Selling and shipping wine online to interested parties around this great nation of ours is a fool’s quest. Not only must the merchant navigate the rocky shoals of state regulations (akin to selling in 50 different countries when it comes to permits, age verification, quantity limits, and collection of sales taxes despite no physical presence in their state), but the weary merchant must also navigate the elements.
As I sit here in rain-soaked California, we fear the frequent mud slides and worry about erosion of our treasured top soil. Well, that and the smell of wet wool in the work place.
But elsewhere, this week’s inclement weather has lead to extreme temperatures that can affect a bottle of wine. If your wine spends too much time in an un-heated UPS truck or warehouse, it not only turns into a sort of adult slushy, it also forces the cork out of the bottle.
This may have been behind the photo at left, sent in by dear customer Kara. It is rather curious as to how the cork on one bottle was pushed, while the cork on the other bottle shipped in the same box was not. Any ideas on this?
I’m hypothesizing here, but the bottle that arrived in perfect condition was a Napa Cabernet, higher in alcohol by about 15% than the wine with the pushed cork. Could it be that the additional alcohol acted as anti-freeze?
Some may say that the Napa Cab benefited from the use of a natural cork, while the Rhone blend used an artificial cork. This may well be, but in my experience, the artificial corks are more difficult to separate from the bottle, not less.
What I Damn Well Plan To Do About This
Strong language for a simple pushed cork, perhaps. Maybe I’m channeling the unpleasantness from this week’s special elections. But I do want my customers to know that I take their wines seriously. The upcoming club shipment will again offer the option of free storage at my California facility until the club member indicates temperatures are adequate to allow safe shipping.
Even then, shipping to locations outside California will occur only on Mondays, allowing sufficient time for a UPS truck to get wine to its intended destination, obtain an adult signature, and all the other regulatory mumbo-jumbo required for safe delivery of the fermented grape.
Cheers!
Dave the Wine Merchant
Dave@DaveTheWineMerchant.com
