Céline Bossart
Currently, Wonderful offers three core wines: red, white and rosé.
Wonderful’s whimsical, technicolor aesthetic gives an immediate allure to the brand. It’s a fun and playful interpretation of the natural wine scene, one that’s inherently far-out but can, at times, come across a bit stuffy to the everyday drinker. So what do Cooper and other wine experts think about Winc bridging the gap between the two worlds?
“I love the tone, the irreverence and feel,” says Chris Dukelow, founder of sustainable monthly subscription service Irreverent Wine, which reduces its carbon footprint by packaging its exclusive wines in recyclable pouches. Like Dukelow, Wonderful has paid attention to packaging as part of their eco-friendly efforts, using lightweight glass bottles that require less energy and water to produce than traditional bottles, and reduce the brand’s carbon emissions by approximately 26 percent, Wonderful claims. Additionally, the boxes used to ship Wonderful’s bottles to consumers are made from 70 percent recycled material, and are fully recyclable and 95 percent compostable.
Dukelow points out that sourcing and shipping wine internationally is, by definition, not the most sustainable practice. On the other hand, Wonderful bottles its wine post-import, which reduces emissions when compared to standard wine shipping practices. Ultimately, he thinks they’re headed in the right direction. “It’s where wine really needs to go in this changing consumer environment,” he says.
Former Winc members Stephanie Watanabe and Eric Hsu, who co-founded of Coast and Valley, a Brooklyn wine bar focusing on wines from California (as well as wines that give back to both society and the environment) consider Winc as a whole a “fun way to explore wine,” especially for those getting their feet wet. “[Winc] made wine less pretentious and fun (which is something we aim for at our wine bar as well),” says Watanabe. But when it comes to Wonderful, these natural wine experts think that while using buzzwords like “keto” and “paleo” does cater to the health and wellness community, there’s also room to educate consumers on the wine itself — Watanabe and Hsu don’t feel that Wonderful is addressing the natural winemaking movement, per se.
“Consumers care about the entire winemaking process, so it’s important to address that,” Watanabe says. “People are drinking wines in restaurants, bars, buying at the grocery store or liquor shops, [so] they need at least a little knowledge about what kind of wines they’re looking for in order to make an educated decision.”
At the end of the day, Cooper thinks that Wonderful has tapped into a smart niche. “There's definitely a place in the market for people who want to enjoy wine but want to remain mindful of how it can fit into their healthy lifestyle,” she says. “Brands that are launching wines to cater to people with specific food preferences are doing a good job of reading the room.”'
Winc member or not, you can head to The Wonderful Wine Co.’s own website to purchase these wines in packs of three, six or 12 right now ($60, $110, and $215 respectively). Here are your options:
Choose a three-pack, six-pack, or case (12 bottles) of The Wonderful Wine Co.’s Malbec, a single vineyard wine from Mendoza, Argentina that balances red fruit, spice and silky tannins.
Choose a three-pack, six-pack, or case (12 bottles) of The Wonderful Wine Co.’s white blend, a dry wine from France — crisp and clean with notes of lemon curd and green apple.
Choose a three-pack, six-pack, or case (12 bottles) to try the red, white and rosé, a great summer wine with bright red berry, rose petal, melon and light cherry notes.
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