W I V Internatianal Wines

UnthankRoad

Hello

I used to work for this company but left (not because it is any kind of scam but because the way they treat their employees is an absolute disgrace)

I must say though that some of the comments on this thread from some of the more angry-with-the-world people are really making me laugh.

For example, no Pieroth do not break MPS regulations. They buy addresses of people who have consented to having their details sold on. Handy tip - if you don't want people to have your address - don't give it out.

The offer IS genuine. No ifs no buts. You do get a free gift and SAMPLING of 6 wines. The leaflet asks for your phone number in order to receive your gift, if you haven't given this clearly then the company are not obliged to give you your gift. And if you think you are getting 6 bottles of wine - LEARN TO READ!!

And the tastings are without obligation and with a right to cancel, no matter how "high pressure" the selling may be. So there is no reason not to take up the offer.

Although, at the risk of contradicting myself, I would say if all you're after is a freebie please don't accept the tasting, as the only person this would harm is the rep, who earns disgustingly low wages.

As for the wines, yes you can argue they are over priced, but I was amused by a comment from a self-confessed wine novice who suggested he often tried 20 bottles before having one he liked. So at 3 quid a bottle that is £60 per bottle enjoyed - £15 for the guaranteed enjoyment of a Pieroth wine sounds cheap.

So to try to say something useful for people, the company is a disgrace in my opinion, but not for anything related to their mailshots or marketing techniques generally. But for certain people it does actually, though I hate to say so, provide a useful, life enhancing and yes, value for money service.

Must say though I am amazed that the company charge for their wine tastings now. That's a new one.
Don't even consider paying for one of those, if you want to try the wines, call one of the local offices - there will always be a rep desperate for someone to see

Mangetout

rachysetty wrote: »

I've been trying to redeem my Groupon voucher for the last month and have had no response from them at all.

I've got the same problem, this time in Birmingham. I filled the online form in a month ago, have also emailed them and have had no reply. I called the sales office and the very rude woman gave me a Birmingham number which is never answered and has a full mailbox. I too wanted to use it for a birthday celebration, but doubt I'll be able to do it now, which is really annoying. I've emailed Groupon about it and am awaiting a reply.

Not impressed so far...

retired38

I have been reading the forum posts regarding WIV and Pierroth and thought I needed to put in my pennyworth.
I have been dealing with the "Vicomte de Bernard" arm of this company for at least six years now with no regrets.
Their salesman rings me about four times a year to make an appointment to visit for tasting the latest wines.Their selections change according to the time of year (e.g Summer-selections are ideal for barbecues Winter- hearty wines to go with roasts,casseroles,etc.
We have the wine tasting, there is no pressure to purchase at that time but it does let me know the wines available should I decide to buy later.
Over the course of time the salesman knows the particular styles of wine that I like and my price range so does not waste time with wines outside these parameters.
His knowledge of wines is very good, so the selection we taste nearly always suits my palate. Yes, the wine is more expensive than most people will pay in a supermarket, but the quality is excellent.
I also buy from Laithwaites on occassion but priice for price Vicomte's wine is just superior.
Deliveries are always notified at least a week in advance and can be changed if not convenient. The staff at Luton have always been very helpful and polite.
I find it a pleasant way to spend an hour with good company(the salesman) and
you can always say "NO THANK YOU":beer:

wizardo

aromulus wrote: »

The people that normally do write ups on wine, do not necessarily have the same tastes ay you.
And alcohol content does not really relate to the "robustness" of the wine. I had the misfortune to buy a 40 Euro, 13.5%, bottle of Barolo, in Italy, not so long ago. And it was as thin as water, but the so called "lighter" Chianti, 12.5%, purchased on the same trip, was as thick as tar...
It is nice to be price conscious, but not when it drives you to deny yourself the quality you deserve.
Oh, well, for all it is worth.... Just my two pence again...

Very interesting as my experience of Barolo of late has been bad and as you described very thin. I have passed over Chianti in the past as I have found this thin as well and no longer even consider Italian wines. I do like thick tarry wines and if you recommend a Chianti that fits the bill, please let me know. Incidentally, I happened on this thread by googling WIV, I was very suspicious as their flyer had no address etc. I wonder how they get our addresses, it has to be some purchase of wine via a newspaper wine purchase or supermarket internet sale. Whatever it is, our details should not be passed on without agreement.

moneymagppie

Have come to this thread late.... have to say that way back we used Pieroth and never had a bad wine from them. In fact we had some real stunners. This was in the 1970s BTW. When our son started in the wine trade in 2007 we found a couple of bottles under the floorboards.... one TBA and a Jubilee wine. Both had held up really well..the TBA especially so.
We met them at the Bristol World Wine fair one year!

RJonWilly

This company has started their sales campaign again. Before you go any further, have a look at the Wikipedia report on the Diethylene glycol scandal (fined 1million deutsche marks for their part in this. As the saying goes "would you buy a used car from this man?"

virtuoso12

former rep of the company.it is a promotion.so yes they will try to sell you wine.that is their job.the wines are of better quality and you get to taste before you deceide to buy or not.but i would suggest you all read the letter properly."a sampling of up to 6 specially selected high quality wines" NOT 6 free bottles.those of you who didnt hear from the company,you can`t guarantee your reply got back to pieroth.also,having worked there myself and been told to f*** off when trying to follow through with offering the tasting and booking said tastings then receiving rude threatening letters from said dimwhits who forgot they sent off the survey demanding their free gift.yes,sometimes you don`t get what you thought.we also don`t get what we thought we were going to get.like a 30 to 50 yr old working red wine drinker.quite often we arrive to said appointments and you are old,smelly,rude or out and don`t drink wine. this is an opportunity for wine lovers to try free wines that are exclusive to pieroth.the rep can leave whenever you want them to or as and when they decide you are not interested in buying wine.

virtuoso12

wasn`t the glycol "scam" back in the 80s???? and weren`t pieroth cleareed of responsibility?? having bought an austrian bottling plant that had been using glycol?? hmmmm

virtuoso12

nice to see someone putting all the moaning do gooders back in their place.re the groupon thing.pieroth teamed up with them in 2011 as a new business venture.pieroth arent charging,groupon are.it just gives pieroth a wider exposure to new customers.but to be fair to pieroth,£20 for a guaranteed min hr to 1.5hr tasting of 12 bottles of wine plus a free bottle for doing so.i don`t think thats a scam.i actually feel it`s a bargain.after all.the poor rep has to put up with a group of ppl who just want a free !!!! up.

virtuoso12

pieroth will honour any voucher.even if its 6 months past the expiry date.because they are not always able to book everyone in when they want and believe me many of the desired times and dates are just plain ridiculous! most of the booking problems arise from people not giving correct email/tel details and not following booking procedures