New to Wine? These Are the Best Wine Clubs for Beginners in 2025

There’s something intimidating about your first trip to the wine aisle. You stand there, staring at a hundred bottles that promise notes of random fruits while wondering if “dry” means it’ll make your mouth hurt.

And if we’re all being honest, a lot of people still feel that way long after their first bottle.

That was me before I joined my first wine club, which is more or less a subscription service that constantly sends you new wines to try and educates you about them. Today, I can actually tell a Syrah from a Cabernet. I can actually taste those notes of cherry and oak. I can’t tell you whether the grapes came from a specific French hillside (let alone which side of the hill), but I’m not clueless anymore.

That’s why I can’t recommend a wine club enough. It’ll curate bottles for your taste, deliver them to your door, and teach you just enough so that you sound smart at dinner without sounding like that person.

If you’re in the market for one, here are my picks for the best wine clubs for beginners. They hit the sweet spot between quality, price, and ease — perfect for anyone who wants to learn without memorizing the entire French wine map. 

Wine Club	Best For	Price per Bottle	Frequency
Winc	Casual sippers finding their style	$13–$18	Monthly/quarterly
Wine Access	Thoughtful drinkers who like learning	±$20	Quarterly
Wine Insiders	Easy, affordable everyday wines	$10–$12	Quarterly
Firstleaf	Personalized AI picks	±$13	Monthly
Naked Wines	Supporting small winemakers	$12–$15	Flexible
Plonk Wine Club	Organic & adventurous palates	$20–$25	Monthly/quarterly
MYSA Wine Club	Natural wine newbies	$18–$22	Monthly/bimonthly/quarterly
Wall Street Journal Wine Club	Low-effort value	$10–$12	Quarterly

1. Winc

Best for casual sippers finding their style.

Winc was my gateway club, the one that made wine feel approachable rather than intimidating. You take a short quiz (think Tinder for taste buds), and they send six or 12 bottles that match your vibe. Instead of a flat fee per subscription, you pay based on the bottles in your box. It’s a great option for those looking to expand their palate and get more into wine.

If you don’t like their recommendations, you can simply swap out the bottles for ones of your own choosing. You can keep track of the wines you liked (or didn’t like) by rating them on their website, which also helps them curate your next box.

I’ve had a few duds (looking at you, overly floral Viognier), but mostly it’s been solid weekday wine I’d happily share with friends.

The Highlights:

• Six bottles/month or 12 bottles every three months 
• Average $13–$18 per bottle
• Members get 20% off all wines
• Ships to most states
• Easy to pause, cancel, or change delivery frequency

2. Wine Access

Best for thoughtful drinkers who like learning as they sip.

Wine Access is for the curious crowd, the people who secretly love reading the tasting notes. It feels more like a wine school than a club, and that’s exactly what I love about it. For example, I ordered their Discovery Club and ended up down a rabbit hole of Bordeaux vs. Napa comparisons.

If you’re serious about your wine education, you can try The Unfiltered Podcast Wine Club. You’ll receive four bottles every two months, and they’ll be discussed on the Wine Access Unfiltered podcast, so you can learn about the wine as you drink it.

It’s approachable but deep enough to feel educational, with every bottle backed by sommelier-level notes.

The Highlights:

• Wide selection of clubs to choose from
• Average $20+ per bottle
• Ships nationwide
• Detailed online tasting library

3. Wine Insiders

Best for easy, affordable, everyday wines.

If you’re the type who just wants good wine, fast, this is it. 

WineInsiders keeps it simple: pick red/white/mixed, get 12 bottles for $149, and enjoy your weeknight glass without overthinking it. And with their Perfect Pour Promise, you can get a refund if you hate something (I’ve tested this, and it’s legit). They have an introductory offer where you can get 15 bottles for $99 for your first order.

You can skip or cancel at any time, and with their Pourback Program, you receive 5% credit back with every club shipment. Shipping typically takes 2-3 days, and they offer an impressive selection of wines.

For my first shipment, I got 15 bottles, and twelve were great, two were okay, and one was sangria. An overall win.

The Highlights:

• 12 bottles every 12 weeks
• Average $10–$12 per bottle
• Free shipping on 6+ bottles
• In-depth tasting notes for your wine education 

4. Firstleaf

Best for algorithm-based personalization.

Firstleaf feels like if Spotify and a sommelier had a baby. You rate your bottles, the algorithm learns your preferences, and your shipments get smarter over time.

