Small Biz

Web Sites for Wine Lovers

Aficionados of the grape like to talk, learn, and teach wine, and a growing number are finding they can make money providing online space for people to do just that

By John Tozzi

Can you use the Web to create a viable business targeted at wine lovers that doesn't just rely on wine sales? That's the question facing wine enthusiasts who are trying to make money with sites devoted to connecting with and informing fellow oenophiles. Others seeking to break into that niche of the online wine business are bricks-and-mortar retailers. Industry players have dubbed the category "Wine 2.0." It's growing fast—many of the companies, which rely on social media tools to build communities of users, are less than a year old—and no clear market leader has emerged. Flip through this slide show for a look at seven players who hope to become the Facebook of the wine world, and see the secrets to their success. (Note that all traffic numbers and revenues are self-reported.)