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  • Jason Johnson’s Mankato-based Minnesota Wine Club provides six Minnesota wines delivered to customers’ doors each quarter. The first deliveries, going out this month, include selections from Morgan Creek near New Ulm and wineries from Rochester and Spicer. Pat Christman

    Wine club

December 12, 2010

Time is ripe for wine club

By Tim Krohn The Free Press

MANKATO — Since starting and selling a plush toy company he started while a college student in Mankato, Jason Johnson’s entrepreneurial skills and target audience have matured.

Johnson and a business partner recently launched Minnesota Wine Club, where members are delivered a box of six Minnesota wines each quarter.

“After selling my toy company and going to California for a year, I visited a lot of wineries there. I realized the wine produced in Minnesota was on par with what’s made in California.”

Many states with wineries have similar clubs, but this is the first in Minnesota.  

“There’s a ton of wineries opening in Minnesota — almost 40 of them. And the University of Minnesota is a leader in developing grape varieties, particularly cold-hardy varieties, which are only being grown in Minnesota,” Johnson said.

The first shipment of wine going out this month includes wines from three wineries — Morgan Creek near New Ulm, Post Town in Rochester, and Glacial Ridge in Spicer. Morgan Creek will provide its Relativity and Puck’s Pride labels to the shipment.

Members of the club can  sign up online at MinnesotaWineClub.com and each quarter have their credit card charged $109 — just under $20 per bottle, which includes shipping. They also get wine-tasting tips, information about each wine selection and winery, and other information.

“Our (profit) margin is very thin, but we wanted to keep it reasonable.”

Paula Marti of Morgan Creek said the new club should help boost awareness for an industry that is still in its infancy.

“I think it’s a great concept in supporting the wine industry through education. Most people can’t get out and get to all the wineries, so having a club do the footwork is fantastic.”

Johnson said he also wants the website to serve as the resource for Minnesota winery customers. It has information with maps on all the state’s wineries, information about grape varieties, wine events and other information.

Johnson started Plaja Pets in 2006 while a student at Minnesota State University. He later sold the business to a California toy company and worked for them for a year during the transition.

Since returning from California, he’s lived in Mankato but works for a web development firm in Bloomington. His wine club business partner, Anthony Ticknor, also works for the firm.

Johnson’s experience gave him a hand up when starting the wine club business, said Jill Klinger, director of the New Enterprise & Emerging Business division of Greater Mankato Growth.

“He’s a seasoned entrepreneur, so there’s not a lot we need to help him with.”

Johnson, who had received help from Klinger’s group in his toy endeavor, now serves on an advisory council for Klinger.

“I think they’ll do really well with this,” said Klinger of the wine club.

 

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