You can choose the 6-bottle option or the 12-bottle option, and there are four plan options: Classic, Preferred, Premier, and Fine Wine. These options range from $99-$159 for six bottles and $199-$319 for twelve bottles.

By my second box, it nailed my taste with a pinot noir that still lives rent-free in my memory. Plus, the price-to-quality ratio is killer.

The Highlights:

• 6 or 12 bottles/month
• Average $13 per bottle (after intro)
• AI-driven personalization
• Easy to pause or skip shipments

5. Naked Wines

Best for supporting independent winemakers.

Naked Wines has a fun twist, where you basically become an angel investor for small winemakers. Your membership helps fund their next batch, and in return, you get exclusive bottles at direct-from-vineyard prices. It leans into one of my favorite things about wine clubs: discovering smaller, independent vineyards and seeing what wine really tastes like when it’s not mass-produced.

Instead of receiving periodic wine boxes, you deposit $40 each month for wine credits to spend whenever you want and, in turn, receive up to 60% off on every bottle. You can easily pause or cancel your membership any time.

It’s equal parts feel-good and practical, and I’ve found gems from California, Spain, and Australia that would’ve cost double retail.

The Highlights:

• Pay-as-you-go model
• Average $12–$15 per bottle
• Focus on indie producers
• Transparent pricing

6. Plonk Wine Club

Best for organic and adventurous palates. 

Plonk is where I went when I wanted to get weird — in the best way, of course. Think organic, biodynamic, small-batch wines that make you Google the grape name mid-sip. Founder Etty Klein curates every shipment, and it shows.

Their mixed box includes reds, whites, rosé, and bubbly, but you can also choose a red box or a white box so you get only what you like.

I love that every box comes with recipe pairings to make the most out of every wine with a complementary meal. My favorite discovery was the Lunaria Civitas pecorino, which made me rethink every white wine I’d ever dismissed.

The Highlights:

• Choose red, white, or mixed
• 4, 6, or 12 bottles per shipment
• Free shipping
• Detailed tasting notes and recipes

7. MYSA Wine Club

Best for natural wine newbies.

MYSA is all about making natural wine fun, not fussy. It’s woman-owned, approachable, and surprisingly educational. I love the little video tastings and the fact that they’ll actually talk to you if you don’t like a bottle.

Their mixed box includes reds, whites, rosés, and the occasional orange or pét-nat. They also offer red-only, white-only, and orange-only boxes that you can order either monthly, every two months, or every three months.

My first 6-bottle box had three absolute hits and one wine that smelled like a hay bale (though I surprisingly didn’t hate it).

The Highlights:

• 3, 6, or 12 bottles
• Orange wines available
• Free shipping & 10% off in the bottle shop
• Focus on small, sustainable producers

8. Wall Street Journal Wine Club

Best for classic drinkers who want low-effort value.

WSJ’s wine club is the definition of easy. Big-name backing, generous intro deals, and simple red/white/mixed choices. It’s not flashy, but it’s reliable, and sometimes that’s exactly what you want.

They offer a satisfaction guarantee, so if you don’t like a bottle, you can get a refund. Each bottle also comes with a card detailing where it comes from, what notes it contains, and recommended food pairings.

My dad joined first and then sent me screenshots of his $8 Bordeaux “deal of the year.” I rolled my eyes, but the wine was solid.

The Highlights:

• 12 bottles quarterly
• Average $10–$12 per bottle
• Major welcome offers

How to Choose a Wine Club for Beginners

If you’re still not sure which wine club is best for you, here’s what I’d look for while shopping for my first:

• Personalization: Some of the best clubs will give you a taste quiz or learn your preferences over time to make sure you get the right wines for your palate.
• Price: For beginners, the sweet spot is around $10–$15 per bottle.
• Flexibility: Look for easy skip or cancel options.
• Education: Clubs that include tasting cards or pairing notes can really enhance the experience.
• Variety: Mixed boxes (red, white, bubbly, rosé) help you explore without committing too soon.
• Shipping: Check for timelines and availability (some clubs can’t ship everywhere).

Most importantly, you don’t need to find your forever club right away! Treat it like dating: see what clicks, learn what doesn’t, and never settle for a wine you don’t love.

Sip, Learn, Repeat

Wine clubs are one of the most fun and least stressful ways of getting into wine, and I genuinely wish I’d started sooner. There’s something magical about opening a box of mystery bottles, learning a new grape name, and realizing you actually have opinions about tannins now.

So, pour yourself a glass, and start exploring. The only real mistake is not opening the bottle.