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The TCM Wine Club is one of the most unique concepts on the market when it comes to online-based wine subscription services.
TCM stands for “Turner Classic Movies,” and the popular cable television channel has been playing some of the most loved and highly regarded classic American movies for decades.
The TCM Wine Club aims to pair different movies with different bottles of wine, each of which is branded with a famous actor or celebrity on the label.
With this unique concept, many are looking for a TCM Wine Club review to show them the ins and outs of the subscription service, which we have provided below.
Things To Consider When Choosing a Wine Club
There are many different considerations that need to be made when making the decision on which wine club is right for you. While budget and wine style are two of the first factors that come to mind when weighing different wine club options, there are other often overlooked considerations that can make a huge difference as well.
With so many new online services popping up over the past few years, it is important to choose a service that is either tied to a large brand or has an established history of providing high-quality and dependable service to its customers.
Many people are wary about handing over their credit card information to online companies, as there are plenty of scams out there on the internet that specializes in stealing credit card information. Always check with the Better Business Bureau before doing business with a new company.
It is also important to consider how many bottles of wine are included with each shipment, as well as how often new packages are shipped out. Choosing a wine club with too many bottles per month is a quick way to run out of storage space, which is a common reason for canceling.
Introducing the TCM Wine Club
It is important to choose a wine club that has an appropriate theme for the types and styles of wine that you enjoy. While many online-based wine club subscription services focus on a particular region or part of the world, the TCM Wine Club is a movie-based wine club.
Each bottle included in a TCM Wine Club package will include bottles of wine named after famous Hollywood movie stars from the past. Each label also prominently features pictures of these celebrities, and labels include interesting selections like Burt Reynolds Zinfandel.
Each shipment of wine from the Turner Classic Movies Wine Club features a full case of 12 bottles of wine, as well as classic films that are hand chosen to be enjoyed with that particular case. Printout cards are also included which feature details on each bottle including pairings.
These informational cards also include details about each bottle of wine including tasting notes that are great for new wine enthusiasts who are working to develop their palates. They also include information about each producer, including where and how the wine was produced.
The TCM Wine Club also represents a fantastic value to wine enthusiasts who are on a budget, including a fantastic introductory offer for first-time customers. The first shipment of 12 wines costs only $79.99, with a low flat rate shipping cost of $19.99.
TCM Wine Club Pros:
- Unique concept that is great for movie lovers
- Each bottle of wine features a different movie reference or Hollywood celebrity
- Associated with the large established large name brand TCM
- Great Introductory offer of just under $100 for 12 bottles
- Fun theme that is best suited for casual wine enthusiasts
- Informational cards included tasting notes and food pairings
TCM Wine Club Cons:
- Wines are of solid quality, but not particularly prestigious
- 12 bottles per shipment is too much wine for some casual drinkers
- Some enthusiasts prefer more recognizable bottles of wine
Features and Benefits of TCM Wine Club
With so many different wine subscription delivery services on the market today, it can be tough to tell what sets one apart from the other.
There are five primary features and benefits of the TCM wine club, and each contributes to it being one of the best and most unique wine delivery companies in business today.
Unique Movie-Based Theme
One of the biggest differences between the TCM Wine Club and the majority of other wine delivery services is the cinematic theme of each wine box. Turner Classic Movies is a very popular cable television channel that has decided to venture into the wine delivery business.
When each new wine package is delivered, a different printout is included that suggests certain movies to be enjoyed with each bottle. Oftentimes, the movie chosen for pairing prominently features the actor that is displayed on the bottle’s label.
While physical movies are not included in these shipment boxes, they display what times each movie will be played live on the Turner Classic Movies channel. TCM makes sure to choose movie pairings that are showing during the current month of deliveries.
Each bottle of wine that is included in TCM Wine Club subscription boxes features a different reference or movie star on the label, and some of the wines are also produced by Coppola, which is owned by the famous movie director Francis Ford Coppola.
Suggested food pairings are also included with each wine box, which is a thoughtful touch that can help to elevate each bottle. Sometimes the pairing suggestions are simple, such as popcorn or pretzels, and others can range as far as full step-by-step recipes.
While the idea of wine and movie pairings is a fairly experimental concept, the TCM wine club has pioneered the idea and used it successfully. Enjoying a bottle of Blues Brothers Petite Syrah while watching the Blues Brothers is a unique experience only possible with TCM Wine Club.
Selection of Wines
The TCM Wine Club features a number of different signature bottles of wine that can not be found anywhere else. With 12 different bottles included in each quarterly TCM shipment, there is enough variety to please all types of palates.
In addition to these exclusive cinema-themed “movie wines,” each shipment includes bottles of wine from around the world that are both value-driven and high in quality. Many of the producers sourced for these wine boxes are small in scale and do not have other distribution deals.
