Is anyone else on this list? I got my second spring release offer in the mail today. It is pre-filled out for my allocation of 2 bottles each of the chardonnay, pinot and syrah. I really only want the pinot. While I would probably be willing to buy some of the syrah, the chard is $50/bottle. I can’t stand when I am forced to buy “hostage” wines in order to get what I want. So despite the fact that I just opened a fantastic bottle of 2004 Ryan Green Valley the other night this is an easy pass. I doubt I’ll be offered the SVD’s in the fall.
I am on the list, but I’ll probably pass just like I did for the svd offering last Fall. The prices have increased since I joined, the shipping costs historically have been ridiculous, and I can find DuMol wines in shops out East. The wines are uniformly excellent, and I’ll pick some up from retailers if the price is right.
I decided to check out the online ordering system. It turns out I can change my allocations to eliminate the chard and syrah and request additional bottles of the pinot. Shipping and insurance to ship 6 bottles totaled $83!! When I dropped it down to 4 bottles it went all the way down to $69. WTF is that all about?? $17.25/bottle to ship 4 bottles? Wow…
I’m just sayin’ . . . .
I have to say, Andy Smith (Larkmead and DuMol) is one of the best winemakers in CA…that being said, the DuMol model in terms of bundling is not my favorite and a huge reason I haven’t ordered wine from them in a while. The shipping costs are outrageous and it is certain they are using a very aggressively priced 3rd party. Andy, if you are reading this, I love your wines but please, please, make some changes…