Naked Wines – should you redeem that voucher?

Everyone loves a bargain. And there’s one little offer that keeps catching my eye – a voucher for Naked Wines. Sometimes for £20, sometimes for £30, sometimes for £40 off… or even more. And it’s not just me – every other week I get a text from a friend asking me if they should redeem it.

Naked Wines operate a bit differently to other wine companies. This is one reason, no doubt, they get your attention with a generous discount to attract you to their website, as it takes them a moment or two to explain their offering.

In brief:

• You can buy wine from Naked online like you would with any traditional online wine shop.
• Or you can join their club and buy wine as an ‘Angel’ which gives you certain benefits.

To become an Angel, you have to deposit £20 per month into your Naked Wines account, which you can spend at any time. The benefit to you is that you get cheaper prices, at least 25% off their list prices. This is made possible as Naked can use this large pot of cash, made up of Angels’ deposits, to invest in buying wines at keen prices. One way they do this is by offering free loans to winemakers (which can help them make immediately better wines) in return for preferential rates on the finished product. So the idea is that by crowdsourcing funds for the loans, Naked get better wines for cheaper rates and pass on the saving.

Is it popular? Yes it is. There are currently over 100,000 Angels on their books in the UK, collectively depositing over £2m per month.

The way Naked operates makes for happy winemakers – a number I spoke to were very happy with their relationship with Naked. Many customers see this as an added benefit – a kind of feel-good factor. Additionally, the website supports a busy social network that includes both members and winemakers. Winemakers get feedback about their wines from customers, customers can interact with winemakers and ask them questions, and members can rate and recommend wines to each other. I would imagine that most members would sooner take the advice of the other members they follow rather than count on reviews of the wines like the ones below. In the wine world, when it comes to social, Naked are one of the best.

They currently have 202 wines available to UK customers (they are in the process of launching in the US), from £5.99 per bottle (I’m only quoting their Angel prices here, since the vast majority of their customers buy as Angels). Two-thirds are under £10. Only 10% of the range is over £12. The average spend on a bottle of wine at Naked is £7.00 (more than £2 above the UK average). Most of what they sell is exclusive to Naked, so it’s not possible to compare their list prices to see how they stack up against other retailers. But from the fifty wines I tasted, whilst their list prices did not, generally speaking, represent good value for money, their Angel prices did offer fair or good value.

In terms of how they sit in the retail landscape, Naked sits somewhere between supermarkets and independent merchants. Their winemakers are often commercially minded producers who are happy to act upon feedback from Angels. They are often keen to tinker with the blend and iron out any creases to ensure the wine appeals to club members. As a company it is approachable, easy-going, and non-threatening. And, broadly, so are their wines. Words that kept cropping up in my notes were ‘friendly’ and ‘easy drinking’.

Characterful wines by headstrong winemakers are sometimes hard to get your head around, but are more likely to be remembered. In the long run, I often find a wine more impressive when it’s me that has to get used to it, rather than the other way around. But perhaps this is a bit much to ask of a Tuesday night glugger. Naked’s selection is largely everyday drinking stuff, so it’s surely a good thing that they are willing to iron out any perceived flaws for their customers. But if they were my only source of wines, after a while I might soon be craving something with a more forceful character or something a bit more challenging. After all, sometimes it’s the beauty spot that makes the face.

Few wines I tried at their recent London tasting were terribly complex or unusual. But that’s not to say that wines don’t have ‘typicité’ i.e. ‘typicality’ – they do still taste how you expect them to taste for a wine of that variety and region. And, unlike most supermarkets, there were no real stinkers. If you are happy to join up as an Angel, it can be a source of some decent everyday wines at good prices, with an additional element that is too often missing when shopping for wine – fun. So should you redeem that voucher? If it means you could get a case of wines like the ones listed below at Angel prices, go for it.

Some highlights:

Sparkling

Mas Sardana Cava NV

A blend of Xarel-lo and Macabeo grapes from Penedès, Spain

£10.99 list price or £7.99 Angel price available at Naked Wines

Pretty classic apple, pear and citrus fruits. Lovely soft fizz in the mouth, then with intense fresh flavours. Dry (but only just), this is a cracking cava. 89 points, good value at list price/very good value at Angel price.

Whites

Raats Original Chenin Blanc 2011

100% Chenin Blanc grape from Stellenbosch, South Africa

£9.99 list price or £7.49 Angel price available at Naked Wines

Apple and lime fruits on the nose with a hint of honey. Full-bodied, but fresh, and with enough acidity to cut through the rounded texture. Long finish. 89 points, good value at list price/very good value at Angel price.

Klein Riesling ‘S’ Trocken 2011

100% Riesling grape from Pfalz, Germany

£13.99 list price or £10.49 Angel price available at Naked Wines

Attractive satsuma and orange oil on the nose, very inviting. Intensely flavoured, just about dry, with gleaming acidity running into the long finish. 89 points, fair value at list price/good value at Angel price.

Dominic Hentall Saint Véran 2010

100% Chardonnay grape from Burgundy, France

£ unconfirmed list price or £12.49 Angel price available at Naked Wines

Soft, floral nose (orange blossom). Medium to full-bodied feel in the mouth. Oak used with care and precision, little overt oak flavour but with an enjoyable creamy texture and finish. Nicely done. 88 points, good value at Angel price.

Reds

Domaine O’Vineyards Trah Lah Lah 2010

A blend of 65% Merlot and 35% Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from Languedoc, France

£12.99 list price or £7.99 Angel price available at Naked Wines

Dry, but with juicy, ripe fruit. Punchy intensity of black fruit flavour riding on into the quite long finish. Enough acidity to hold it all together. 87 points, not great value at list price/good value at Angel price.

Carlos Rodriguez Rioja Reserva 2007

100% Tempranillo grape from Rioja, Spain

£12.99 list price or £9.49 Angel price available at Naked Wines

“Carlos is in the unique position of being able to buy the best grapes the region has to offer.” Really??  Naked Wines copy aside, this is a pretty classic, savoury style of Rioja with black olive and black fruits. Properly dry, not too oaky and ready to drink now. 88 points, not great value at list price/good value at Angel price.

Benjamin Darnault Organic Saint Chinian 2010

60% Syrah and 40% Grenache grapes from Languedoc, France

£12.99 list price or £9.75 Angel price available at Naked Wines

Intense, lively, spicy nose. Expressive, juicy fruit. Great balance, long flavours and full-bodied. Very drinkable. 89 points, fair value at list price/good value at Angel price.

Raats Family Cabernet Franc 2009

100% Cabernet Franc grape from Stellenbosch, South Africa

£17.99 list price or £13.49 Angel price available at Naked Wines

Leafy blackcurrant, cassis, licorice and cinnamon all rising up from the glass, lots going on. Juicy currant flavours, with a hint of smoke. Full-bodied, with alcohol quite high, but good acidity and a long finish. This is serious stuff. 91 points, fair value at list price/good value at Angel price.