Walter Scott Wolfpack

I thought I was out of the wine club game, but I’m tempted. I’m wondering if these are all unique bottles or just a spaced out monthly release of most of the current line up? I read the reference to small lots but it doesn’t say how many. Summer shipping always has me worried as well, do t know how you can pull it off without overnight and that’s just cost prohibitive?

Who’s pulled the trigger or has any thoughts?

I also am tempted…

If you go to their website, it looks like the have mostly gone all in on the Wolfpack idea. Almost all of the top wines are now accessible only with Wolfpack member login. I love WS wines, but now they seem to come with a $1380/year club commitment. I assume this is an effort to have steady monthly cash flow. But I find the monthly shipping idea curious. It seems a very expensive way for them to distribute wines.

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I’m planning on it. Since I live in Houston, I emailed Erica about the monthly shipping. She said they were adding a quarterly shipping option and meant to include it in the original announcement. Quarterly shipments in warmer months will also be temp controlled.

It’s a shrewd move as I am sure they are heavy DTC and on-premise and there is a huge risk in the hedge on-premise comes back this year.

Good for them offering wines to consumers that may have been allocated for restaurants prior vs. holding them.

Tempted as well, but I think two cases a year might be too much. Our cellar is around 350 bottles with no plans to go much above that. We consume around 60-70 bottles a year, so that kind of commitment would make it hard to enjoy the rest of the wine world. 6-12 bottles is more reasonable.

We will definitely talk about this on the zoom event on the 30th!

Man I wanted to try some of these during Quarantine Relief but I’m overflowing with wine at the moment.

:frowning:

Do it. You are actually missing out.

I’m new to Walter Scott but I’m pretty firm about not doing wine clubs. I like being a free agent and buying what I want. This is a hard pass for me. I’ll buy what’s left open if it still makes sense.

I’m sure they have great and valid reasons for doing it this way but I’m very disappointed by it. I’ve never tried the wine, but based on reviews here I ordered a mixed half case of two chardonnays that’s in the mail and was almost certainly going back for more after trying the first bottle or two. I’m just not interested in committing to two cases per year. Cult wines aside, it’s nice being able to buy what you want when you want. Maybe this is an easier sell for folks who’ve tasted more of the lineup. Oh well - onto the next one…

Yeah I e-mailed them about the monthly shipping as well and whether there would be a different option to consolidate shipment into quarterly or semi-annual shipments, thinking it may knock the price down. That’s a lot of shipping expenses to be doing monthly. Doesn’t appear that the quarterly option changes the price of club membership, but now all wine re-purchases are 15% off across the board.

I eschew wine clubs and memberships, and even with this Chard that appears to be the “in” wine right now, seems like an aggressive move in a terrible economy. That’s a big commitment for what is really a rather ubiquitous grape. I note that the X-Novo is still readily available in retail outlets, check Wine Searcher. It has always been atypical to me that you cannot find these “hot” wines in the after-market. Perhaps you pay a little more, but you only buy what you want.

After sleeping on it a night I think it’s a pass for me. I have no problem with it If they think they have the support to pull it off though, Rally around your hardest core of fans and give them access first.

I’ve decided I’m just not That interested in the Pinot To get auto shipments of two bottles of each, just to get access to the Chardonnay. Also even with quarterly shipping there’s still a July shipment. (and good point that it would seem the price should be slightly cheaper?)

They were really becoming a board darling so It will be interesting to see how this may affect perceptions and access to their wine. If folks who join the club don’t immediately reorder tons of wine, I’d think/hope most of the regular stuff will then Become available For the general public.

Robert,

While Charlie and Buzz fight to be the Christopher Columbus of Walter Scott Chardonnays, sorry guys they were already discovered in the NW, the Pinot Noirs have always been great and continue to be, while the last 4 years the Chardonnay has taken some of the attention away from them, but not for any reason other than great Chard is hard to find in America at a great price while Pinot is a bit easier.

Even if you don’t join, suggest you support them, regardless, wines and team are first class.

Yes, again I have no problem with the model if it works for them. I’m assuming it’s not going to sell out Most of the wine for those that want some after the club gets their pick.

I did a search the other day on the site (It worked :slight_smile:) and there were several folks espousing the virtues as early as 2011, but mainly it seems in 2013 support and praise picked up by a few followers of the winery. So yes the knowledge has been out there for those listening close enough. Personally, I just wasn’t drinking good domestic Chardonnay then and still don’t consume much domestic Pinot.

Yeah, I received the Wolfpack email yesterday afternoon as well. It appears that the Wolfpack will be a topic of conversation during next Saturday’s Zoom Event with Walter Scott and I’m sure that Erica, Ken or Andy will address any questions in this thread. Full disclosure, I’ve been a supporter and yearly visitor to Walter Scott since 2014, so 3 or 4 BC (Fu), and joining the Wolfpack will be a difficult decision for me. As much as I would like to join the club with Erica, Ken, Lucy, Andy, Sue, Jess, and the guys from the Hangover, I’m not sure that I want to join another Oregon wine club. I’m already a club member or mailing list subscriber at 10-20 Oregon wineries and I’m trying to trim the club list right now. I will say that I really like the way that PGC, Crowley, Goodfellow (?) and I’m sure many others handle their clubs with personal choice customization. I like picking my choice of 6-12 bottles twice a year.

Anyway, Ken and Erica are really good peeps and they make excellent wines across the board. These are challenging times for everyone and I’m sure that they will figure out the best way to administer the club. Regardless, I look forward to supporting Walter Scott for many years as a Wolfpacker or not.

James

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Agreed…as much as I support OR wineries and feel very positively about Walter Scott. There’s a great big wine world out there and thousands of high quality options that can be purchased without being in a club or maintaining a list commitment. I haven’t been a “club member” for many years and unlikely to change soon.

RT

I also don’t like wine clubs, while also being extremely fond of their (white) wines. I also have to say, I find the whole “wolfpack” thing kind of juvenile. It’s a wine club, why not just call it one?

Challenging for me as well. Have enjoyed the entire lineup and usually end up with a mixed case or so each year + it’s easy/fun to support good people doing good things. Totally understand and support the rationale in shifting models and hope it makes things more predictable/sustainable for the business. Just not sure a 2 case/year commitment is right for me.