Brixr.com

I think the consumer-focused idea of offering wine enthusiasts "tasting packs" for specific wines is one of the best ideas I've seen in awhile. In this economy wine lovers are looking for value, without having to completely sacrifice quality and that is precisely where Brixr comes in. They make it easy to taste a series of wines for a steal of a price, allowing folks to find wines that are worth spending money on for the full bottle.

During a recent wine writer's, online tasting with a new start-up company called Brixr.com, I had the chance to check out a fairly innovative wine tasting format. Basically, Brixr puts together “tasting packs” for people to buy truly a “taste” (50 ml) of different wine collections, with the idea being that consumers can "try" before they buy. I ran through the Rhone Inspired Tasting Pack and sampled six wines priced at $25 per pack, with the sample wines ranging from $20-50 for the full bottle.

This is certainly a win-win tasting platform that gives consumers the opportunity to taste several wines for just pennies on the bottle and allows producers to get their products to consumers for significantly less overhead. It's like a low-risk "meet and greet," where the wine and palate have a chance to mingle without having to shell out the big bucks. You can basically bring the tasting room to your living room, with these mini bottles - allowing you to sip, sample and savor a series of related wines before committing to purchase a full 750 ml bottle.

You can order various tasting packs and if you want, do an online tasting video that will take you into the details of the particular wine, producer, and vintage. However, what caught my attention was that for $25 you can taste through $175 worth of wines to see what you like in a given range.

Want to run through the same Rhone Inspired Tasting Pack and Online Seminar? Check it out here at Brixr.com.