So this is not a new phenomenon, but holy cow guys give me a break with the shipping. I look at the release and say “$23 for a Rose of this quality - I’ll take that all day”. I sign up for 8 bottles and it’s $52 shipping to Minnesota. Whoa. All of a sudden it’s $30 per bottle! “Maybe 8 bottles means they have to pay for shipping a full case” - I up it to 12 bottles. Nope - $66 shipping! Taking my full allocation of 24 doesn’t help either. I get this is a cheaper wine and they don’t have the flexibility to offer shipping like someone could shipping a case of $50 wine, but they need to cut some kind of case deal. Bedrock will ship a case of $19 OVZ for $25!
Most likely using a fulfillment contractor/3rd party shipper.
I looked until I got to the $27 to ship 4 bottles ground to East coast.
I like AR and their other associates ventures and use to buy liberally. Dropped them a few ears ago because of the ridiculous shipping costs. With the substantially higher margins selling direct to consumers and a need not to undercut wholesale/retail, I think shipping is the one thing wineries can and should subsidize. They don’t have to of course, but I for one move on.
The shipping costs keep me from buying many winery direct wines.
Same thought here. I was ready to order a few bottles until I saw the shipping cost.
I’ve stopped buying A-R directly solely because of shipping, and just wait for whatever my local wine shops happen to get (and if I miss out on something ultra-allocated and unique then I will live). Based on conversations elsewhere on WB, they (A-R) certainly are not making money on shipping, but $5-6+ per bottle seems a bit egregious (even if the cost is what the cost is for them being a very small winery producing less than 5,000 cases annually).
Either way, as many others have opined, the sea of wine available always provides a suitable QPR substitute.