Are you enjoying drinking more wine these days?
We are.
And we’re not alone.
Wine consumption in Canada (and the U.S.) has gone through the roof lately.
Just the other night, we cracked open a fine bottle of Sardinian wine from one of the best wine clubs in Canada.
Wine tasting at home isn’t quite the same as wine tasting when traveling in wine country – say, wine tasting in Sonoma or checking out the Okanagan Valley wineries in British Columbia.
But a nice glass of wine (or two) is still a very lovely thing to enjoy at home!
Sending wine to a friend is also the perfect gift.
Wine clubs in Canada
Here’s where wine clubs can help.
A wine club is basically a service that delivers wine to you, perhaps monthly or quarterly.
They’re also known as wine subscriptions and “wine of the month” clubs.
They make it possible for you to explore different wines from around the world at home, by introducing you to curated selections chosen by sommeliers, wine experts or perhaps even a “Master of Wine.”
Canada: Wine clubs
There are gazillions of wine clubs in the U.S. Great ones!
But they don’t ship to Canada, or they have very high duties.
(If you’re looking for U.S. wine clubs, see this Business Insider article and this Vogue article.)
We’ve tested several Canadian wine clubs and their wines to come up with the best Canadian wine subscriptions.
Prices shown below are in CAD.
What is a “Master of Wine”?
There are many sommeliers. But not many Masters of Wine.
Getting a Master of Wine is like winning an Olympic gold medal. It means you’re at the very top of the vino game.
Only 396 wine experts in the world have earned this prestigious certification from the Institute of Masters of Wine in the U.K. since the first exams began in 1953.
It’s a slog to get.
First, you need lots of previous professional wine experience to even qualify. Then there’s at least 3 years of courses. And scads of essays to write, including a 6,000- to 10,000-word original research paper. (You’d definitely need a drink after that!)
We go into detail about the following Canadian wine clubs.
So if you’re interested in a particular one, you can jump to it from the table of contents above.
1) Hemispheres Wine Guild
One of the best wine clubs in Canada, Hemispheres Wine Guild boasts a Master of Wine at its helm.
Based in Naramata, B.C., winemaker Marcus Ansems is the fifth Canadian Master of Wine (there are only 10 in Canada).
(Naramata, by the way, is a lovely place for a wine getaway. There are lots of fit-for-foodie restaurants in Naramata, along with great bicycling along a former railway line!)
Ansems picks the wines that go out to the club’s 100 loyal members.
The international wines are ones you can’t buy in Canada.
And the focus is on boutique premium wines.
How it works
As a member, you receive a shipment of wines 4 times a year.
Each shipment includes wines from a particular region. Perhaps Sardinia, Campania (Italy) or Alsace and the Loire Valley (France).
The surprise region that members love is the Pacific Northwest.
There are different memberships.
The most popular is the “Taster” level, where you receive 48 bottles of wine a year from 4 different regions around the world.
Sample wines
Remember that lovely Sardinian wine we mentioned earlier that we popped open?
It came from Hemispheres Wine Guild.
A flagship white for Sardinia, “La Cala Vermentino Di Sardegna Alghero (Sella & Mosca estate)” was great as a pre-dinner drink on the deck.
We’re not wine connoisseurs or experts, so here are the abbreviated tasting notes that came with the wine: “Hints of orange blossom, lemon and green apple. Medium-bodied. Finishing dry.”
We were surprised the notes give it just a 3½ stars rating – it was so good.
One of their 5-star rated wines – a “2013 Rivera Cappellaccio Aglianico Riserva (Castel Del Monte)” – is described as “epic, intense, rich.”
Sounds like it should be a treat!
Mind you, you might want to store this red for a few years in your wine fridge before getting into it.
See here for more samples of Hemispheres’ wine offerings.
Average price per bottle
About $28 bottle (“Taster” membership)
If you go to the higher volume levels (Taster to Enthusiast, Connoisseur to Icon), the wine quality goes up but the price per bottle goes down – sweet!
