Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/417249
44 W i n e s & V i n e s D e C e M b e r 2 0 1 4 The major websites were ranked based on their total offers, average dis- count and diversity of offers. The rank- ings were then averaged, and Wine Woot's average ranking was the best. Wine Woot, the wine flash site that's a subsidiary of Amazon, didn't lead in any of the parameters but finished strong in all of them, making it the best flash site of 2014. The website posted 488 offers (the fourth-highest total dur- ing the past 12 months), had a 30% diversity rate and an average discount of 43%. best Days for flash offers New Year Prompts Flash Sites to Offer Most Deals Just like their brick-and-mortar retail equivalents, flash websites appear to push a greater number of sales around key holidays. The best day for flash of- fers in the past 12 months (October 2013-September 2014) came Dec. 30, the day before New Year's Eve, when flash sellers posted 260 total offers. The second-highest number of offers came Aug. 30, during Labor Day weekend, with 175 offers. Unlike retail stores, the best of flash sites Wine Woot Comes Out On Top for Diversity, Discount and Offers The best flash website for wine sales in the past 12 months was Wine Woot. It wasn't the website's large online com- munity of vocal, feisty wine lovers and commentators that pushed Wine Woot to the top, nor was it the snappy dia- logue between stuffed monkeys in the company's email offers. Instead, the number of wine offers and diversity of offers (percentage from wineries with a single flash offer)—combined with a relatively high average discount—pro- pelled Wine Woot to No. 1. Based on data collected during the past 12 months (from October 2013 through the end of September 2014), flash wine sales websites excelled in dif- ferent areas. Invino had the most offers by far with 1,475, nearly a quarter of all 6,122 flash wine offers. Wines Til Sold Out had the highest average dis- count of 53% and the third-highest number of offers at 784. Last Call Wines had the second-highest number of offers (1,095) and the second-highest average discount 49%. FLASH weBsite rank BY* : oFFers disCount diVersitY aVg. rank wine woot 4 3 7 4.67 invino 1 5 10 5.33 wines til sold out 3 1 12 5.33 last Call wines 2 2 13 5.67 last Bottle wines 9 4 4 5.67 wineshopper 7 6 6 6.33 wine spies 6 9 5 6.67 good Juice direct 10 11 2 7.67 Cinderella wine 12 8 3 7.67 lot18 5 10 9 8.00 underground Cellar 13 13 1 9.00 wired For wine 8 12 8 9.33 rue la la 11 7 11 9.67 *The top 13 flash websites were ranked by their number of offers, average discount and diversity of offers. These ranks were then averaged to determine which website had the highest average ranking based on all three categories. promotions are less about getting con- sumers to purchase wine for that holi- day and more about tying a promotion to a holiday when consumers are likely to be home and willing to buy wine. The third-highest number of offers came May 25, during the Memorial Day week- end, while Fourth of July, a Friday this year, had the fourth-highest number of flash offers. best Deals on flash sites Flash Wine Seller Offers 91% Discount The best "deal" by a flash site within the past 12 months (October 2013-September 2014) came Dec. 12, 2013, when Rue La La offered a two-pack of 2006 and 2007 Terra Valentine Spring Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon for $16.90 (or $8.45 per bottle), a 91% dis- count off the winery retail price of $91.50 per bottle. Wines Vines Analytics also re- cords the critical score of a wine if listed by the flash reseller. If a wine has received a score of 90 points or higher by critics with the Wine Enthusiast or Wine Specta- tor magazine, or The Wine Advo- cate newsletter and International Wine Cellar, it's typically included in the offer. Reviewing offers by retail price, discount and critical score, the best "deal" appears to be an Aug. 21 offer by WTSO for a bottle of 2010 Beringer Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon for $95, a 41% discount off the retail price of $160. The wine received an aver- age score of 94 based on 90+ ratings from all four major reviewers. Invino, which often has some of the priciest wines for sale, also had the most expensive wine for sale in the past 12 months, a 1993 Cabernet Sauvignon from Screaming Eagle Winery. The website offered the wine for $2,499, a 44% discount off the listed retail price of $4,425. b e s t o f 2 0 1 4