A while back the State of Montana decided to come out of the dark ages and allow the direct importation of wine by its residents. It opened up a whole new world of wine to many adventurous wine commoners like me. After the wine world opened up I bounced around a few websites and found options for case lots from a lot of different wineries, or options to join wine clubs and get their selection of the month. One day my wife got a groupon in one of the many “val-pac” type junk mailing we get at the house. We both laughed at this particular groupon; it came to her and she doesn’t like the acidity of alcohol and thus doesn’t drink. For reasons that I really don’t remember, I took the groupon and tossed it on the desk in my study.
Fast forward a couple of weeks and I am at the desk cleaning it off so I can do some writing and I stumble across the Naked Wines groupon. I am already at my computer so I pull up Naked Wines’ Website and in about an hour my life changes in many positive ways. I ordered an assorted case of wine, they gave me the groupon discount and upgraded my 12 bottle case to a 15 bottle case and let me pick 3 more wines at no additional cost and presto I wind up with 15 great bottles of wine for about $60.00 net out of pocket. Along the way I learn about the Naked Wines’ Crowd (cloud in their case) funding model that assists new wine makers get started and at the same time lets their Angels spend every dime they contribute to the cause on wine those same winemakers produce. It looks like a no lose deal to me so I agree to chip in $40 each month directly debited every month with the understanding (guarantee) that if I am not happy with the deal they will give me the money back at any time. I’m excited and happily waiting for my wine to arrive (five days later).
The same day I placed the order I got an e-mail from Naked Wines and I thought great the spam is starting already. To my surprise it was a nice introductory e-mail (canned I am sure) from the Founder Rowan Gormley welcoming me to the Naked Wines family of “Angels” and giving me the lowdown on how to get the most out of Naked Wines. I start exploring the Naked Wine Website and light on a group called Naked Newbies (that is no typo) and thought how corny can it get. I jump into the group (what the heck – it can’t hurt) introduce myself and almost immediately I got welcoming replies from a host of Angels and the conversation began. I have stayed involved in Naked Newbies ever since and I joined a number of their groups (forums to most) which include wine and cigars, winemakers, wine and food pairing and even a two year tasting group (led by a winemaker) that follows a single wine for two years to experience what winemakers do as they watch a wine mature. Being a part of the Naked Wine host of Angels is a little like being in a wine focused adults only Facebook or a LinkedIn. The social media aspects of the groups afforded me the opportunity to learn a lot about wine, meet a bunch of really nice people who I may never actually meet, but who have become good social friends.
The second part of this story really started when I got my first case of wine. I must digress a moment; when you go to a wine shop or a grocery store (the best wine selections in my city) you find the really good stuff at eye level (top shelf), the good stuff fills the shelves right below eye level (middle shelf), and the stuff in boxes and factory wines sit on the floor in front in cases or on the very bottom tier (lower shelf). Hey it is all about marketing and catching your eye. Well back to the story, I have a top shelf appetite and a middle to bottom shelf budget, so when the wine arrived, I had hopes that the wine would be okay. Well I was blown away, the Naked Wine marketing line about getting great new winemakers who want to produce boutique wines is no hype. They have done it in spades. I have never gotten a bad wine from them and I have gotten many that are better than anything I can buy off the top shelf and some occupy rare air, in a league with those special wines that they lock up in a glass front case at the wine store. These wine makers, from all over the world, produce small batches (2500 cases or less) exclusively for Naked Wines. The Angels buy it (actually anybody can buy it at retail) at reduced prices because there is minimal marketing cost to the winemaker or the consumer and because of the Angel funding mechanism. As a semi-retired executive, I get the business model and as a wine lover, I get great wine with no pressure or push. What’s not to like about the deal?
…”and now the rest of the story” (ala Paul Harvey). I have actually been able to get to know the winemakers of my favorite wines, and I converse with them regularly and get their perspective on the next vintages of their wines. Most interesting to me is that I get to rate and review their wines in a public forum that allows new Angels to see what I think and the winemakers respond to these reviews and actually ask questions about what I like and don’t (qualities of their wines) like about the particular wine and seem genuinely interested in what I as a consumer (not a professional taster) think. I have to tell you that rating a wine is easy (I either like it or I don’t), but reviewing them has been a pretty steep learning curve. What do I know of “nose” “tannins”, “bouquet” and how do I tell if a wine has notes of “pear”, “apple”, “black current” or “Cassis? Well I’ve learned from my fellow Angels and I’ve even surprised myself by sharing some of my knowledge acquired over about 50 years of world-wide business travel drinking wines I would never order for myself because of cost.
I owe the idea for this website and blog and my ability to really experience world class wines at reasonable prices to Naked Wines. I promise this website will not be a promotional venue for Naked Wines or any other winery or wine maker. It will be exactly what it’s billed to be, a place for ordinary folks like me and most of the other Naked Wines Angels to go for basic wine information without feeling like a question might be considered dumb or stupid. Nobody needs to worry about that, I’ve already asked all the dumb and stupid questions that anybody can think of that relates to wine.