Membership cost
Taster Member: 4 premium cases = $1,320 year (or $1,650 year for red wines only)
Enthusiast Member: 8 premium cases = $2,4000 year
Connoisseur: 4 premium cases + 4 ultra-premium cases = $3,300 year
Icon: 4 premium cases + 4 ultra-premium cases + 4 iconic cases = $4,400 year
Each case contains 12 bottles.
More expensive wines are added to the mix for Connoisseur and Icon members (so you get even better wines for less).
You can pay monthly or in full for the year. See here for membership details.
Gifts
You can choose a:
- Premium Gift: 6 whites and 6 reds, delivered 4 times a year = $1,320 for the year
- Basic Gift: 6 bottles, delivered 4 times a year = $720 for the year
Shipping
Like all the Canadian wine clubs listed here, Hemispheres ships across Canada (except perhaps the Yukon and northern Canadian territories – can’t say).
Shipping is free for your 4 annual wine shipments.
Canada Post is used most frequently in spring and fall.
But you can opt for shipping by temperature-controlled truck so you don’t have to worry about overheating or freezing the wine in summer and winter.
The wines come delivered in a large cardboard box with special egg-carton like packing inside to separate the bottles, each as carefully handled as a baby in a bassinet!
Cancellation
If you pay monthly, you must give 30 to 90 days’ notice of cancellation. So if you cancel in February, you’d have to pay up to March.
This is because wines are ordered 3 to 4 months in advance.
If you pay yearly, your membership expires after 12 months. (The monthly membership allows you to cancel quicker.)
2) Opimian Wine Club de Vin
Founded in 1973, the non-profit Opimian Wine Club de Vin (formerly the Opimian Society) is probably the largest Canadian wine club.
It boasts a membership of more than 10,000 wine lovers from across the country.
It’s the only club that operates in all of Canada, including the Yukon.
The Opimian Wine Club de Vin is also the only wine club in Canada with a full-time Master of Wine.
That’s Jane Masters.
She tastes over 3,000 wines a year (tough job!), and from these, she chooses 450 to 500 wines for the club to offer to its members.
The wines are exclusive to the Opimian club – you can’t find these wines by sashaying on down to your local government or private liquor store.
And they invariably come from small family-owned vineyards.
Sharing the joy of wine
The Opimian club hosts special wine gatherings for its members.
One fun wine tasting in Kitchener, Ontario (which drew 125 members) was held in a museum and led by Jane Masters.
And at a champagne tasting event in Victoria, BC, you got to meet the wine maker from France and ask questions like: “What’s the proper way to open a bottle of champagne?”
How it works
When you sign up, you automatically receive a case with 6 fine wines.
Then, as an Opimian member, you get 9 “Cellar Offerings” a year.
A “Cellar Offering” is a quality brochure setting out 50 or so wines that you can purchase, along with detailed descriptions and wine notes for each.
But, uniquely, you don’t have to buy any wines at all (see box further down).
Each Cellar Offering focuses on a particular region.
For example, one recent Cellar Offering showcased wines from South Africa and Tuscany (Italy).
Each Cellar Offering also includes interesting articles on wine. For example, one article discusses whether wines are vegetarian-friendly – surprisingly, not necessarily!
You can check out the Cellar Offerings on the Opimian’s website, but most members like to have real printed copies mailed to them.
There’s also a 10th special “Cellar Offering” in October, which is a web-only offering.
Most wines come in cases of 6 bottles.
So you can’t just buy one bottle of a particular wine. If you want that wine, you have to order a minimum of 6 bottles.
Sample wines
How about a serious and meaty “2015 Cinciano Chianti Classico”?
Made from hand-harvested Sangiovese grapes from 44-year-old vines, this bottle ($45) looks tempting.
But the notes say it could benefit from more time in the bottle, so it’s probably best to store and save it for later.
We did, however, pop open a “2015 Alquez De Sommos Garnacha (Grenache)” from Spain.
