More shipping stupidity

[Joseph_Zamrin]

Some FL distributors are end-to-end refrigerated. Others have varying degrees of climate control. Even in those cases, we don’t normally see obvious problems. That doesn’t preclude some items getting warm in the distribution chain.

[DougS]

I’m sure I would do something similar. What are your thoughts on the condition of wine you buy in your local market? Do you buy much there? Does wine you have shipped in tend to be he more expensive/ageworthy? I’ve been curious about how Florida residents deal with this for a while. Texas too, but I think it’s not nearly as easy to get wine shipped into Texas.

In the local market it is no different than anywhere else, thermostat is set to 72-75 degrees. Whether it is Florida in the summer or New York in the winter, that internal temp should not vary much.

I was thinking about containers coming in and distributors delivering to retailers, rather than wine store conditions.

[J_Patrick_Lynch]

I’m sure I would do something similar. What are your thoughts on the condition of wine you buy in your local market? Do you buy much there? Does wine you have shipped in tend to be he more expensive/ageworthy? I’ve been curious about how Florida residents deal with this for a while. Texas too, but I think it’s not nearly as easy to get wine shipped into Texas.

In the local market it is no different than anywhere else, thermostat is set to 72-75 degrees. Whether it is Florida in the summer or New York in the winter, that internal temp should not vary much.

I was thinking about containers coming in and distributors delivering to retailers, rather than wine store conditions.

I’m curious what the temperature swings were for this case below. If anyone on here has PACER, the docket number is 7:2020cv03875 Southern Court of NY.

almost 1000 bottles of cooked serious wine.

Zachys' Insurer is Suing Shippers After Wine Is Allegedly Ruined

[Oliver_McCrum]

Some FL distributors are end-to-end refrigerated. Others have varying degrees of climate control. Even in those cases, we don’t normally see obvious problems. That doesn’t preclude some items getting warm in the distribution chain.

We use refrigerated containers coming in, refrigerated warehouse and refrigerated trucks. I am told that not all of the inbound containers generally are refrigerated, though, which I find odd. This is in northern CA.

[Kirk.Grant]

Florida is not a problem…

In breaking news, ‘Florida man’ says “Florida is not the problem”.

[Mariano_Chiaramonte]

Florida is not a problem…

In breaking news, ‘Florida man’ says “Florida is not the problem”.

While wrestling an alligator

[DougS]

Some FL distributors are end-to-end refrigerated. Others have varying degrees of climate control. Even in those cases, we don’t normally see obvious problems. That doesn’t preclude some items getting warm in the distribution chain.

We use refrigerated containers coming in, refrigerated warehouse and refrigerated trucks. I am told that not all of the inbound containers generally are refrigerated, though, which I find odd. This is in northern CA.

“not all”
(I don’t mean to be rude, it’s just quite an understatement.)

[Adam_Frisch]

BTW, Cold Shipping with FedEx isn’t even an option in my shipping software, Shipstation (which is one fo the biggest in the industry). You can chose Ground, Express and Overnight (or to that effect), but no cold shipping. So not sure exactly how that’s done. Does anyone know? You have to call those shipments in manually?

[Andy_Kohl]

While not on the level of others in this board, my most expensive list just sent me a release with temperatures breaking 100 degrees in the central valley yesterday/today. Fortunately it only took a day to ship here and the wife was home… we don’t have any options for 100% person present guarantee, and it would have been horrible if we happened to miss the FedEx truck today (Which happens regularly). Why would someone charging that much for wine risk it getting cooked in temperatures like that. Makes me question staying on the list…

[Jon_Lawrence]

I bought some '08 DP Rose from a shop in upstate NY last week and temps were supposed to be in the mid-90’s over the weekend so I did not want to chance me missing the deliver on Thursday or Friday and the wine then spending the weekend roasting in the truck. Their website gave me the option to select a shipment day and I chose this past Monday and it was delivered yesterday in an oversized box so they could include the original packaging. Nice job!

[Joseph_Zamrin]

BTW, Cold Shipping with FedEx isn’t even an option in my shipping software, Shipstation (which is one fo the biggest in the industry). You can chose Ground, Express and Overnight (or to that effect), but no cold shipping. So not sure exactly how that’s done. Does anyone know? You have to call those shipments in manually?

I started looking into it but did not get far. It looks like the service only exists from West to East, not in reverse. I called my rep and he knew nothing.

You would have to call for special pickup. It is a combo of refrigerated delivery trucks and priority overnight shipping. I would guess you run the express label from shipstation and they add in the additional service cost to your bill. I would hope FedEx has a rate schedule you could use to set your fee.

[JBrochu]

I got to be honest, I don’t think it’s realistic to expect that every shipment is preceded with a notice or an exchange of “is it ok to ship now, are you going to be home between these and these dates, are the temperatures to your liking?”. That’s implied by the order.

As an example, on BerserkerDay I had 300 shipments that needed to get out. It takes me and my wife over two weeks just to package all of that and ship it. Imagine if we’d have to double check with every buyer if they’re going to be home, or if they’re cool with us shipping now, make sure they’re not on vacation, if there are any temperatures along any potential route that might not be ideal - we’d still be at it. Each interaction could easily take up to an hour, maybe more - that’s 300 man hours. And how would you you do it? Call? Email? Hold shipment until someone responds, even if wx is perfect? What if it ended up in spam folder? What if I never get a response? What if they didn’t give any contact details?