One last note about Naked Wines and then I’ll quit singing their praises, if anybody decides to check out the sight, don’t buy anything until you let me know and I’ll make sure that you get a groupon like I did so you get the most bang for your buck if you decide to give them a try. If you do, you will have a great experience and will sample some fantastic wines.
Bottle Ink
Poor Robert
Poor Robert's (Wine) Almanac 
Great comments by us Archangels. Wine has become an interesting hobby for me as I have gotten older and have some more time on my hands. I totally embrace the NW concept and certainly drink my share of NW wine. However, there are cravings I have that NW cannot satisfy such as a good Italian red such as Brunello or Chianti. I also like aged reds and NW wines are so young. So I do go outside of the NW family and do not feel guilty at all- but I will promote NW whenever anyone will listen. No one should feel intimidated to express their thoughts whether it is about a wine, a winemaker, or another angel.
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Jeff – I don’t think you should feel guilty. I personally have memberships and wine in my cellar from non-NW sources. If anything they serve to remind me of the value NW offers me. I enjoy my non-NW wines and winemakers for their particular traits and characteristics. Sadly I could not (and would not if I could) afford to drink those wines on a regular basis. NW provides remarkable wines at a price I can afford to open often. I see no problem in having your cake and eating it too! =)
BTW Robert – First time on your site. I like it! Keep up the good work and see you back at NW!
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I’m excited to keep up and see where your ideas lead us.
I also have to chuckle re “Archangel cliques”. I guess we do tend to become Mama bear in defense of the fundamental principles. But I think of us as more fairy dust lightly blown over the site to illuminate as best we can, encourage, , and maybe throw in a bit of humor and good vibes as we go…..
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I am glad you like it,it will be an adventure for all of us. Angel dust has known to get a little thick and heavy but not too often.
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I too agree with how some of us archangels “swarming” on a negative comment (sometimes even positive ones) can be a turn off to a lot of people. I for one tend to only comment or lend advice if I am one of the first 3 or so people to comment or have something completely different to add to the thread. As I read some of the threads, I get overwhelmed when people pile on and repeat what has been said 5-10 times already. I can only imagine what the original poster is feeling. Yes we are supposed to be advocates for the site and the wine, but the policing really should be left to the actual NW staff (in my opinion)
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Evan — I like your perspective on responsibility and advocacy
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Wow 314 followers already? That’s great Robert! Looking forward to learning more by following your blog…everything looks great! Sure hope this doesn’t take you away from us on NW! We all so much enjoy hearing your words of wisdom! Cheers!
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So do I.
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Great job Robert. We will all learn so much from your efforts.
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Juhree — I hope I do as well. If you would like to get e-mail notification of new posts as them come out, there is a “follow” option somewhere on the page.
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Very nice job! I look forward to reading your posts.
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Thanks Charles, if you have suggestions for topics or presentation on the site I would really appreciate hearing from you.
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Have you ever tried posting a criticism or suggestion on how the site/business could improve and received the back lash from the Archangel clique that polices the groups/forums?
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Ben: Being an Archangel (a less defensive one) myself I fully understand your concern. The Angel Corps (my term) can be pretty protective, but I’ve learned to take some of what gets posted, especially on naked newbies, with a grain of salt. As to ideas for improving the site, I find that sending an e-mail to chat@nakedwines.com to be the best place to raise those comments as they get directly to management who I assure you are really interested in change and improvement ideas. Naked Wine USA is less than two years old and is still learning as they go. Whenever I’ve sent stuff to “Chat” somebody has gotten back to me right away. Even as an Archangel I use this approach and leave the group sites for more wine related stuff. Let me know if I can help you get your ideas across or find ways to fly under the radar so you can enjoy the site.
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Thank you Robert, I will keep that in mind and may be revisit the group discussions but also think about emailing. I look forward to your future postings.
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Ben: I forgot to mention that there is a specific group set up to take suggestions and get you answer about the technical and business side of Naked Wines. It’s called the “Naked Lab Group” You might check in there. In case you wonder why I started a new reply string, it’s because I’m really new to the WordPress system and I couldn’t figure out how to reply to a reply. I’ll get it sorted someday. Also If you would like to get notice directly in your e-mail of future posts, Somewhere on the home page is a “follow button”
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Great thank you I will go and look for that group now, and thank you for the direction towards the follow button as well, that advice came just as I was wondering if there was such a button
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I’m also an Archangel and I too know what you mean. Sometimes I cringe at the way our ranks will jump on a negative comment. But we are all just humans, and the Archangels in particular are very passionate about the Naked Wines model. It sounds like we didn’t drive you away, Ben. 🙂
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Tracy — I agree about the passion and the concept loyalty, I really appreciate that Ben gave us the chance to see its impact on newer angels. I think in retrospect that the Archangels get used to jabbing at each other in fun that some times its’ good to get perspective on how other see it. One of us should post to the PGG so we spread the knowledge.
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You know, actually just the sheer volume of email notifications that newbies can get from the forums before they know what is going on can be a source of displeasure. Fortunately, a lot of people seem to respond positively to the greetings.
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