We’ve compiled a comprehensive list of all reputable wine clubs in the UK. A brief information on their offering, delivery, returns policy, promotions and organic wines selection is also provided so you can make up your mind about joining a wine plan (that is how some wine clubs call their wine subscription services) or several.
Please note that we do not rate wine clubs in this review. For our careful recommendation of wine clubs to join please visit our Best UK wine clubs page here or read our wine clubs and wine subscription recommendations below.
All wine clubs in the UK
Naked Wines
A customer-funded wine project, become an ‘angel’ and give £20 a month to fund talented, independent winemakers who want to set up their own business, but don’t have the cash to do so. The money is invested in grapes, winery space, barrels, bottles and other direct costs and in return, the customer gets discounts off every bottle.
It’s best to read the terms and conditions so you’ll realise the full potential of becoming an angel and the benefits you’ll receive, but in short, they bypass the middlemen and offer the wines to their ‘angels’ at close to wholesale prices.
Every wine has a customer rating, with eight wines at 100%, which means all those who have already purchased it would buy again. Johan Kruger, a South African winemaker has the highest rating bottle with his Kruger Family Elements, said to give Bordeaux a run for its money. The ‘Angels’ price for this is £10.99, which is a very good job done by Naked Wines.
Delivery:
£4.99 standard delivery, with free delivery on a case of 12 or more.
Returns:
Easy returns on damaged or unsuitable wines. Use live chat or call to organise a fuss-free collection.
Promotions:
Receive a £30 first wine plan discount – meaning a mixed case of 6 bottles costs only £19.99. This is a standard offer, yet we have teamed up with Naked Wines, so you can snatch our exclusive £60 off deal (for your first order of £99.99 or more). It means that your first case worth £100 can be bought with just £40! Amazing! (you would need a voucher code and a password, which are Code: IBTW6, Password: ASP32XYN). Click here to claim your Naked Wines discount (don’t forget to enter the codes). Happy to help!
Other notes:
Their team is available to answer queries from Monday to Saturday. Give them your likes and dislikes and they’ll be able to give you tailored recommendations. A nice touch is being able to leave a message to the winemaker, who often responds to any comments and questions.
Laithwaite’s and Sunday Times Wine Club
Having started life as ‘Bordeaux Direct’ in 1969 and selling only one type of wine, Tony Laithwaite’s company has become the UK’s No.1 home-delivery wine merchant and is the current UK wine merchant of the year. With over 1500 wines to choose from, there’s something to suit all tastes and budgets. You’ll find a bottle of 2009 Saint-Estèphe Chateau Tronquoy-Lalande with cigar box, cassis and blueberry aromas for £35 and a 4* rated ‘Party Perfect’ Hungarian Campanula Pinot Grigio at £6.99. Customer reviews and ratings might help or hinder as you get sucked into the time vacuum of reading other people’s thoughts.
Join their wine plan (wine club) and receive 50% off your first case of 12 bottles, with free delivery and two free stemless glasses. All wines come with tasting cards, and future orders have 10% off and can be cancelled at any time.
Delivery:
Standard delivery is £3.95 but if you plan on becoming a Laithwaite’s regular, receive free unlimited deliveries for a £24 annual fee.
Returns:
Often praised for their excellent customer service, they are so confident in their wine buying, they offer an exchange or no-quibble 100% money back guarantee, and will even collect the offending bottle(s).
Promotions:
Check out the Laithwaite’s Bin Ends section for cases of 12 bottles from £77.88 (£6.49/bottle).
Organic selection:
While they do have occasional bottles of organic wines, there isn’t a dedicated organic selection to choose from.
Other notes:
In case you need help choosing which wine goes best with Sunday dinner, call or live chat with their wine advisors seven days a week.
A fairly new addition to UK’s wine club market, this French wine club is inspired / powered by Ritz chef and offers a subscription model. You can opt for either standard ‘Grape Expectations’ pack which is £24.9 to receive two bottles from relatively unknown producers but good quality; ‘Age of Raisin’ is what they call their more premium selection, again two bottles from top notch vineyards, this will cost you £39.9.
