Mailing List Wines: How and Why to Get on a List

Wine mailing lists - Photo image of Harlan and Bond original wine crates.

Posted: 07/19/2019

Are Mailing List Wines Worth the Wait?

The more you research the fine and rare wines you want to try, the more you’ll run into one basic problem: how to acquire them. If you want wines from Sine Qua Non, Screaming Eagle, Ovid, Marcassin, Harlan, Abreu, Dalla Valle, Schrader, Kosta Browne or Scarecrow, among others, you’ll have very little luck finding them at retailers. That’s because an increasing number of producers of prestigious, highly-rated, luxury cuvées are selling their wines – or at least their top wines, such as Shafer Vineyards Hillside Select – by mailing list only. And it can take years to get on the most popular mailing lists.

The mailing list phenomenon began in California when the first producers of Cult Cabs started making extraordinary wines in limited quantities. Rather than working with distributors, Cult Cab makers such as Screaming Eagle went directly to consumers. Anyone wanting to buy Screaming Eagle had to get on the mailing list, then wait for the chance to buy an allotment of Screaming Eagle. Some mailing lists have wait lists of thousands of subscribers. Mailing lists are not limited to California wineries, by the way. About the only way to get Washington State’s famous Quilceda Creek and Cayuse wines is also via mailing list.

The mailing list model is popular. Today small, artisanal producers of less costly wines also often distribute directly to consumers through mailing lists. The producers of Bedrock, Pott Wines, Rivers-Marie, Saxum and Leviathan have mailing lists, even though their wines typically sell for less than $100 a bottle to mailing list customers. Wines from Sine Qua Non and Screaming Eagle are sold to their mailing list customers for anywhere from $200 a bottle for some SQN cuvées, to $750 a bottle for Screaming Eagle. When SQN and Screaming Eagle are resold, prices on the secondary market are two to four times the mailing list prices. Depending on the vintage, Screaming Eagle sells for $2,000 or more a bottle at auction.

So, are mailing list wines worth the wait? And are they worth the money? There is no question that many of the mailing list-only wines are phenomenal, both to drink and collect. And a perk to being on a mailing list is that you may get invited to special tastings and other events. On the other hand, it’s worth remembering that if you get on the mailing list you are expected to always buy the minimum allotment, which can mean an outlay of several thousand dollars. If you miss buying your periodic allotment, you will likely be dropped from the list. Finally, remember that the best reason to acquire wine, at whatever cost and effort, is because you enjoy it, and want to drink it someday and share the experience.