The Lemon Fool

We've received a present of an £80 voucher for Naked Wines. Anyone used them can recommend them etc. Any suggestions gratefully received. We don't have a particular preference and are definitely not snobby about most wines except for Mateus Rose, Black Tower, Blue Nun and their ilk!

R6

You will now be surprised by how many thirsty friends you actually have on TLF ...

A terrible firm, don't risk using the voucher!

Send it to me instead and I'll dispose of it safely for you....




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(A joke at the expense of Naked Wines, for the avoidance of doubt. In reality I know nothing about them.)

All the mail order companies do it, Laithwaites were the pioneer, but Virgin/Naked (and whichever own each other these days, I've lost track) do it regularly.

You get these vouchers by opening something, usually a bank account or a savings account, but often just an envelope with a magazine in it, and I get 1 or 2 most months. I expect you have to sign up to a regular purchase (which used to be £60 a month sometime in the 1990s but is probably now about £8 a bottle average) although you can cancel straight away. If you go down that route then fine, it is worth taking the voucher.

I should probably use one next time it arrives, I haven't bothered for years so will count as a new customer again.

Their margins are high, when I was in Plymouth a lodger worked in the Laithewaites callcentre, staff got 40% off retail price, and several times a year qualified for mystery cases for a pound a bottle.

Paul

DrFfybes wrote: (which used to be £60 a month sometime in the 1990s but is probably now about £8 a bottle average)
Paul

That's serious money at today's rates, let alone the 1990s. Not to mention nearly two bottles a week at £8/bottle!

although you can cancel straight away.

That's the bit that always bothers me with such offers. Is the cancellation in fact possible, or does it involve a phone number that's never answered, a web server that always throws an error, and variants on a similar theme?

DrFfybes wrote:All the mail order companies do it, Laithwaites were the pioneer, but Virgin/Naked (and whichever own each other these days, I've lost track)l

Direct Wines is still owned by the Laithwaite family, they bought Virgin Wines in 2005 but the latter MBO'd with the support of Mobeus in 2013 and floated on AIM last March (VINO).

DrFfybes wrote:Their margins are high, when I was in Plymouth a lodger worked in the Laithewaites callcentre, staff got 40% off retail price, and several times a year qualified for mystery cases for a pound a bottle.

Naked reversed into Majestic and then sold off the Majestic shops to private equity, so as a listed company (WINE) you can see exactly what their margins are - their gross margins are indeed about 40%, but last year they ended up losing money due to fixed costs like marketing - and the promotional vouchers you're talking about. But it sounds like Rhyd6 got an actual gift voucher rather than one of the promotional ones?

@Rhyd6 - I've never used Naked, but it's kind of hard to give any pointers without a more specific idea of the kind of wine you like. But in the circumstances, I'd encourage you to be adventurous and explore rather than playing it too safe.

Hallucigenia wrote:
Direct Wines is still owned by the Laithwaite family, they bought Virgin Wines in 2005 but the latter MBO'd with the support of Mobeus in 2013 and floated on AIM last March (VINO).

Naked reversed into Majestic and then sold off the Majestic shops to private equity, so as a listed company (WINE) you can see exactly what their margins are - their gross margins are indeed about 40%, but last year they ended up losing money due to fixed costs like marketing - and the promotional vouchers you're talking about.

Hmm, now why am I not surprised Hall knows the istory of the UK wine network

But it sounds like Rhyd6 got an actual gift voucher rather than one of the promotional ones?

You are correct - I didn't read it correctly and missed the bit about it being a present, is it a 'gift card' rather than a 'voucher'? Presumably this would be of a full price case (if not then using it on a promotional offer would be very good value), and agree it is often good to be adventurous. We tend to go 'off piste' a bit with the 25% off promotions in supermarkets, sometimes it works, sometimes not....
https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/p ... /299639940

Paul

I used them in the past. Generally no problems with the product, or when coming to cancel. Their selections were too cheap and nothing special and didn't suit my tastes or lifestyle. To be clear that says more about me, than them, as I thought they were a decent alternative to supermarket type wines at similar pricing.

