What is Wine.Woot?

General

Wait, back up second: what is Woot?

Woot is the zany e-tailing upstart from whose loins Wine.Woot sprung (along with an ever-expanding roster of other sites). The one thing they all have in common is great new deals, every day. The main Woot FAQ goes into the whole story in way too much detail.

Can I really buy wine on the Internet?

Thanks to our esteemed Supreme Court, recent and dramatic changes in how wine can be sold and delivered in the U.S. allow wineries to market their wines directly to the online consumer. Lucky for us (and you), premium wineries have started to wake up to this newfangled World Wide Web thing and are motivated, dare we say thirsty, to reach a new audience. It all adds up to the best wine deals in the country, one vintage at a time.

We're talking breakthrough stuff here, connecting wine producers to, er, let's say "connoisseurs" in the most efficient and cost-effective way possible. Call it disintermediation, call it cutting out the middleman, just don't call us late for the wine tasting.

Is this one of those monthly-fee wine club deals?

No, this isn't one of those monthly-fee wine club deals. We don't lock you into buying a series of offerings from one producer or region. Buy once a week, or once a year, or once a millennium. Pick and choose whatever sparks your tongue, the way the Founding Fathers intended. The power is yours. Use it wisely, grasshopper.

I'm new to wine. I'm confused, intimidated, and frankly a little frightened. Can I trust that I'm being sold the good stuff?

If you're just getting hip to the whole wine trip, you'll find a variety of premium, ultra-premium, and mega-super-premium wines from known wineries. Most of the time, anyway. On the rare occasion that the site features some off-brand rotgut, we'll tell you. And we just might throw the odd gourmet food or wine accessory at you, if we're feeling puckish - especially on Thursdays. Fear not, n00b – our wines will be great to cut your teeth on (not literally, unless something goes terribly, terribly wrong).

How do I know whether to buy a certain wine? Who can I trust in the forums?

Dave Studdert is a wine expert you may see in the forums (username winedavid39). He is one of the co-founders of Wine Country Connect, the company that facilitates the winery offering their wines through wine.woot.com (also providing fulfillment logistics support and acting as a liaison between us and the winery). He also invites the winemakers to join in the discussion of each sale, which they usually do. (Occasionally they even write a piece for our blog.) And the most insightful posts in each discussion are highlighted in the first post of the thread, under the heading Quality Posts. Just hang around the threads for a while, and you'll get a feel for who's full of wine wisdom and who's just full of it.

What if I get bad wine or a damaged shipment?

First of all, if you think the wine tastes bad, wait a few minutes and try another sip. It may need to "open up" (wine term) or your palate might be "wack" (colloquial term). It's amazing how much food alters the flavor of wine: eat a vinaigrette-soaked salad first and even a ‘68 Rothschild will taste like Windex. But after you have appropriately cleansed the palate region (not with soap or anything – eat some bread, cheese or chocolate) and the stuff still tastes lousy, contact us and we'll coordinate with the winery to send you a replacement. And of course, you can skip the palate-cleansing stuff and just get ahold of us for a replacement if the bottle is broken.

If I like the wine - or I missed one I want - can I buy more later?

As the gorilla told the bartender, "Not at these prices." It's possible the winery might have some more to offer you at full price, but you're on your own there.

Who is Wine Country Connect?

Wine Country Connect is a posse straight outta Sonoma, California, and are experts when it comes to the nectar of the gods of which we speak. They've been at this a while and gots the inside connects, if you catch our drift. They also really know a bargain when they see one. WCC identifies and sources high-value wines in their ‘hood (and a sprinkling from Oregon, Washington, and beyond), and then works with the winery to facilitate them offering their wines through wine.woot.com (also providing fulfillment logistics support and acting as a liaison between us and the winery).

Is my user information shared with the winery?

Ultimately, yes. Since the winery is the seller of the wine, they (and Wine Country Connect) need this information to complete the sale and fulfill your order. We can't imagine any problems arising from this, but if being on record somewhere as a wine-drinker bothers you, you may want to think twice about ordering.

What states can you ship to?