Also coming from old vines (60 years on average), this rich jammy wine ($25.83) sure upped the flavors of our simple spaghetti Bolognese dinner at home!
See more Opimian wines in past Cellar Offerings.
Average price per bottle
Varies from $15 for affordable wines to $120 for top quality wines
The sweet spot is $20 to $30 a bottle – most wines are in this price range.
Membership cost
The wine club membership costs $69 (plus tax) a year.
For new members, there’s an additional registration fee of $40 (a total of $109 plus tax).
(You can also sign up for surprise subscription cases, which include a mix of wines all picked by Jane Masters.)
No minimum purchase
As a member, you don’t have to buy any wines.
Chances are you’ll want to though. Most members say they buy 75% of the wines they drink through the Opimian Club.
Gifts
You can buy gift cards and membership vouchers, which are sent to you by email.
Shipping
There are 10 shipments a year available (9 regular Cellar Offerings plus 1 web-only Cellar Offering).
The wines you order are normally shipped to your closest government liquor store for you to pick up there.
Cancellation
As there’s no minimum purchase requirement, you’re only on the hook for a yearly fee of $69 plus tax.
If you don’t want to continue your membership, you can easily cancel.
3) Wine Collective
Another of Canada’s large wine clubs (established in 2009), the Wine Collective focuses on “professionally selected, hard-to-find wines” from around the world.
It’s a monthly “wine of the month” club.
When you sign up, you also get online access to descriptions for each wine shipped, which includes information about where the wine was made, tasting notes and food pairing suggestions.
How it works
You choose from 4 different packages.
Depending on the package, you receive 2, 3, 4 or 6 bottles of wine a month.
Sample wines
The September, 2020, selection of wines included a stunning 2016 L’Etre Magique from Bordeaux (which can be cellared for 7 to 10 years) and a fun and fruity Chateau Gantonnet white wine from Bordeaux (a Sauvignon, Muscadelle and Semillon blend).
In the past, wines have included a juicy rose – “Pasion de Bobal Rose” (Valencia, Spain) – perfect for summer!
Average price per bottle
$25 to $50 a bottle
Membership cost
Any Budget: 2 bottles = $59.99 month
Most Popular: 4 bottles = $99.99 month
Best Value: 6 bottles = $139.99 month
Premium: 3 bottles = $124.99 month
Gifts
When you buy wine as a gift, your lucky friend will get 3 curated bottles of wine, along with a wine tasting guide.
You can choose any number of months, from just a one-month gift of 3 bottles or up to monthly delivery of 3 bottles each for 12 months.
Pick from these two packages:
- Essentials: For those just starting their cellar = $79.99 month
- Premium: For an “elevated tasting experience” = $124.99 month
Shipping
The price of your wine club subscription includes the $15 monthly shipping cost.
Your wine is shipped by FedEx if you live in Alberta, and via Canada Post for all other provinces.
As an alternative, if you live in one of the major Canadian cities, you can choose ATS Healthcare for delivery in a temperature-controlled truck.
If you live in Calgary, you also have the option of picking up your shipments at their Highfield by Wine Collective store in Southeast Calgary (and save the $15 shipping fee).
Cancellation
Your monthly membership automatically renews each month.
But you can cancel at any time (and there’s no cancellation fee).
4) Wine Club
Keen on discovering wines from Canada’s wine regions?
Like wines from the excellent First Nation Nk’Mip Cellars at Spirit Ridge in B.C. or fine Ontario wine from Niagara?
Then the Wine Club is for you. It features exclusive and limited release Canadian wines from coast to coast.
Wines are selected by a team of wine experts headed by Tony Aspler, wine columnist for the Toronto Star for 21 years and author of 16 wine books.
How it works
You get wines from participating wineries sent directly to you each month, along with tasting notes, wine reviews and food pairing suggestions.
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Prefer reds? No problem. Customize your package to include red wines only.
Or if you’re a fan of white wine, you can specify “just whites” too.