UncleEbenezer wrote:That's the bit that always bothers me with such offers. Is the cancellation in fact possible, or does it involve a phone number that's never answered, a web server that always throws an error, and variants on a similar theme?

having just tried one of these offers, i can confirm cancellation was very very easy and didnt even oinvolve speaking to a real person with any sort of hard sell to remain etc.

As opposed to Beer52 which requires a phone call to a person whose script pushes them to ask you several times to reconsider etc. Though you can also pause the account online to avoid ever actually getting another box and paying for it. But you have to keep on top of that ...

didds

dealtn wrote:I used them in the past. Generally no problems with the product, or when coming to cancel. Their selections were too cheap and nothing special and didn't suit my tastes or lifestyle. To be clear that says more about me, than them, as I thought they were a decent alternative to supermarket type wines at similar pricing.

Yup. Agree with that. Ive dabbled a couple of times with the super special intro offers that end up under £4 a bottle... ut as Dealth says they arent that great, just ehaper than s/market wine.

We are lucky that a chum in the village runs an orgainc imported wine business and we get wine form him, circa £8-£12 a bottle and we never ever get a poor bottle

didds

Years ago I tried several of these mail order wine companies. I never found the wines particularly good. Part of the problem was expectations. The write up for each wine was so glowing, the reality never lived up to it.

I've never looked further than the Wine Society for this kind of thing, but I did get dragged to a Naked Wines tasting 8 or 9 years ago. It turned out much better than I'd expected because the winemakers themselves were there with their wines and you could chat to them about their vineyards and how the wines were made, which was actually more interesting than tasting most of the wines!

However, I did particularly like the Austrian whites made by Gerhard Lobner in the hills above Vienna. One of them was a field blend (Gemischter) which was excellent. I see he is still selling through Naked: https://www.nakedwines.com/producers/gerhard-lobner

All the best, Si

There was an item about them as an investment in the papers recently.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/investing/s ... ard-value/

There were plenty of comments from people who had ordered from them and had to pour most of it down the drain!

Hallu has hit the nail on the head it is actually a Gift Voucher. We buy NZ and Oz wines more often than others, we never touch reds because we are still working our way through the cases we've bought directly from the vinyards on holidays in France and for just enjoying a pleasant drink I prefer whites. At the moment we are enjoying Ned and Brancott both NZ Sauvignons around £12 a bottle.
So far nothing on the NW lists has caught my eye but the voucher is valid for a year so will see what else pops up. We've never really tried South African wines so maybe will explore this region.
Thanks for your help and input.
Cheers
R6

scrumpyjack wrote:There was an item about them as an investment in the papers recently.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/investing/s ... ard-value/

There were plenty of comments from people who had ordered from them and had to pour most of it down the drain!

Actually, I think that's really unfair. They are not that bad and no worse than the wines available from similar wine clubs, e.g. Laithwaites and the cheaper stuff from the Wine Society, in my experience. I do think they are overpriced for what they are though compared to the latter.

I remember having an exchange with Rowan Gormley the founder of Naked Wines on TMF back in the day, and he suggested I was not the target market! I thought the marketing was brilliant because it appealed to people (even called them "Angels"!) who felt they were doing some good and getting some kind of special deal and good wine in return. Don't know what he's doing now but he is a really smart operator. He managed to kind of reverse Naked into a listed company (Majestic) via a merger, become CEO by taking over from the Majestic founding families, renamed the new company from Majestic to Naked Wines, and then flogged off the Majestic business before disappearing into the sunset.

All the best, Si

Don't shoot the messenger! I have never ordered from them

dealtn wrote:I used them in the past. Generally no problems with the product, or when coming to cancel. Their selections were too cheap and nothing special and didn't suit my tastes or lifestyle. To be clear that says more about me, than them, as I thought they were a decent alternative to supermarket type wines at similar pricing.

