General Questions

  • Bottles Nation is a tasting experience company that hosts wine, craft beer, cocktail, whiskey and mocktail events — both virtually and in person. Our tastings are led by certified sommeliers, cicerones, and mixologists. We were the first virtual tasting company to launch in the market, and we remain 100% independent in our beverage selections.

  • All tastings are hosted by credentialed beverage professionals. Our lead host is Michael Bottigliero, a certified sommelier with WSET Advanced certification and 20+ years of experience in the hospitality industry. Depending on your event type and location, your tasting may be led by Michael or one of our other certified experts — including Advanced Cicerones, certified beer judges, and professional mixologists.

  • We offer five types of tastings: wine, craft beer, whiskey and spirits, cocktail (mixology), and mocktails. Each tasting is a guided, 60-minute experience led by a certified expert. You can learn more about each type on our Virtual Tastings page or contact us for custom options.

  • We are 100% independent. We don’t work with a single exclusive winery or distributor. Every wine, beer, and spirit we select for your tasting is one you can actually find and buy at your local shop, grocery store, or beverage retailer. We never use pre-set samplers, and we never require you to buy a minimum volume. Our selections are based purely on quality and what will make your event exceptional.

Virtual Event Questions

  • Here’s the process: You book your event and pay the flat event fee. We send you a questionnaire to learn about your group’s preferences. We then send a custom shipping address form to collect your participants’ addresses. Once we receive the addresses and payment for the tasting goods, we order and ship everything directly to each participant. On the day of your event, your certified host joins your video call and guides the group through a 60-minute tasting.

  • The flat $350 fee covers all event planning, coordination, ordering logistics, and the guided 1-hour tasting led by one of our certified experts. It does not include the cost of the tasting goods (wine, beer, spirits, etc.), which are billed separately based on the number of participants and the type of tasting you choose.

  • Per-participant costs depend on the type of tasting: - Wine (“The Classic” 4-pack of full bottles): $89 per participant - Premium Wine (higher-tier selections): $150 or $200 per participant - Craft Beer (6 cans, varying styles): $89 per participant - Spirits/Whiskey (5 mini bottles): 89+ per participant - Mixology (2 cocktail kits with alcohol and ingredients): $160 per participant - Mocktails (ingredients for 6–8 drinks): $140 per participant

  • Yes. We ship to most states.. Each participant receives their tasting kit at their own address, and everyone joins the same video call for the guided tasting. This is what makes virtual tastings ideal for remote teams and distributed groups.

  • States that can’t accept wine shipments:
    Alabama, Delaware, Kentucky, Maine, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Utah, South Dakota. For Kentucky, we can make shipments to Louisville and Lexington happen for an additional $50 per location. For Maine, this would be an additional $50 per location charge.

    States that can receive only NON-ALCOHOLIC mixology kits:
    Alaska, Arkansas, Hawaii, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Michigan, and Utah.

    States that can’t receive beer shipments:
    The beer kits do not ship to Alaska, Arkansas, Hawaii, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Utah.

    States that can’t receive spirits shipment

    Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Rhode Island and Utah

    We work with a variety of spirits partners, each providing different offerings for different states. We can guarantee everyone will be drinking the same type of spirit, but the producer may vary based on state.

  • We can work with any video platform your organization already uses — Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Webex, or others. You can use your own streaming link, or we can create one for you.

  • We recommend booking at least 2–3 weeks in advance to allow time for shipping and logistics. For large groups or events during the holiday season, we suggest booking 4–6 weeks ahead.

  • After you provide participant addresses and payment for the goods, we place the order through our third-party shipping partners. We track every shipment and provide tracking information to you. We do not ship the goods ourselves — everything goes through our trusted fulfillment partners.

  • We actively monitor all shipments and will communicate any issues as soon as we’re aware of them. If a package is delayed or lost, we work with our shipping partners to resolve the situation as quickly as possible. We recommend building a buffer of a few days before your event to account for any potential delays.

  • Because of the volume of orders we are processing, we typically do not accept additional addresses after the full list of addresses are accepted. There are times when we can take in more addresses after the cut off. We cannot guarantee that these new addresses will receive their goods on time. We will offer you expedited shipping (at an additional fee), but cannot guarantee that things will arrive on time.

  • Bottles Nation is not responsible for incorrect addresses sent to our team. We also are not responsible for re-routing shipments based on incorrect addresses. Our White Glove service will do everything possible to potentially reroute the goods after they leave our partners’ hands.

    We are not responsible for orders being delivered late by our partners and/or the shipper(s) they use.

    We are not responsible for people going on vacation, or not being available to pick up their order. We are also not responsible if someone else signs for an order delivery.

  • There may be times that, based on weather conditions and forecasts, you will need to pay an additional fee to protect the integrity of your goods from extreme weather. Bottles Nation will openly communicate this necessity, should it arise. Beer and wine are most affected by extreme weather.

    Bottles Nation is not responsible for items that arrive damaged due to weather.

In-Person Event Questions

  • We currently host in-person events in the Detroit metro area and the greater Chicagoland area. We come to your location — corporate offices, private homes, restaurants, event venues, coworking spaces, or any space that can accommodate your group.

  • In-person events have a hosting fee that varies based on location, venue requirements, and group size. Per-participant tasting costs are the same as our virtual events (wine at $89, beer at $89, spirits at $89+, mixology at $160, mocktails at $140). Contact us at hello@bottlesnation.com or call 708-205-9493 for a custom quote.

  • We can accommodate groups of virtually any size. We’ve hosted intimate gatherings of 8–10 people and large corporate events with hundreds of guests.

  • We bring the beverages, tasting sheets, and our host. Depending on the event, we may also bring glassware and setup materials. All we need from you is a venue with tables and seating for your guests. If you have specific venue requirements or questions, let us know when you request your quote and we’ll walk you through exactly what to expect.

  • Absolutely. We frequently host tastings at restaurants, private dining rooms, hotel event spaces, rooftop venues, and other locations. If you have a venue in mind, we’re happy to coordinate with them.

  • Currently, our in-person events are available in Detroit and Chicago. If you’re interested in an in-person event in another city, reach out to us — we may be able to accommodate special requests depending on location and timing. Our virtual tastings are available nationwide.

Booking & Logistics