know its biggest advantages and disadvantages. With a short overview of its pros and cons, you can easily decide if Tour Guide Wines is the right company for you.

Way back in 1990, Bruce and Pam Boring came up with the interesting idea of creating a wine club of their own. They were inspired by the passion small family wineries in California put into their work. They decided to make it their quest to bring the well-deserved glory to these exquisite artisan wines. That was the beginning of the now renowned California Wine Club. Read this honest California Wine Club review to find out more.

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Wine Selection & Quality

California Wine Club is all about the personal, caring, hands-on approach. They hand-pick the wines to be featured in their selection and offer handcrafted wines that are created with the love and care the mass-produced ones simply cannot get. Their success is probably their greatest recommendation, as they have managed to grow thanks to the numerous referrals from their satisfied customers.

Their decision to go with small family wineries was based on the fact that the wineries that produce wine in smaller quantities are not motivated by profit but great love and the sheer joy of bringing the perfect bottle to your table. Due to small-batch production, the wines can usually only be found at the winery itself or in California Wine Club. The quality of these wines is superior to anything you can buy in the store, which is confirmed by the awards given to every wine featured in California Wine Club’s selection.

The wines are categorized into 6 wine club levels – Premier Series, Signature Series, International Series, Aged Cabernet Series, Pacific Northwest Series, and Case Club Series.

Premier Series

This is the most popular club that brings you wonderful artisan wines, which have received an award for excellence and can usually only be obtained directly from the winery. You can order both red and white wines, a mix of both or only one kind and you also get a copy of Uncorked, a guide to the winery.

Signature Series

Here you can find only the finest wines rated 90 points or higher. Most of the time, the wines featured in the Signature Series can only be found in California Wine Club. Every month, 2 or 4 different independent wineries are featured and the wines are mostly red, but from time to time, some amazing whites are introduced into the selection. Just like in the case of the Premier Series, you get the Uncorked guide as a gift.

International Series

This wine club features wines created by artisan wineries from all over the world, including countries like South Africa, Argentina, Germany, and Australia. Every month, a different winery is featured and only the finest, handcrafted wines are picked. Every order is accompanied by a copy of Uncorked. Order both red and white or 2 reds, it is up to you.

Aged Cabernet Series

This one is a real treat. You get to sample prestigious Napa Valley Cabernets that aged in optimal conditions for 8 to 12 years in the cellars of the most legendary Napa wineries. Enjoy 2 bottles of top-notch aged Cabernet every month and learn more about it in Uncorked.

Pacific Northwest Series

While most wines in California Wine Club’s offer are made in California, these wines come from the finest artisan wineries in Oregon and Washington. Due to the limited amount of bottles, you can only order 2 bottles, red and white or both red, every other month. Read more about them in your free copy of Uncorked.

Case Club Series

Case Club Series lets you explore small-batch wines predominantly from California but Oregon and Washington as well. If you opt for this series, you get 12 quality wines each month. You can choose to receive both reds and whites, reds only or whites only.

What Makes California Wine Club Different

As we have mentioned before in this California Wine Club review, the main difference between this club and most others is in their choice of wines, namely, in sticking to small, artisan wineries. However, there are several other perks that make this club a unique and worthy choice.

In their efforts to make you happy, the Borings have introduced the much appreciated Love It guarantee. If you get a wine you do not like, you can get a replacement or a refund. You do not even have to send the bottle back. We think this is a lovely gesture and a true sign of how much they care.

What’s more, you get to save $36 on average with every case and half case order, as you only pay $1 for shipping. In order to help you save even more, they offer up to a 50% discount for reorders and 10% off wine gifts.

Speaking of savings, you can get a $100 wine credit if you refer a friend. You only have to wait until your friend receives two paid deliveries, after which California Wine Club kindly notifies you that you have $100 to spend at their wine store.

As a member, you also get a personal wine consultant you can reach by phone or chat. If you have any wine-related or membership-related questions, want some advice on what to order next or need some pairing tips, you can ask your personal consultant and get tons of valuable information.

What we also found exciting was the fact that members get to enjoy VIP access to the wineries that are featured in California Wine Club. It is quite a unique experience – the VIP tastings, the private tours – and we certainly recommend you give it a try.

Finally, you know what they say, know wine to enjoy it more. California Wine Club lets you learn about wine in numerous ways. Apart from the above-mentioned tours and tastings, they offer a bunch of reading material, including their own Uncorked blog, recipes, tips, a varietal glossary, explanations of the most common wine tasting terms, and more.

Gift Options

California Wine Club lets you send wines from any series as a gift and you can choose how many months of wine you wish to give to someone, ranging from 1 to 12 months. Along with the wine and a copy of the Uncorked guide, the recipient of the gift also gets wine tips, wine luminary interviews, and more.

Apart from the monthly deliveries of wines from their 6 series, they also offer specialized gift boxes. At the moment, they offer corporate and all-occasion options. Whichever option you choose, you can talk to one of their wine consultants and create a unique gift for a wine enthusiast you care about or want to impress.

Club Membership & Pricing

When it comes to membership, California Wine Club opted for the no-strings-attached approach. The membership is free of charge, there are no cancellation fees and no commitment whatsoever.

Depending on which series you choose – and you can choose as many as you wish – you get to decide what you want to receive. As you could learn from this California Wine Club review, the offers differ across series, but as long as the selection of wines allows such combinations, you can order a mixed box – half reds and half whites – or decide on all reds or order all whites. You can get 2 to 4 bottles per delivery and opt for monthly, bi-monthly or quarterly deliveries. Now let us take a look at the prices.

The price of two bottles from the Premier Series is $40.45. This is the most affordable option. The Signature Series offers 2 bottles at the price of $134 on average, though the price can be significantly lower. The price range for 3 and 4 bottles of the Signature Series wines is $175 – $275. The average price of 2 bottles from the International Series wine is $71 while 2 bottles of the aged Cabernet cost around $231. The Pacific Northwest Series offers 2 bottles at the average price of $77. Finally, 12 bottles per month with the Case Club Series cost $159.

As we have mentioned before in this California Wine Club review, shipping is now only $1 per case and half-case order, saving you around $36. That is nearly as much as what 2 bottles of Premier Series wines cost!

Customer Support

Apart from your personal wine consultant, you have an entire staff of wine connoisseurs at your disposal. If you have a question or need some help, you can contact them via phone (toll-free and local), fax, email or regular mail. They also have live chat that you can use if you need a prompt answer. While they are normally quite responsive, they are only available during office hours, Monday through Friday, from 8 am until 5 pm Pacific time. If you send them a message at any other time, you can get a response no earlier than the next business day.

California Wine Club Pros And Cons

To make sure California Wine Club meets all your standards and expectations, it is important to know its biggest advantages and disadvantages. With a short overview of its pros and cons, you can easily decide if California Wine Club is the right company for you.

If you are in the mood for some royally good craft beer, we know a great way to quench your thirst – join a beer club and have great craft beers delivered to your door for maximum pleasure and convenience. Check out our list of the best beer clubs in the country and find the one that can perfectly satisfy your beer appetite.