Over the past few years, as I realised that my guests knew more about wine than I did, and I couldn’t get away with choosing the wine at our local grocery store based on what the little tag said (“Clean finish, good with fish, Parker 90”), I have tried various solutions. Bought the best selling wine book from dot.comer turned sommelier, Mark Oldman – never got past Chapter 7 (and they are short). Would head to our local wine shop, K&L, load up a basket based on what they told me to buy, bring it home and have no idea what I bought – let alone be able to describe to my dinner guests that weekend.

Ok..maybe the web could help. Checked out a few wine blogs, such as DrVino – but what, spend 30 mins Saturday morning reading tasting notes, before heading to the wine store? I, probably like most of you, wanna drink wine, not read about it. Wine Spectator or Robert Parker – both great databases of reviews, pay to read (around $75 a year), and still means I need to do lots of work before heading to the store.

So, I joined a wine club. Not one of those lame clubs that send you whatever wine they had too much of, but version 2.0 of the wine club: wines from boutique and estate wine producers only, chosen based on your own tastes, and over time, based on wines you rate. And the wines are sent
with tasting notes (also provided online in your virtual cellar).

I joined the Bottlenotes.com Connoisseurs Club (they have a total of 6 membership plans), and for $300 a month, I get six bottles sent to me (plus $10 for shipping). If I like any of the wines they send, I can buy them a la carte. So I get great wine, not typically found at Costco, with tasting notes, that I can pour at dinner, and not be embarassed by the wine snob neighbour who thinks that chicks dig hearing about “terroir”. Do they?