Winedrops 17+

I feel rushed

I’m quite intrigued by the concept of Winedrops, and there do seem to be some really appealing deals, which is great to see! It’s refreshing to find a service that offers such value, and I’m genuinely happy about the selection they seem to have on offer. However, I can’t help but feel a bit rushed with the whole process. The app gives some information upfront but doesn’t really let you explore properly without pushing you to sign up immediately.

I barely got to page 5 of the setup screens when it was already asking for my card details, which felt a bit premature. Then, the buying process was confusing – it said I needed to add six items to my basket to proceed, but when I added just one bottle, it still charged me! Now, it seems like I’ve paid for something I can’t even receive because I didn’t meet the minimum order. This left me feeling a bit misled, almost like it snatched the money out of my hand, which doesn’t exactly inspire confidence.

Overall, while the deals and concept are promising, the aggressive approach to payments and lack of clarity around ordering make the experience feel a bit untrustworthy. Some more transparency and freedom to explore the app would make it feel a lot more welcoming.

Suspicious membership onboarding

I went to pay for something in a shop with applepay today and it showed me that Winedrops had earlier today attemped to charge me £90 for a membership subscription?! I was baffled by this as I remember only ever briefly checking out the app and never commiting. (If I sign up for a free trial I usually set a reminder to end it beforehand too) So I went onto the app and it claimed I had made an order for a bottle, which initially led me to believe maybe someone had hacked my account? So I went through the menu and found the options to check my “profile”, no address had been input so I’m not sure where this “order” was heading, no personal details for myself at all. Yet by some miracle they had my Apple pay card details details?! I went to the app store to see if maybe just perhaps I had forgotten to cancel a free membership as Im sure these things do happen occasionally. App store confirmed that nothing was noted under my subscriptions, and the app store didnt even acknowledge if I was on a free trial in the first place. All in all i’m left feeling bamboozled and actually very apprehensive about ever using this app again. Luckily they tried to deduct from my apple pay which is a card that I pre-load onto when I want to make a purchase but I now feel quite uncomfortable putting funds onto it just in case. The reason this app got two stars instead of one is because the deals look pretty impressive if you like that kind of thing.

Developer Response ,

I’m sorry! It’s mentioned in app setup, in your welcome email, and in Ts & Cs. Equivalent to £7.50 a month, the potential savings far outstrip the membership.
Also, it is important to note that deleting the app does not automatically cancel your subscription. To avoid charges, the subscription needs to be cancelled within the app itself, and this must be done before the end of the free trial period.
For membership fees, we generally do not refund these but will offer you compensation if you get in touch within 24 hours of being charged, so if that applies, please email jonny@winedrops.co.uk so we can help you out!

Great way to try good wines

Ok, so I may have gone a little OTT with my first few orders, but you just can’t help pass by a good bargain! I like the pricing, I like the tasting notes, I like that you commit to buy when you select the wine you want - so costs can be spread out over time rather than a big bill in one order. So you can see your cellar building over time, and you can change the shipping so they hold your wine until you are ready to ship.
Unfortunately there is no benefit to larger orders, ie they add 50p per bottle on top of the minimum 6 bottles to ship. So when I got to 90+ bottles I ended up with a £50 shipping bill which hurt the pocket - but, several days later I was pleased to see my 8 cases of wine land on my doorstep.
Yes, the £90 fee is possibly a bit steep, but if you want access to great wines at a discount price, it’s worth it. Time will tell as to whether I renew my membership next year. But so far, I’ve liked the wines I’ve drunk from them