Wall Street Journal Wine Club, Vinebox, Bright Cellars: I'll try anything once

I am a sucker for promotional emails. I realize that most of the world is beyond the influence of email marketing, but I truly love trying new products and services. When we pulled up Winc Wine club in class, I made a mental note to check it out later. I'm drawn to testing out these services because I love curated platforms and I enjoy the novelty of the experience.

Over the past several years, I've test driven too many to list, but a few include:

• Vinebox: a subscription that sends you "glasses" or tastes of different wines. It was a fun experiment, especially when my SO was living abroad because I could easily justify a glass with dinner without having to open a bottle. However, the 100 ml pours felt a bit small to be honest, and I was always left wanting a little more. Theoretically, you can buy a full bottle of a glass that you like, but that always seemed a bit too burdensome so I cancelled it after a few boxes 
• Bright Cellar: another subscription service that creates your own "unique taste profile" and sends monthly allotments of wine based on that service. I filled out the quiz, got my first box (which was heavily discounted after an incomplete profile inspired them to send me several discount codes), but ultimately decided I didn't need another $80 a month subscription service in my life 
• Wall Street Wine Club: honestly just Google Wine club, and you'll realize WSJ has the best SEO of all the wine clubs, and somehow make you feel convinced that you NEED to save $190 on this 12 pack of reds, plus glasses, and a decanter. WSJ was one I cancelled as soon as I received the shipment, but it felt like a very cost effective way to get wine to bring as a housewarming gift. 

While I've tried these and many other wine ecommerce experiences, a few questions stand out to me: 

• Are most customers of my "try anything once" mentality? Or are these platforms really creating lifetime customers? 
• With so many online wine clubs, is it just a race for who can spend the most on digital ads and who can offer the best upfront discounts? 
• How are wine subscriptions changing the way that producers build brands and reach new customers? 

Perhaps, I'm an atypical customer of these services in that I also am lucky to discover new wines by going to California Wineries or tastings from the Stanford Wine Circle. Or, maybe I just haven't encountered a wine subscription service or online club that has such an amazing curation and customer experience that I won't be looking for that cancel subscription button after a few months. 

The jury is out. In the meantime, I'll be testing out the loot from the latest marketing gimmick I fell for:

https://www.vogue.com/article/wine-subscription-services-that-will-make-you-feel-like-a-sommelier