Sample wines
The featured winery for January, 2022, was Tinhorn Creek Vineyards, the first Canadian winery to support carbon neutral measures.
In June, 2021, the chosen winery was the award-winning Kakaba Vineyards. Located in Vineland, Ontario, their fine small-batch wines are made from premium grapes – and sell out quickly.
We like the Okanagan Valley’s Gray Monk Estate Winery, and it was featured in March, 2020.
And in February, 2020, the wines came from Two Sisters Vineyards from Niagara-on-the-Lake. This vineyard was awarded “Best Performing Small Winery of the Year” in 2018 by the National Wine Awards of Canada.
See previous wine packages for more examples.
Average price per bottle
About $35 a bottle
Membership cost
Wine Enthusiast: 2 “premier” bottles a month = $69 month
Wine Expert: 3 “exclusive and outstanding” bottles = $99 month
Wine Master: 6 “award-winning” bottles = $197 month
Oenophile: 12 bottles of “excellent top-quality” wine = $395 month
Gifts
For gift memberships, you select the wine package you want to give, and the wine will be delivered each month to the person and address you select.
Your credit card will be charged up front for the package price times the number of months you select.
Shipping
Free shipping is included in the cost of their wine subscription service.
Cancellation
The monthly wine club prides itself on excellent customer service – you can pause or cancel your subscription anytime you wish.
5) Amazing Clubs
Amazing Clubs was founded in 2003.
It’s a subscription club service with different clubs like a chocolate club and a coffee club, each offering monthly products.
And who knew – there are even popcorn, jerky and pickle clubs!
Then, of course, there’s the best club – the “wine” club.
The Amazing Club’s Wine Club features “premium hard-to-find” wines.
They come from award-winning, family-owned and boutique wineries in Germany, South Africa, Napa Valley, France, Australia and elsewhere around the world.
How it works
Each month, you get 2 full-sized bottles of wine. Two wineries are showcased each month, and you get one bottle from each winery.
When choosing your membership, you can select just reds, just whites or a bottle of each a month.
Memberships are available for 3, 6 or 12 months.
There’s also a Wine-of-the-Season Club which delivers quarterly.
Sample wines
For November, 2020, there were 2 red wines and 2 white wines.
The reds were “Camillo de Lellis Biferno” (Molise, Italy) and “Punti Ferrer Malbec” (Cachapoal Valley, Chile).
We’re partial to anything from Provence. So we were happy to see the whites included a “Chateau Roubine White” (Cotes de Provence, France), along with “Punti Ferrer Chardonnay” (Cachapoal Valley, Chile).
See here more examples of previous selections.
Average price per bottle
About $32 a bottle
Membership cost
3 Month Club: 2 bottles a month = $65.95 month
6 Month Club: 2 bottles a month = $64.95 month
12 Month Club: 2 bottles a month = $63.95 month
Seasonal Club: $65.95 month (1 delivery every 3 months for a year)
Gifts
When buying as a gift, the recipient gets a gift announcement in advance, along with your personal message and their delivery schedule.
Shipping
Shipping across Canada is free.
Cancellation
When you sign up for a membership – ranging from 3 to 12 months – your membership ends after the 3-month or 6-month period (or whatever you signed up for).
If you choose an “open-ended” membership which keeps on going, you’ll keep on getting charged unless you ask the club to stop.
6) Hazelton’s
We confess we don’t have personal experience with this club, but Hazelton’s is another Canadian-based luxury gift basket delivery business (like Amazing Clubs).
And they also have a “wine of the month club” to discover new labels.
Wines are sourced by “professional wine agents” and include “unique and rare” bottles.
Each wine club shipment comes with a food pairing guide too, giving suggestions on the best nibbles to go with your wine.
How it works
You choose which wine subscription you want from 12 different packages, ranging from a “mystery” package to old world picks to a dessert wine club.
Then, each month, you receive from 2 to 6 bottles of wine, depending on the package you choose.