"We" ain't shipping jack. Wine.Woot is an advertising platform that connects consumers like you to wineries that want to sell their products directly to consumers. The wineries do the actual selling and shipping, and each winery operates under its own peculiar web of permits and statutes. So each Wine.Woot deal is posted with its own specific list of approved states. Be sure to check that list for details. If your state's not on the list, no wine for you!

How long is shipment going to take?

You should get your wine in 2-3 weeks, often sooner. We know the wait is kind of a drag. But it's still gonna taste good (maybe even better), and since we leave it to the wineries to get the wine to you, you can count on their experience to send their wine using their expert methodologies.

What about shipping during the summer months? How do I know my wine won't get damaged in the heat?

Because during the summer months, your wine will be shipped with special precautions to keep it in peak drinking condition, whether that means logistical wizardry, faster delivery, refrigerated shipping, or some combination of all three. Wine Country Connect has been helping wineries get their products to consumers come heat, humidity, or dust storm for years now. Just chill. They got this.

I'm under the age of 21 – can I order wine?

You know the old adage "there are no stupid questions"? Congratulations, you've just proven it wrong. All wine shipments must be ordered, paid for, and signed for by someone aged 21 or over. No exceptions.

What if I'm not around to sign for the shipment?

If no one is home, the shipper (UPS and FEDEX) will generally attempt to deliver the package two more times, and leave a notification after the third attempt with a number for you to call to arrange delivery options. If none of that works, we'll step in and contact you to resolve the sitchee-ation. We highly recommend using a business address when ordering, to ensure that a person aged 21 or over will be present to sign for this package (assuming you live in a state that allows a receptionist or receiving clerk to sign for it if you're not available to receive it personally from the carrier, and the business isn't staffed by teenagers).

What if I am visibly intoxicated when the package arrives?

You will not be allowed to receive it. Seriously. That's the rule, fool. You've been advised.

Can I send wine as a gift?

Yes, as long as the person signing for the package is 21 years of age.

I noticed a sales tax charge at checkout - where does that come from?

The wine deals featured on Wine.Woot come direct from the wineries. Each of these wineries has its own web of licensing obligations, tax policies, and local laws to deal with. So Wine.Woot calculates sales taxes on the wineries' behalf in accordance with their instructions. These instructions vary depending on the tax laws in each state.

What's up with this "Buy Now" business?

No Shyamalanian twist here. "Buy Now" means your Wine.Woot purchase bypasses the shopping cart process. When you click "Buy Now," you'll be whisked away to the checkout page to complete your purchase.

But I've got stuff from another Woot site in my cart. How does that work?

Those items will have to be purchased in a separate transaction from your Wine.Woot purchase. That's kind of obnoxious and a little cumbersome, but it'll make the wine taste that much sweeter.

I just want to buy my freakin' wine already. How do I pay for this resplendent ambrosia?

You need to use Login and Pay with Amazon to purchase items from Wine.Woot.

What is "Login and Pay with Amazon?"

Login and Pay with Amazon, which combines the power of Login with Amazon and Amazon Payments, is a handy set of features that links your Woot account with your Amazon-stored shipping and payment settings. It enables you to complete the checkout process with all the speed and finesse of a soaring falcon, if falcons were oenophilic capitalists possessing opposable thumbs.

How do I use "Login and Pay with Amazon?"

To begin using Login and Pay with Amazon, you need to have an Amazon.com account. If you don't have an Amazon.com account, let us be the first to welcome you to Planet Earth. You're going to love it here. Once your Amazon account is set up, just head over to our sign-in page and click "Login with Amazon." Enter all the relevant payment and shipping info. Boom. Done.

What purchases made via Amazon Payments are covered by Amazon's A-to-z Guarantee?

All purchases made from Woot.com except for wine will be covered by Amazon Payments A-to-z Guarantee. Please click here to see the full terms of the A-to-z Guarantee.

What's up with the shipping charge?

Wine.Woot is decidedly weird, so shipping works a little differently than the other Woot sites. When you place an order on Wine.Woot, standard shipping is included in the item price.

Fine Print (if not fine prose)

Winery is the seller of record. All state and federal laws are adhered to in the marketing of this wine.