You will receive your first box will their Gazette, which introduces you to the club and sets the scene. We have found it to be a very nice touch.
Le Petit Ballon has sent us an example of the boxes they send normally. The packaging was good, all safe and secure, explanation of the wines was there and we did like their attention to detail.
As for the wines we have received a bottle of Cotes du Rhone red, which was non-organic and fairly average in its entirety. The bottle of organic rose wine was very good – it has all qualities of refreshing rose wine with luscious strawberries and cream flavour profile. It is not to say that organic tastes better (which was the case in our selection), but it proves the point that you need to taste, taste and again taste your wines.
Other notes: a passionate wine club with interesting food pairings suggestions and very nice marketing; wines are hit and miss, but we don’t expect anything below the par. Classy selection for wine drinkers who like surprises.
Virgin Wines
(buy a Virgin Voucher to get even more value)
Browse over 500 wines, but you must buy a full a case before checking-out, so expect to purchase at least 12 bottles at Virgin Wines. Alternatively, join one of their two wine clubs, ‘The Discovery Club’ and ‘JustREDS’. The first month’s membership allows you to choose a case for £59.98 and they will ship a case every three months as well as at Christmas, but you can stop deliveries at any time and get your money back for any bottles you simply don’t like. They also hold online wine auctions and run a wine bank scheme. We find their wines quite dull, so after getting the most out of their wines from the first delivery, you can simply cancel the plan.
Delivery:
£7.99 per order, next day delivery. Spend £150 for free delivery.
Returns:
A hassle-free 90 day returns policy, with a full refund if you don’t like a bottle. Virgin Wines will collect a full case if one bottle has been opened and rejected by you.
Promotions:
Nothing really of much interest, but they normally have some special deals on themed cases of wine.
Organic Selection:
They have a choice of 21 organic wines from £8.99 to £44.99, so it is not a great selection and you will quickly run out of options.
Other notes:
Virgin Wines makes it easy for you to buy wines online, join wine plan and return anything unsuitable. If you need some help making a choice, call or email a free wine advisor for assistance no matter if you know next to nothing or consider yourself a wine aficionado. Please note that their marketing is quite intrusive with a lot of mailers, calls, and we find this quite annoying. Wine Advisors have some extra offers to give you, which is normally £1-2 off a bottle of wine, so you can save up to £20 on a tailored case, but again we find it difficult to find enough options what to buy there. Ouch.
Rude Wines
Rude Wines company was established by two wine enthusiasts who wanted to do away with the wine snobbery and complicated tasting notes aspect of wine buying and simply offer a quality yet down to earth service to like-minded customers. With around 200 wines in stock, and preferring small producers to big brands, they are always seeking undiscovered gems and as such is one of the UK’s few stockists of Peruvian wines. Minimum order is a 12 bottle mixed case.
Delivery:
They currently offer free delivery on all orders.
Returns:
A robust cancellation and returns policy mean they have a 100% satisfaction guarantee. Unopened bottles can be returned up to 14 days after the date of delivery, and you don’t have to pay for any wines you don’t like.
Promotions:
Rude Wines has a VIP club (exclusive wine plan) costing £99 per quarter entitling you to an almost exhaustive list of free delivery on every order, 25% off any order, a 12 bottle case from a different region every three months, invitations to wine tasting events, your own wine advisor and wine tasting folder. Alternatively, try their six bottle Intro Case for £50.45 and receive two Dartington crystal glasses and three months of free VIP membership. The perfect solution to see you through the party season is a mixed case of 12 bottles, two champagne flutes and a free bottle of bubbly for £76.99 delivered.
Organic Selection:
Three organic wines in stock, all around £20.
Other notes:
A team of dedicated wine advisors with a century of wine experience between them ensure you get a personal, bespoke service. If you need to know how to serve wines, the best foods to have with them and the winemakers they work with, they are eager to help by phone or email.
Adnams Cellar and Kitchen
Adnams Cellar and Kitchen is a relatively new name on the wine radar, yet established in 1872 they are best known as brewers of beer. Their website is clean and somewhat simplistic, yet it all clearly identified and easy to navigate (through wines, beers, spirits). Adnams Cellar also offers a wine club, where you can get a 10% discount and regular shipments of your favourite drinks.