My experience also. I had a couple of nice cases of wine before cancelling without hassle (no reflection on them, Mrs Spet and I were trying to be healthier!)

Rhyd6 wrote:We buy NZ and Oz wines more often than others, we never touch reds because we are still working our way through the cases we've bought directly from the vinyards on holidays in France and for just enjoying a pleasant drink I prefer whites. At the moment we are enjoying Ned and Brancott both NZ Sauvignons around £12 a bottle.

Well if you start by filtering their whites under £15 and concentrate on their Fruity Whites (dark green border to the picture) first, then the Rich Whites (gold), then you should find something you enjoy. Annoyingly, there doesn't seem to be a way to exclude the Angel Exclusives but dropping the Dry Whites helps in the first instance.

I've never tried any Naked wines, let alone bought any, but just to pick out a few to shove you in the right direction :

Start with something that should be quite close to what you're used to, but hopefully a bit more Old World elegance : Darnault + Easthope Sauvignon Blanc
In a slightly similar vein but more restrained, the Patat Pecorino, pecorino is a useful grape for food-friendly whites.

And perhaps a bit less restrained, the Orphica Aurora is a Sauvignon Blanc/Verdejo/Viura/Moscatel blend from Spain which sounds fun.

And even less restrained, the Castillo Catadau Blanco is a Gewürz/Muscat/Sauv Blanc blend.

If you've not had viognier before, you should try it. New World ones have OTT fruit flavours but tend to lack structure unless they're reinforced with something like chardonnay or yields are really restricted, but it makes some of the best white wines of the Rhone and the French tend to understand it better. So give something like the Darnault viognier, perhaps with Asian food.
The di Blasi Bianco Leggermente Appassite is a different take on viognier from Sicily, blended with chardonnay and slightly shrivelled to concentrate the juice. Must admit that's one I quite fancy.Gah - I've just noticed it's an Angel exclusive.

The Seijas Macabeo looks a good solid buy.

The Danieli Soave is a bit more expensive, but good Soave is really underrated.

If you like Kiwi Sauv Blanc, then proper rosés will probably appeal - not the sweet blush Zinfandel nonsense, but something like the Darnault Pique Nique Rose.

Maybe the Boschkloof Montagu White, a Colombard/Chenin blend from SA.

It's a shame though that so much of the fun stuff is Angel-only, and they're also having the same problems that everybody else is with shipping from Europe at the moment.

simoan wrote: then flogged off the Majestic business before disappearing into the sunset.

Last seen on his yacht in the Caribbean :
https://afloat.ie/resources/marine-indu ... ing-aboard

In an amazing coincidence, today I got a 'cheque' for "£75 to spend on a case of delicious wine", signed by "James Naked MD".

Obviously there are caveats here, firstly it has to be spent at Naked Wines, secondly it has to be a case worth £114.99 or more, and thirdly (and perhaps rather subjectively) it has to be 'delicious' wines. Quite what happens if I pick a crap one by mistake I'm not sure, maybe they rescind the voucher.

Anyway, this voucher is very special, it is time limited and must be used within 30 days (their emphasis), although it does say "offer ends 01/11/23, so perhaps no rush then. It even has a code and a password on it which implies it is specific to me. Cannot be used in conjunction with gift cards though, which means the OP can't benefit from it.

"what feat of derring do did you achieve to be granted such a gift?" I hear you ask.

Well, actually, I orderd a cooker spare online and it came in the packet, along with a couple of other offers for carpet cleaning and magazine subscriptions.

So, any Naked customers got any suggestions for some robust reds or fruity whites, do I gamble £40 (possibly plus P&P) on a dozen bottles, or should I skip straight to the last instruction on the voucher in the bottom right of the reverse..."Please recycle me"

Paul