Determine your preferences

• 1). Figure out what type of wine experience you want out of a club. Understanding the level of wine knowledge, tastes, and involvement is important for choosing the type of club to join. If your goal is to broaden your novice wine preferences into a more sophisticated palate, consider joining a club that delivers several different types of wines each year from multiple regions. Often, those are the most basic programs, such as Wine of the Month Club's Classic Membership or The International Wine of the Month Club's Premier Membership plan. There are also several options available for the connoisseur or collector of rare wines.
  
  
• 2). Determine whether you want to broaden your tastes or hone your appreciation. Almost every club features the basic plan, but the clubs also showcases plans to further develop the palate or to refine your wine expertise, such as Wine of the Month Club's Vintner and Premium Series and California Wine Club's Signature Series. These plans are meant to bring you exceptionally high quality and rare wines and may include vintner's tips and notes so as to get the best quality experience from your purchase.
  
  
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  However, if you are more specific in your wine partiality, there are several clubs that specialize in particular regional wines or certain varietals. You can find wine of the month clubs that focus on domestic regions, such as the California Wine Club or the Virginia Wine of the Month Club, while other clubs, such as the International Wine of the Month Club, focuses on non-domestic wines. If flexibility and specific tastes are your main concern, the Cellars Wine Club offers many options, including packages focused on sweet wines, Champagne, and West Coast wines.
  
  

Know your budget

• 1). Work within your preferences. Costs for wine of the month clubs can range from reasonable (say, $20 to $40 a month) to quite expensive, depending on the selected package. Once you have decided what you want out of your membership, you can then begin to price.
  
  
• 2). Decide how much you want to spend on your membership. Most of the aforementioned clubs range from about $20-$35 per month (not including shipping costs) for the most basic plans, which include one to three bottles a month. The clubs aimed at collectors and connoisseurs can range from $150-$275 per month. The mid-range clubs can range from $40-$100 per month. Please visit the links below to view specific prices.
  
  
• 3). Choose at least three to four plans from various clubs that hit your price point. Then, once you've determined the type of membership you want and establish a budget, you are then ready to move into the final phase of choosing your club--researching what else of each wine of the month club presents to its members.
  
  

Research your choices

• 1). Once you've narrowed down your choices to a few alternatives, it is time to look at what else the club offers. Every wine club of repute has experts choosing the wines you would be buying, guarantees its selections, offers flexible payment and membership plans, and provides discounts on bulk purchasing or reordering. Often, though, what sets wine clubs apart are what you receive apart from the wine selection, and that can often determine what club you join.
  
  
• 2). Other than the wine, what is important to you? Are you interested in a club that has educational resources and social/wine culture connections readily available to you? If so, the "Ask the Cellar Master" feature, membership dinner outings, and informational podcasts of the Wine of the Month Club may be ideal for you. If you are more interested in the amount of specific choices and less about joining in a social network of wine aficionados, the Cellars Club has a plan to suit your needs. If you are interested in supporting smaller, family owned business, the California Wine Club or other local winery programs may be right for you with their homegrown attitudes and personal service.
  
  
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  Enjoy your purchase. Once you've determined which wine of the month club you'd like to join, sit back and enjoy the ease of being sent quality wines each month. Explore new wines, find fresh favorites, and delight in your decision to involve yourself in the wide world of wine appreciation.