Wine Awesomeness is a monthly wine subscription that specializes in rare and unusual wines. They seek out "the coolest, craveworthiest wines" with plenty of crowd-pleasing appeal. The curatorial team includes a Food & Wine Sommelier of the Year! So far, this subscription has been a really fun way for me to expand on my amateur knowledge of wine. I'm excited to see what the team picked to send along this month!
Each Wine Awesomeness box comes with three wines. You choose whether you'd like the "All Red", "All White" (with a chance of rosé or bubbly), or the "Variety" (with a chance of rosé or bubbly) plan—they're all $45.00 per month. (I chose the "Variety" plan.) If you're a more frequent wine drinker, or if you just want to grow your collection a little faster, Wine Awesomeness does offer all of their monthly selections for $75.00 per shipment in a plan called "The Six Pack."
Want to change your Wine Awesomeness preferences, skip a shipment, or cancel altogether? You can do all of the above via your online account at any time.
The wines arrive in a giant, nondescript cardboard box. Inside, the bottles were safely sitting in specially made cardboard trays, which keep 'em still and crack-free.
My Subscription Addiction pays for this subscription. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes).
This review is for the Variety plan, which is $45.00 per monthly box.
The Subscription Box: Wine Awesomeness
The Cost: $45 a month for 3 bottles of all red, all white, or a variety of red and white wines. $75.00 per month to receive all 6 monthly selections (of reds and whites).
ACTIVE DEAL: get 20% off
CODE: MSA20
The Products: Three bottles of wine “curated for adventurous souls.”
Ships to: US (including states most other alcohol subscriptions don’t ship to, like PA and OK) for free!
Check out all of our Wine Awesomeness Reviews and all Wine of the Month Club reviews!
Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wish list!
Wine Awesomeness has its own mini magazine in lieu of a traditional information card or booklet. Most months, each wine is paired with a food or recipe. This month? It's books! I thought this was a really clever, fun way to help readers appreciate wine. So much of wine is about the mood it evokes, not just the flavor it has, after all! (At least, that's what I've learned in getting this subscription!)
2013 Fondo Antico Chardonnay - Retail Value $18.00
If you've been reading my reviews of this subscription, you know I'm slowly growing an appreciation for white wines. I used to swear by reds, so this is a whole new world for me, haha! According to the info booklet, people are really divided about Chardonnay. Who knew there was such conflict within the wine world? It was funny to read since Chardonnays have turned out to be a big hit with me—as was the case with this tasty wine. I used to think whites were only solid summer drinks, but this one had a coziness about it that felt right for a quiet night in watching the cold fall rain hit my living room window. I left it out of the fridge for about a half hour before I drank it, so it ended up being room temperature. I think whites are generally enjoyed chilled (Right? Maybe? I think?), but I liked that the medium temperature let so many of the little flavors come out (like a woodsy flavor and a mild fruity sweetness that I really liked).
2014 Alaia Verdejo - Retail Value $17.00
There's a second white wine in this box. I didn't know what a Verdejo was, but I really liked this flavorful wine. It's peachy and refreshing, without feeling one-note or too juicy. There's a friendly mellow-ness to it. The booklet talked about floral notes that I... kind of picked up on? I might be translating them into more of the fruity, bright flavors I noticed right away. I realized that both of these white wines ranked around the same on the booklet's "Body" scale, which is helpful to know. I'm trying to get better at knowing what to ask for at fancy restaurants!
2015 Nexo Garnacha Carinena - Estimated Value $9.99
I couldn't find this wine on the Wine Awesomeness site nor any other sites, so I linked to another version of Nexo wine that I found to give an idea of value. I really liked this wine! It felt like the richer kinds of reds that I'm used to, but it wasn't as hefty as a Cabernet. I liked the jammy berry-ness of this wine, the super subtle "charred" notes, and the fact that it went down nice and easy despite the bountiful flavor. It's the kind of thing I want to pair with a hearty meal.
Wise White Cheddar Popcorn, 0.625 oz - Buy 3 6.5 oz bags for $24.99 at Walmart
Wise 30% Reduced Fat Sea Salt Popcorn, 0.5 oz - Buy a 5.5 oz bag for $5.99 on ShopFoodEx.com
These snacks appeared in last month's box, too! I love popcorn, though I sort of wish there had been something sweet (chocolate, anyone?) instead.
The Verdict: I really liked my wines this month, especially the white wines, which I'm starting to grow an appreciation for. This box always impresses me with the hard-to-find wines it features and the incredibly helpful context that it gives in its mini magazine. (From the flavor profile charts to the book "pairings", all the cool, quirky creativity of Wine Awesomeness was on display in this month's mini mag!) As somewhat of a wine newbie, I've found this subscription to be a really great introduction to the world of wines and wine boxes!
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? Every Wine Awesomeness box is curated specifically to the recipient's tastes. What's in the box depends on your responses to their easy questionnaire and also what's available at the time. It's likely you won't end up with the exact same wines that I did, but you might get something even better suited to your palate!
Value Breakdown: This box of three wines cost $45.00 (shipping is free), but using the values I found above, I received about $44.99. That doesn't count the bonus popcorn bags, nor the intangible value of the mini magazine, but the value is pretty much right on target.
Have you tried Wine Awesomeness? What do you think?
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