I of course try to as much as I can, but it’s just not realistic for every shipment of wine. Sure, if you’re shipping DRC across the country from a specialized retailer that charges accordingly for it, then they can probably take the time to do so, but regular smaller producers don’t have the luxury of spending hours and days on each shipment, or to anticipate every permeable route FedEx might take where there might be temperatures above 70 degrees. We can either make wine, or spend it on logistics.

I understand that it’s your choice to operate this way, but honestly I check up front and won’t buy from any store or direct from any winery unless they agree to work with me regarding ship dates and notice.

Edit: I should have kept reading before posting to see others had already made the same point. I wasn’t intending to pile on and I’m glad to see that you plan to make changes to your spring release schedule.

[P_Bennett]

Just got my Realm shipment yesterday in south Florida. They had those babies with ice blocks on top and bottom. Great packaging but the bottom of the box was a little soggy so I was initially worried a wine had busted. Thankfully not the case but I sure almost had a coronary opening the boxes

[C_Martinelli]

Just got my Realm shipment yesterday in south Florida. They had those babies with ice blocks on top and bottom. Great packaging but the bottom of the box was a little soggy so I was initially worried a wine had busted. Thankfully not the case but I sure almost had a coronary opening the boxes

Same here today in Los Angeles. I thought I could sneak in this delivery as temps have been on the cool side but things heated up today. Very glad to see the ice blocks upon opening.

[Vincent_Fritzsche]

I find it impossible to nail shipping 100% so I guarantee it 100% and eat any losses related to messed up shipments, bad timing shipments, etc. They are rare but they happen and I’m not losing any sleep or possible business success over covering things. I think it’s good business to be up front with that policy and then obviously to back it up when there’s any issue.

And yes that means down the road, when you think - hey, in good faith I believe this wine was damaged en route - then hit me up and we’ll take care of it. Credit, refund, replacement. Whatever we can do and works for you.

I don’t mean to be glib but delivery issues are part of a wine’s DNA. Work a harvest. Grapes will and won’t show up when they’re supposed to. You deal. Even when you’re simply tractoring it in from the vines right outside a facility, shit just doesn’t happen exactly when you think and you have to deal with that.

Titling a thread “more shipping stupidity” is [not my favorite framing]. Things happen. That kind of framing is how we falsely try to feel better about ourselves - they’re the idiots, not me! I’m sure it feels good to think that way but it’s not correct.

[Andrew_K]

The absolute worst company for this is Zachy’s. They pretty much tell you they can’t control exactly what date an order is shipped. I would never request they ship unless the temperatures for weeks around when your request is put in are perfect. They shipped and had a few k in wine cooked and had to refund me. Hopefully they didn’t sell it to someone else but who knows.

I just experienced this. Ordered some DP P2 from them this week and it just showed up today - warm to the touch, bottles temp at 85 degrees. Not surprising since it’s been mid-90s all week long. Can’t believe they just fired off the shipment. I hope they have more bottles to replace mine in the fall as I really wanted this wine.

[Jon_Lawrence]

The absolute worst company for this is Zachy’s. They pretty much tell you they can’t control exactly what date an order is shipped. I would never request they ship unless the temperatures for weeks around when your request is put in are perfect. They shipped and had a few k in wine cooked and had to refund me. Hopefully they didn’t sell it to someone else but who knows.

I just experienced this. Ordered some DP P2 from them this week and it just showed up today - warm to the touch, bottles temp at 85 degrees. Not surprising since it’s been mid-90s all week long. Can’t believe they just fired off the shipment. I hope they have more bottles to replace mine in the fall as I really wanted this wine.

Since I am within an hours drive of Zachy’s, I use the van delivery for $40/case. It is a great option relative to FedEx ground because everything is delivered in original packaging, yet for some reason they refuse to let me know when something is coming. Seems like a no brainer to send me an email or a text with the delivery timing.

[Markus_S]

I had the USPS deliver an express package from NW CT to upstate NY, about 50 miles away, in seven days because it had to go to Jacksonville, FL first for sorting. No one has explained that logic, yet.

That’s a good one. A question for you is, if it was only an hour drive, how come you didn’t go there yourself to pick it up?

[Markus_S]

The absolute worst company for this is Zachy’s. They pretty much tell you they can’t control exactly what date an order is shipped. I would never request they ship unless the temperatures for weeks around when your request is put in are perfect. They shipped and had a few k in wine cooked and had to refund me. Hopefully they didn’t sell it to someone else but who knows.

I just experienced this. Ordered some DP P2 from them this week and it just showed up today - warm to the touch, bottles temp at 85 degrees. Not surprising since it’s been mid-90s all week long. Can’t believe they just fired off the shipment. I hope they have more bottles to replace mine in the fall as I really wanted this wine.

Zachy’s has no clue. Big gap between the sales department and their shipping, and the twain don’t meet.

[Markus_S]

… that anyone ships wine on a Thursday (??)

Many times I will specifically ask to have wine shipped from W-E coast on a Thursday or Friday since ground takes between 5-7 days and you want it to arrive at destination before the following weekend, so it does make sense if you know and understand the shipping trajectory.