While the majority of the “private label” cinema wines are produced in smaller and less known wine regions of California, the rotating featured wines are from all over the world and include some fairly high-end producers from famous regions like Bordeaux.
The 2019 vintage of Château Mondain from Bordeaux, France is a fantastic bottle that is included in one of TCM’s “members only” crates. It is a Merlot-heavy blend that also features Cabernet Sauvignon and five percent Malbec, which is a rarity in the region.
There are also a number of very interesting bottles from more obscure regions in the world of wine, such as the 2019 vintage of Selección Especial Numerada 47 Pila No. 5, which is produced in the Navarra region of Spain.
Introductory Offer
For wine enthusiasts who are on a budget, the TCM Wine Club boasts one of the best introductory offers in the entire world of wine. While the WSJ Wine Club is home to the most famous introductory offer on the market, the TCM Wine Club offer is better in multiple ways.
First, the introductory shipment includes the standard 12 bottles, as well as three “classic movie wines” that are exclusive to the TCM Wine Club. This beats out the WSJ Wine Club’s offer by one bottle, as their very famous package for new customers includes 14 bottles.
The price of the TCM Wine Club’s introductory package is also virtually unbeatable, as all 15 of these included bottles cost just under $80, not including shipping.
The shipping cost is only $19.99, bringing the cost of the entire introductory offer to just under $100.
Value for the Price
One of the most important factors for many wine enthusiasts when it comes to choosing a wine subscription service is the price.
It is important to choose a wine subscription that is priced well within your budget to ensure you can continue enjoying the subscription over time.
While the TCM Wine Club’s introductory offer is one of the best in the industry in terms of price and value, the full-priced service is also renowned as one of the best values on the market. After the introductory offer is over, each full-priced wine box costs $149.99, plus shipping.
As with the introductory offer wine package, the shipping is a flat rate cost of $19.99, regardless of where in the country you are located. This comes out to a grand total of $169.98, which is still a great value considering the fact that each shipment includes a full 12-bottle case of wine.
With each bottle averaging out to just over $14, the TCM Wine Club offers fantastic value, as many of the wines are produced in prestigious regions where bottle prices can average more than triple the rate that TCM Wine Club charges.
Delivery and Reliability
There is no shortage of options when it comes to online-based wine delivery services these days, and with internet scams more prevalent than ever many customers are wary about handing over their credit card information to just any company.
Fortunately, the TCM Wine Club has been in business since the year 2015, which makes it one of the more established players in the internet-based wine subscription game. Since then, TCM has gained a reputation for both reliability and quality customer service.
The flat rate shipping offered by TCM wine club is one of the features that set it aside from many of its competitors, as other companies will often have variable shipping costs based on where the customer is located within the United States.
The TCM Wine Club offers delivery to 43 different states and the only states that they don’t ship to have laws in place that complicate the delivery of alcohol. A 21-year-old must be present at drop-off to sign for the package, and TCM alerts customers two weeks before a new shipment.
Alternatives to the TCM Wine Club
Naked Wines is a unique concept for a wine club that involves partnerships with small and independent wine producers. They use the funds gathered from membership fees to support small producers, who in exchange sell all of that season’s wine to Naked Wines at a discount.
This makes Naked Wines a great way to try new bottles of interesting wine while also taking pride in the fact that you are helping to support small and independent winemakers who need the funding to produce that year’s crop of new wine grapes.
WSJ Wine Club is one of the most established wine clubs in the industry, and they introduced many Americans to the concept of a remote-based wine club over a decade ago. They also have the power of the prestigious Wall Street Journal brand behind them.
The WSJ Wine Club became famous partially due to its top-of-the-line introductory offer. First-time customers receive 14 bottles of wine for a grand total of under $80 that includes shipping.
They deliver wines from all over the world, and each bottle is hand selected by the WSJ team.
Winc Wine Club is a popular online wine club that uses a proprietary quiz to help match customers with the best possible choices of wine for their palates. They offer affordable wines that often cost under $15 and are mainly sourced from California.
Winc Wine Club offers a large selection of different options when it comes to styles of wine, including many sugar-free, sustainable, and biodynamic options.
They also feature a large selection of vegan wines that are produced without the use of animal-derived fining agents.
TCM Wine Club Review – Conclusion
The TCM Wine Club is one of the best options on the market for wine enthusiasts who are also movie lovers, as it offers a unique cinematic-based spin on the traditional wine club business model.
Each bottle of wine features a different famous movie star, and movie pairings are included with each shipment as well as tasting notes and optimal food pairings for each.
Click here if the TCM Wine Club sounds like something you may enjoy, and be sure to take advantage of their fantastic introductory offer!