Delivery:
Adnams Cellar has a £5.99 standard delivery charge or spends £60 for free delivery. £7.5 will get you a next day delivery service (as opposed to a standard of 3-5 days).
Returns:
They offer a straightforward returns policy offering you an option to return wines within a month of purchase. Delivery charge is non-refundable. Should you receive a damaged package you should indicate this to a delivery company straightaway, so the process is quicker.
Promotions:
No major promotional activity apart from free delivery on orders of £60 or more.
Organic selection
:
Wide selection of organic produce (51 items currently) with a range coming from France, Italy and Spain, but also from other regions. The range is balanced, so you can find bottles around £7-£8 mark, but also £30 for some more premium positions.
Other notes:
They are not a wine specialist as such, so prepare to also find kitchenware, food, vouchers and corporate sections on their website. Tempted to see what they have in their range – visit their online shop here.
Fortnum and Mason wine club
Some retailers simply do not require introductions. Established in 1707, Fortnum and Mason is one of the most reputable food department stores. They are traditional, conservative and expensive, and will meet your expectations with regards to superior quality. Mixed Wine Cases selection is small – 14 items -, yet very exclusive; they have also displaying Fortnum’s House Selection of 20 different bottles ranging from £9.90 for the Ordinary Claret and to £150 for a double magnum of Margaux.
Delivery:
Standard delivery charge is £5.95 and increasing to £9.95 for the next day one. You can also click and collect your order for free.
Returns:
Broken items could be returned within 30 days, faulty – within 28 days. For other cases, it is not certain how they will treat it as they state in their policy that food items cannot be returned. Yet should you wine be corked, you can send it back as faulty.
Promotions:
Fortnum & Mason is currently offering 15% off their mixed wine cases.
Organic selection:
Nothing thus far.
Other notes:
It is a question how their selection matches a rather steep charge, yet for those who prefer a classic selection of Bordeaux, Burgundy and quality Champagne, Fortnum & Mason will serve as an excellent alternative. Wine club has an additional incentive to join (15% discount).
Marks and Spencer wine club
M&S is a reputable food retailer and has recently launched their online wine club, so you can benefit from a selection of their wines delivered to your door. A very straightforward selection of wines and only two options – Club Classic and Club Reserva are offered. Please see what is currently on offer in their wine club here.
Delivery:
£3.99 next day delivery or free for orders of £50 or more. This is another example of great value for money. Don’t you think you will spend much more on petrol or public transport? Order by 10 pm to get your case next day – what a fabulous offer.
Returns:
They state that most items bought online can be returned or exchanged for free. A variety of shipping options are offered, so you would have a convenient way to return something that is not up to scratch. Please see M&S site for more on returns.
Promotions:
Get £10 off your first wine club case.
Organic selection:
None so far.
Berry Bros and Rudd
BBR does not need a lot of special introductions – we all know this well-established wine merchant just off Green Park, yet what is rather hidden (we haven’t found much information in-store) is their wine club. They offer monthly cases ranging from £60 to £150 and you are guaranteed to receive it together with tasting notes, producer notes, some information on the producing regions and grapes, so you can also learn more about wines in general.
Delivery:
Standard delivery is £7.50 and free when you spend more than £100. The advanced options (Next day and Saturday) are £12.50, which is quite steep comparing to other clubs.
Returns:
A bit stricter policy requiring you to inform them in writing. They will also charge £10 for a collection if necessary. Overall, they seem to be reputable enough to provide an excellent service, yet they do not guarantee a full refund if something goes wrong.
Promotions:
Currently, they offer 25% on sparkling wines and a further 10% discount for wines and events when you are a wine club subscriber.
Organic selection:
Not much at all, they do not seem to focus on organic wines, unfortunately.