You can sign up for 3, 6, 9 or 12 months.
Sample wines
Several of the wines offered – like the Australian “Yellow Tail Shiraz” and “Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc” (New Zealand) are ones you may be able to buy in your local liquor store.
Average price per bottle
A mystery. We couldn’t figure this out!
Membership cost
The monthly subscription price ranges from $84.99 for old world wines to $169.99 for dessert wines.
Gifts
If your international wine of the month club is being given as a gift, you can add a greeting card to the first delivery.
Shipping
Each month’s offerings are shipped on the first Monday of the month.
A minimum purchase of $100 is needed to qualify for free shipment on that purchase.
Cancellation
The cancellation policy isn’t very consumer friendly. Memberships can’t be cancelled for any reason.
If you sign up for a 12-month term, for example, you have to complete the contract and pay for the full year of wine.
7) Gargoyle Wine Club
You asked for it – you got it! A reader asked us to include the Gargoyle Wine Club in our post when updating it, so here’s the information.
We haven’t personally tried Gargoyle. But, started by a pair of young sommeliers, it looks to be the perfect wine club if you think wine should be fun and easy to buy.
Plus, we like that the wine club, based in Oakville, Ontario, has a heart.
Millions of people around the world don’t have access to safe clean water. So the Gargoyle team have partnered with Water.org, a global non-profit organization.
Every bottle of wine you buy from Gargoyle gives one person a full year of clean water.
So far, members have helped some 180,000 people get a full year of clean water.
How it works
Sommeliers pick the wines sold each month. You order the number of bottles you want each month – and whether you want reds, whites or a combination of both. And that’s it!
Sample wines
The January, 2022, wine selections included a Redstone Gamay Noir from the Niagara Peninsula, a South African shiraz from Boschendal Estate and a zippy Caa Lapostolle Sauvignon Blanc from Chile.
Average price per bottle
$31 to about $40
Membership cost
2 Bottles a month: $79
4 Bottles a month: $149
6 Bottles a month: $199
12 Bottles a month: $379
Gifts
Select the gift package (same as above), add a message and your monthly delivery will be sent to your gift recipient.
Shipping
Shipping is included on special offers, but otherwise it’s extra.
Cancellation
You can cancel at any time.
8) CB Wine Program
Don’t be fooled by the name of this wine club! The Charlie’s Burgers Wine Program offers some seriously good wines.
Charlie’s Burgers started in 2009 as a pop-up dining series with a high-profile chef.
That led to a #3 ranking in Food and Wine Magazine’s list of “100 Best New Food and Drink Experiences in the World” in 2010.
In 2013, they started their wine delivery service.
How it works
Members are sent a monthly selection of unique and delicious wines (not available in liquor stores).
A different winery from around the world is featured each month. You get from 2 to 6 bottles of wine – some months, the case may contain 6 bottles and some months maybe only 2 or 3 bottles.
This way, you try differently priced wines from different producers.
The CB team also suggests menu items from top restaurants across Canada that would pair well with the wine you receive.
And if you go to one of their suggested restaurants and bring a featured wine with you, you won’t be charged a corkage fee. Pretty cool, eh?
Sample wines
Past deliveries from the CB wine club have included wines from a monastery vineyard on Île Saint-Honorat (an island off the coast of Cannes, France) and from the celebrated Big Table Farm winery in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.
In the reserve program, featured wines for the first quarter of 2022 were 3 bottles of 2016 Barbaresco from Pelissero (including a 5 litre bottle) – great wine now, but it can be cellared until 2040.
Average price per bottle
Hmmm… Probably about $30 to $39 for the CB Wine Program (much higher for the reserve wines)
Membership cost:
CB Wine Program: Regular wines = $117 per month, billed every 3 months ($351 every 3 months)
CB Wine Reserve Program: Vintage and library wines = $1,495.95 every 3 months
Gifts
It’s simple to give a wine club membership as a gift. Just choose how many months you want to give and when it should start, enter your credit card and other details, and your gift will be delivered.
