Winc is a wine subscription box that re-imagines the traditional wine club by offering a regularly-changing selection of unique, small production wines that are sourced directly from vineyards and winemakers.
This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
About this Wine Subscription
The Subscription Box: Winc
The Cost: Bottles start at $12.99 each with a membership. (Shipping is free on orders of 4 or more bottles.)
The Products: Small-lot wines, ciders, and sparkling options sourced directly from vineyards and winemakers.
Ships to: Check your zip code through this link for shipping eligibility.
Winc October 2019 Review
When you sign up to join Winc, you take a six-question palate profile quiz (so quick!) to help determine your taste in wine. Based on your answers, Winc makes bottle recommendations for you every month. You can go along with their recommendations, choose your own bottles from their regularly changing selection, or skip the month completely. You can also take the palate profile test as often as you’d like.
The bottles are shipped in an upright cardboard box that has molded pieces to hold them in place. This helps prevent the bottles from bashing into one another during transport. The box is rather sturdy and has a super convenient handle that makes it easy to carry. I get a lot of use out of the box's clever design, and always make sure to keep at least one on-hand so I can make quick work of toting multiple bottles to a friend's house or elsewhere (when I feel like sharing, anyway).
Winc included this card that starts off with an excellent Halloween pun, and on the flip side, it reveals a fun little bingo board to play alongside whatever spooky viewing Freeform is showing this month. I don't normally ogle over promo materials, especially the collaborative type, but this was really cool.
So, how about those wines?
1 of 3
2018 Restless Earth Petite Syrah — $17.99 (or $15.99 through the subscription)
Santa Barbara County, California
Body: Full
Sweetness: Dry
Alcohol: 13.4%
I opted to receive 1 red and 3 whites several months ago, and it's an arrangement that's been working well for me. My only red of the month promises forward fruit notes of black cherry and dark plum, with some earthiness and cinnamon to boot. As you may have gathered from the 1:3 ratio, I'm not super into reds, so this didn't strike me as a standout star of the delivery, but perhaps if you're far more into reds than myself (like most other people I know), then you may have found more whimsy in the first few sips. That's not to say I won't enjoy the bottle!
1 of 4
2018 Ruza® Rosé 187ml Cans (4-Pack) — $17.99 (or $15.99 through the subscription)
California
Body: Light
Sweetness: Dry
Alcohol: 12.5%
Winemaking: Vegan
Cans, how fun! I had reservations a year or so ago about reviewing this box when it was offered to me because I'm very much a fan of cheap beer. In the age of ultra-hoppy this and barrel-aged that, I find myself drawn to the consistent comfort of a certain blue-ribboned aluminum in my hand. This gang of canned rosé is a nice culmination of who I was (and still largely am) pre-Winc, and who I am a whole year later. This tin-clad vino comes in with lime zest, raspberry, rhubarb, and strawberry tasting notes—all things I quite like! It's zippy, friendly, and the small size of the can is almost comical in nature, but still get the job done. I crown it my favorite of the month. Sure, this doesn't seem like the most seasonally apropos choice as we glide our way into the months of heavy, dark wines and heavy, cream-colored casseroles, but I laugh in the face of convention and choose to delight in these all the same.
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2018 Pacificana Chardonnay — $15.99 (or $13.99 through the subscription)
California
Body: Medium
Sweetness: Dry
Alcohol: 13.3%
Winemaking: Vegan
This bottle of white made an appearance back in my August delivery. A quick sip reveals this one still holds up just as I remember it, so here's my take from the last go:
"Described as striking “the perfect balance between oaky, buttery richness and fruity elegance,” this one immediately had my attention. The promised notes of apple, honeysuckle, oak, and—get ready for this—buttered popcorn only added to the allure. I thought stone notes in wine were wild, but popcorn? I can get down with that. The butteriness was prevalent but welcome, which certainly explains where the popcorn note comes from. I’m a fan! I also appreciated the medium body and the general smoothness of this one.
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2017 Finke's Sparkling White Blend — $15.99 (or $12.99 through the subscription)
California
Body: Light
Sweetness: Dry
Alcohol: 12.5%
Winemaking: Eco-friendly, vegan
Opening my box and seeing this bottle inside had me thinking, "you again?" I keep receiving sparkling whites from Winc with greater frequency, and if I'm not careful to check out my month's selections and make adjustments before the box ships, I tend to end up with them time and again. That's not to say they aren't enjoyable, I'm just on sparkling wine overload in my fridge right now, and there are so many other options I'd much rather try than the same bottle over, and over, and over again. I'm thinking Winc has a hefty excess inventory of this white blend, which would explain a few things. As for taste, it's dry, effervescent, and pretty much what you'd expect from a $16 bottle of bubbles.
Verdict: Winc was just okay this month, and if you subscribe to anything at all, you'll know these times happen to all of us. I could have done more to ensure I didn't receive two repeats (especially that sparkling white blend), but life happens, and sometimes that's just the luck of the draw. The little cans of rosé were certainly a lot of fun, though. Looking past the items, I'm a fan of the Winc experience as a whole; the user interface is great, the customer service is outstanding, and you can't beat the convenience of it all. Even though this was far for my favorite month, I'm still fond of Winc and certainly recommend it if you're curious.
To Wrap Up:
Can you still get this box if you sign up today? Since Winc allows you to choose your wine, you can get any combination you’d like any month. As of publication, all the bottles I received are available, so you could duplicate this box if you feel so inclined! Sign up today and curate your own selection, or let them choose a few bottles for you.
Value Breakdown: This box cost $58.96 for three full bottles of wine and one 4-pack of rosé, but had a retail value of $67.96, so that's a savings of $9.00 by having the subscription.
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