The Sampler
The Sampler is an amazing wine store to visit – it provided us with a lot of inspiration to do more for the world of wine. When you are actually there you can sample the wines from the tasting machines and decide for yourself which ones you like and which ones not so much. They also run their wine club, which offers 6 bottles a month for the price of £100 whilst £150 a quarter will get you a good 12-bottle case and if you want to splash out a bit more just spend £300 for 12-bottle Deluxe case. It is pricey, but the selection of wine is quite interesting, so if you are running out of options they can definitely tailor a wine plan specifically for you.
Delivery:
Free for all wine club cases. Fantastic.
Returns:
No information. Weird.
Promotions:
20% off your first wine subscription case.
Organic selection:
Quite a wide selection of rare organic wines.
The Wine Society
It is certain that they are the biggest wine club in the UK if you count their dozens of thousands of members. Wine Without Fuss is their wine club, which offers a rather flexible opportunity to get your cases delivered to you – be it once a month or once a year. You can choose from Everyday selection, Premium case or French classics and they will cost you from £83 to £149 respectively. You can choose the frequency yourself. Wine buyers who are one of the best in the industry carefully select the wines, so they offer not just wines, but educational sensory experience as well. Their wine plan is one of the best in terms of value for money.
Delivery:
Free UK delivery for the wine club cases
Returns:
No questions asked return policy (how it should be).
Promotions:
No promotions are available right now.
Organic selectionthewinesociety.com:
You can select from a few dozen of organic wines, there is also a special organic wine page you can choose from their menu, but the choice is limited as the range is not growing much lately.
Avery’s
Wine merchants established 1793 and operating a very clean website offering a goof selection of wines including all possible options – En Primeur, Fine Wines, and of course Wine Plans (wine club to both of us). Every three month you can get a selection wines based on your wine plan subscription and enjoy a further 10% discount. Tasting notes are provides including the ones for sneak previews, so you can get a feel for your next case.
Delivery:
Free delivery
Returns:
They guarantee a full refund or exchange for whatever reason possible. Simply call them if you’re not satisfied with your wine plan bottle.
Promotions:
£50 off Classics and Bordeaux Discovery cases. Free bottle of Prosecco when signing up. Cheerful welcome indeed.
Organic selection:
The site’s function doesn’t work correctly as ‘organic’ search does not return any results, yet we have managed to find at least five different wines that are certified organic. Not a great selection and the wines are fairly uninteresting.
Stone, Vine and Sun wine merchants
Cheerful website, just slightly outdated in terms of its design and functionality. Wine Club is not easy to find as they call it a Doorstep Dozen service. Three different cases are offered: Stone Case (£80), Vine Case (£100) and Sun Case (£120) and the selection varies from just fruity and fresh wines to ‘vin de terroir’ selection’ and finally famed and up and coming appellations around the world. You need to call or email them to join their wine plan. Tasting notes for every bottle will be provided. You should expect 2 bottles of three whites and three reds in each case.
Delivery:
£5.95 for a case of 12 bottles and rises, will be free for orders over £150.
Returns:
They state that they are not expecting the returns as everything is carefully selected and prepared, yet should there be a breakage they also expect a courier company rot del with it themselves. If you still find a wrong bottle in your case you should call them immediately. No further returns guarantee is given.
Promotions:
Nothing clearly advertised.
Organic selection:
At least three dozen of quite exciting organic wines ranging from £9.25 to under £30. A fair selection for a good value.
All Wine Clubs in the UK: or verdict on the best wine plan
You can see that the majority of wine clubs in the UK is not flawless. Some of them offer exciting ranges but forget to deal with returns, some are full of promotional activities and wine offers, but do not pay attention to how competitive their delivery charge is.
I Blame The Wine recommends Sunday Times Wine Club for the exceptional customer service – peace of mind for your deliveries, returns, refunds and exchanges; however they do not have many organic or natural wines sadly.
Do not miss out on a Naked Wines super saver deal too – head to their website and enter the codes for a superb discount: Code: IBTW6 Password: ASP32XYN.
For the best wine deal on a wine club we recommend Organic Wine Club – they are young but mighty with with their health conscious subscription cases. Do not miss out on introductory offers there too, sign up for the newsletter to get £8 off your order over £50 or use our code NEW10 to get 10% off your order.
Cheers!