Shipping
Your wine is hand-delivered to you each month.
Cancellation
You can cancel at any time.
9) Wineries: Clubs and online sales
Many Canadian wineries also offer online sales or have their own wine clubs which you can subscribe to.
Black Hills
We’re partial to Black Hills Estate Winery in B.C., for example.
It has its own Black Hills Wine Club.
You can sign up for just half a case (6 bottles), delivered 3 times a year (under $850.00), or a full case, again shipped 3 times a year ($1,646.40).
There’s also a “Red Case” only subscription with 18 bottles of red wine for $958.20.
Additional perks include 50% off at signature winery events, a VIP tasting once a year at Black Hills and a members-only opportunity to book a stay at Black Hills’ 4-bedroom lodge right in its Osoyoos vineyard.
Burrowing Owl
Burrowing Owl is another B.C. winery we like. It makes some fine award-winning Merlots; their Meritage (a Bordeaux-style blend) is also excellent.
You can shop online for 2, 4, 6 or 12 bottles, which will be shipped to you by courier.
Your favorite winery?
So if you love a particular Canadian winery, check to see if they’ll ship wine directly to you.
Cheers!
Have you tried a wine club or wine subscription in Canada?
Are you tempted? You can let us know in the Comments section below.
Experience more food and wine deliciousness!
Indian food: From butter chicken to Roghan Josh, you’ll drool over these 20 popular Indian dishes.
Wine tasting in South Africa: There are more than 185 great wineries in Stellenbosch. We hit many of them!
Los Cabos: In Cabo, do yourself a favor and eat at the beautiful farm-to-table Flora Farms restaurant.
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Airport lounge access: We love (and have) Priority Pass for comfy lounge seats, free snacks and drinks, complimentary WiFi and sometimes even showers and spa services!
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Car rental: Renting a car is often one of the best ways to explore off the beaten path. Discover Cars searches car rental companies so you get the best rates.
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Photo credits: 8 to 10, 16, 17 © Janice and George Mucalov, SandInMySuitcase | 4, 5 Hemispheres Wine Guild | 11, 12, 13, 15 Opimian Wine Club de Vin | 22 to 24, 27 Wine Club | 26 Gray Monk | 28 Tinhorn Creek | 29, 32 Amazing Clubs | 36 to 38 Gargoyle Wine Club | 39, 40 CB Wine Program | 41 Black Hills | 42 Burrowing Owl
We received some complimentary wines so we could test out the wine quality and shipping services of some of these wine clubs. But as always, all views are our own.
About the authors
Luxury travel journalists and SATW, NATJA and TMAC “Best Travel Blog” award winners, Janice and George Mucalov are the publishers of Sand In My Suitcase. Between them, they’ve traveled to all 7 continents. See About.
Find destination guides, global food-and-wine stories, luxury hotel reviews, articles on cultural explorations and soft adventure trips, cruise reviews, insanely useful travel tips and more!
Julie M.
Sunday 11th of June 2023
I didn't realize there were so many options now!
I had a membership with Kwaf some years back (before having a kid) and enjoyed their mixed subscription. They shipped quarterly at the time but I think that may have changed. Have you tried them? I do believe they were exclusively Ontario wines then.
Janice and George
Sunday 6th of August 2023
Another wine club to check into! Thanks for letting us know :-).
Adrienne
Tuesday 2nd of May 2023
Thanks for the helpful information on the different wine clubs available. I currently belong to a Canadian wine club, and I think I would like to try one with world wide wines to sample.
Janice and George
Sunday 21st of May 2023
Glad you found this information helpful :-)
David Gilbert
Tuesday 27th of October 2020
You guys missed Gargoyle Wine Club! They're the best!
Janice and George
Tuesday 27th of October 2020
Hi David, We did miss them! Just Googled Gargoyle Wine Club. We'll check them out for inclusion in a future update of this post :-). Thanks for alerting us to their existence :-). Best...