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Saturday, February 15th
Wine Insiders is an online wine store that hopes to make shopping for wine easy, convenient, and fun. It also promises to make it more affordable. When considering how to design the site, the team at Wine Insiders wanted to avoid the feeling of a grocery store wine aisle: a wall of wine with no helpful details. So, Wine Insiders created an online wine store that mixes the affordability of traditional retail prices but offers the ease of use that comes from an online platform. They partner with wineries to get you the deals directly, so you're not paying for exorbitant markups.
220 wines with a vintage from 2018
Wine Insiders offers 220 different wines focusing primarily on the three major wine styles: red, white, and rosé. Breaking them down, we found 130 red wines, 18 rosés, and 72 whites. You'll find wines from 10 different countries. Most of the selections come from the United States (54 wines), but there are plenty from Spain and Italy too. You'll also see wine from Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, Hungary, Mexico, and South Africa. The earliest vintage we found at Wine Insiders was from 2018.
Clean site with simple filters
You can easily browse all of the wines offered by Wine Insiders or simplify your search by looking at sets, featured wines, or wine collections by celebrity partners like Martha Stewart, Geoffrey Zakarian, and Ludo Lefebvre. When you decide how you want to browse, the site offers filters like color, sweetness, country, varietal, and vintage to narrow the bottles to the perfect wine for you. Some additional filters include wines separated by those that have won awards, those that are 100% organic, staff picks, and vegan wines. While it isn't the most robust filtering system (like the one offered by our top pick), it does the job and Wine Insiders remains easy to use.
Prices from $9.99 to $27.99
The prices at Wine Insiders are meant to be impressively low. So, to compare the numbers with other wine stores in our review, we looked at the price ranges for all three of Wine Insiders' major selections: red, white, and rosé. We also looked for the most expensive vintage offered at Wine Insiders to see how the top-quality wines stack up. Here's what we found from Wine Insiders:
In all, Wine Insiders succeeds at offering affordable wines. However, if you're looking for older or collectible vintages, you may be disappointed by the selection.
Shipping free if you buy 6+ bottles
Wine Insiders offers free shipping on any order of 6 or more bottles. Notably, you will need to purchase a minimum of 3 bottles of wine to complete checkout. If you don't reach the 6-bottle threshold, shipping will be around $14.95. There may also be a small processing fee. For our test order, the fee was $2.95. If you score free shipping, the processing fee will still apply, but it doesn't go up if you buy more bottles.
100% satisfaction guarantee
Wine Insiders offers a 100% satisfaction guarantee. If you're not completely happy with your wine (any wine for any reason), you can reach out to the Wine Insiders customer service and you'll get a refund. The fastest way to contact Wine Insiders is to call them or use the Live Chat feature. You can get your refund started anytime between 9:00 am to 6:30 pm (EST) on Mon-Fri. If you need help on a weekend, the hours are adjusted to 10:00 am-7:00 pm (EST).
Solid reviews, but could have more buzz
Wine Insiders has a solid presence on the few reviews that are out there. Trustpilot shows just 25 total reviews, but 48% of those are all 5 stars. There are a few more reviews on Sitejabber (1,036 total reviews) where Wine Insiders currently holds a 4.6-star average out of 5. Many of the reviews show customers who are consistently happy with the quality, free shipping options, and flavors of Wine Insiders' wines. There are multiple reviews commending the packaging for transit. From the few poor reviews, Wine Insiders could stand to improve its customer service responsiveness and better resolutions when issues do pop up. Thankfully, Wine Insiders does respond to every review (good and bad) with solutions on Sitejabber. Plus, Wine Insiders has an outstanding reputation with the Better Business Bureau where the company holds an "A+” rating as well as a 4.6-star average out of 5.
Great low-cost option
Wine Insiders is a great site for low-cost wines from a site that specializes in shipping wine directly to your door. If you're looking to try a couple of bottles of wine, this is a great no-commitment-required wine store. While it could use a little improvement in customer service, it's still a solid choice for your next low-cost wine store. For this reason, it earns a solid rating in our review.
It's 5 o'clock somewhere, and wherever you're located, shopping for the right wine can be a wonderful way to relax at the end of a long day. Whether you're looking for a perfect pairing to go with dinner or searching for a gift to surprise your in-laws, there's always an occasion for wine. And, it's no wonder wine is a favorite. It's been around for thousands of years.
The oldest known traces of grape wine production have been found in digs in Georgia (in Europe) that date back to 6000 BC. Wine has been a staple throughout Ancient Greece, the Roman Empire, and modern times. And it isn't location-specific, either. You can find wines made all over the globe, from the USA to the Middle East, to world-renowned wineries in Italy and France.
With so much history behind wine, it's not such a surprise that there are so many kinds to choose from. Whether you have a staple favorite or you're a burgeoning sommelier hoping to try them all, there are tons of choices from around the world. From Sauvignon Blanc to Merlot, or Chardonnay to Pinot Grigio, there are plenty of flavors, grapes, and vineyards to pick from.
You can even find some unique distilleries like those in Japan that offer Plum Wine or Rice Wine (better known as Sake). Whatever your pleasure, there's wine (or wines) out there just for you. You may never get tired of this longtime favorite boozy beverage. But the trick is finding the best wine store to score those sweet reds, fruity whites, or balanced rosés.
There are tons of places to find good, great, and rare wines, and it can be hard to decide where to start browsing. Whether you're looking to pick out a single bottle or stock your home wine cellar, shopping online can take a lot of the travel worries out of purchasing your favorite flavors. With access to wineries around the world, online wine stores offer a wider variety than at your local shop or a winery that just produces its own vintages. Plus, someone else can do the heavy lifting for you, so if you are buying a case (or two), getting the wine shipped through an online service can save you some sore muscles from moving the bottles from the shelf to the cart to the car.
Now, if your head is spinning from too many options, we've got your back. We get it, the internet is overflowing with wine stores and wines to choose from. How do you pick out the best wine store for your needs? To help you narrow the field (or vineyard, we should say), here are a few factors you can consider:
To help you with your home wine cellar (or maybe just a wine shelf), Top Consumer Reviews has reviewed and ranked today's top wine stores. We hope this helps you sit back, relax, and enjoy a glass or two of your favorite bubbly or fruity vintages. You deserve a little treat. And maybe, you'll be able to try some new flavors or wines you've never considered. Cheers!
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