As into wine as my brother and I are, my mom likes sweeter style wines which is the Total Wine Winery Direct Playbook. One of the great liquor laws in MN is no shop can have an exclusive on any wine so all stores can legally carry it. If it is in a wine shop than any other shop can carry it. When Total Wine came into town they offered some good prices on popular, quality wines but then they sucked you in and started touting their Winery Direct Selections which are maximum profit for them.
Many shops got smart and found out the low cost of these winery direct wines and advertised them at a big discount. Liquor Boy being one of them now markets most of their wines in the paper as Winery Direct Wines and goes as far as showing you the price difference.
Here are two wines I bought for my mom on Sunday and it is amazing how much you save by price matching with Liquor Boy’s Star & Tribune Add.
- 2020 Vennstone Pinot Noir – USA, California (1/17/2022)
For the $20 I would expect more. A to Z is far superior and costs less. Strawberry, minerals and mild spice. A touch sweet for my palate. A winery direct from Total Wine $20.00. (83 points) - Liquor Boy Price: $11.99 ($19.99 at Total Wine)
- Savings per bottle including tax: $8.82
- 2019 Truth and Valor Cabernet Sauvignon Truth and Valor – USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles (12/26/2021)
Not very good. Not a fan of Paso Robles Cabernet lately and this is no expectation. Muted fruit, earth and some floral notes. Short finish and a bit sweet. (80 points) - Liquor Boy Price: $14.99 ($25.99 at Total Wine)
- Savings per bottle including tax: $12.10
3 bottles of Vennstone plus 2 bottles of Truth and Valor for a total savings of $50.66