Questions, answered plainly.

Think of it as a CSA, but for European wine. You choose a share — half, full, or double — and your cases ship every May and November, directly from the family winery to your Minnesota door. No distributor, no retail shelf, no markup along the way.

A Half Share is $35 a month (one case per shipment — 12 bottles a year). A Full Share is $65 a month (two cases per shipment — 24 bottles a year). A Double Share is $120 a month (four cases — 48 bottles a year). You can be billed monthly or every six months, and taxes and shipping are included. That works out to roughly $33 a bottle for wine that would run $55–$60 at retail.

Yes, anytime. You can change your share size or cancel before your next shipment — there's no long-term commitment. If your situation changes, email me and we'll sort it out in a day.

Yes. Before each shipment you pick your bottles from the current catalog. If you'd rather leave it to me, tell me what you like and I'll build your case — that's half the fun of my job. See the current catalog.

Most wine clubs buy from the same distributors your local shop uses. I import directly from two family estates I visit and taste with myself, so the wines in your case aren't available anywhere else in Minnesota — and the price reflects one importer, not four middlemen.

Minnesota law allows residents to buy wine directly from a producer — up to two cases per person, per winery, per year. That law is what makes this whole model possible, and it's also why I ship to Minnesota addresses only. If you're outside the state, join the email list at TollefsonWine.com and I'll let you know if that changes.

Minnesota lets each resident buy up to two cases — 24 bottles — per winery, per year, directly from the producer. I currently work with two wineries, so each adult in your household has room for up to 48 bottles a year within the law.

Cases ship twice a year, every May and November — lighter wines ahead of a Minnesota summer, structured reds ahead of the holidays. I'll email you before each window with your selection deadline and delivery details.

By white-glove delivery service, and an adult 21 or older must sign for it. Your wine is never left on a doorstep — in a Minnesota July or a Minnesota January, that matters.

The delivery service will coordinate a redelivery time that works for you. Because an adult signature is required, the case simply comes back another day rather than sitting outside.

Not yet. Direct-shipping laws differ state by state, and the law I operate under covers Minnesota addresses only.

Most imported wine passes through four tiers — importer, distributor, retailer, and finally you — and each tier adds a markup. I import directly from the winery and deliver to your door, so you pay one honest margin instead of three or four. The same bottle that's roughly $33 as a member would run $55–$60 through a U.S. retailer.

No — it's the same wine the producers sell in Europe, from estates farmed biodynamically for generations. The price is lower because the route is shorter, not because the wine is lesser. Good wine doesn't have to be expensive.

Yes. The membership price includes taxes and white-glove shipping to your Minnesota address. No surprise line items at checkout.

I'm an importer, not a winery. The wine is made by two families I know personally: Guilhem Tournier at Château Guilhem Tournier in Bandol, Provence, and the Mitjans family at Loxarel — Masia Can Mayol in Penedès, Catalonia. I visit the estates, taste with the winemakers, and bring their bottles home to Minnesota. Meet the producers.

Both estates farm biodynamically — and they can show you exactly what that means on their land. Guilhem dry-farms old Mourvèdre vines worked by hand and by horse. At Loxarel, a flock of roughly 500 sheep grazes the vineyards between harvests instead of herbicides.

The specialty of the house is Mourvèdre from Bandol — one of France's great age-worthy reds — alongside Xarel·lo, the backbone white grape of Penedès. Expect reds, rosés, and whites that taste like the places they come from, chosen fresh for each May and November shipment.

These are small-production family estates without major U.S. distribution — the big publications rarely cover them and the big distributors rarely carry them. In Minnesota, the only way to these bottles is directly from the source.

Yes. Every wine in the membership is also available as a one-time case, shipped the same way — directly from the producer to your door. Shop one-time cases.

A case from a family estate — with a real story behind it — makes a memorable gift. The recipient needs to be a Minnesota resident 21 or older, since an adult must sign at delivery. Email me and I'll help you pick the right case.

Gladly. Hosting a few friends? Reach out and I'll help you build a flight from the catalog — what to open first, what to pour with dinner, and the stories behind each bottle.

You receive a full refund on any damaged or corked bottle — no forms, no fuss. I stand behind every bottle I import. Just email me at jon@tollefsonwine.com.

Yes. You must have a Minnesota address and be 21 or older to purchase. An adult 21 or older must sign for every delivery.

I'm a WSET-certified wine professional working through the Level 4 Diploma, a former U.S. diplomat, and I speak French, Italian, and Spanish. My wine education started in the Loire Valley in 2005 and deepened in Nice, where a merchant taught me that great everyday wine belongs on working families' tables. Tollefson Wine Imports is that idea, brought home to Minnesota. Read the full story.

Yes. I taste at the estate, walk the vines, and sit at the family's table before I import a single bottle. If I wouldn't pour it for my own friends, it doesn't make the catalog.