Need Help Sourcing Wine in Dallas

Greetings! Been a while. Listen, I need some advice.

Some of you here know that I’m rather specialized in the wines I drink. I’ve got a couple of Oregon producers I hone in on, three in Volnay, and a few in Barbaresco.

My problem is this: I can buy direct from the Oregon producers, but ever since Texas rather uncontitutionally shut down purchases from out of state retailers, I am having a very hard time finding bottles from the likes of d’Angerville, de Montille, Bartolo Mascarello, G. Conterno, G. Macarello, G. Cortese, Bruno Giacosa. And, even when I do find them, I worry like hell that they’ve been shipped and cooked in the Texas heat.

Suggestions?

Have you talked with P-Rob at Grailey’s in Dallas?

Grailey’s is a good suggestion. Austin Wine Merchant as well. They don’t ship, but its not too far to drive 1 x per year. And I suggest further discussion via PM’s, not publicly.

Lew, good call on Austin Wine Merchant. Generally the best Burg and Riesling selection in Austin. That was always a fun place to visit on my lunch breaks at the House and AG’s offices.

I would also suggest calling over to Lake Travis Wine Trader. The owner Lori is a fan of Italian wine, and almost always carries Giacosa and a couple other big guns that you might be looking for.

P-Rob, and Grailey’s, have a great nose for Burgs, and it’s local for you.

For other Italians, a business buddy of mine recently purchased a ton of Italian wine direct from a sourcer in Italy. Wine was shipped perfectly and fairly quickly. I was stunned that it even arrived. For context, it was shipped after FedEx and UPS teamed with TABC to crack down on wine deliveries from out of state. Makes me wonder if the out of country direct is a federal preemption issue, given the ease with which it was delivered.

Here is the website:

Another vote for Grailey’s. I needed to source in Dallas recently and P-Rob hooked me up, great service. Strong Burg selection too.

Ok, that would be huge and a game changer. Anybody?

I visited AWM once, in the summertime, and it was chilly cold in that store.

Like “bring a sweater” cold.

http://www.importedwinesdirect.com/

Huh? Is this legal?

Jim, it is legal under federal law, so long as all the importer requirements are met. There are a number of US companies that will import your wine for you from foreign countries, and ship it to you once it arrives in the US. From 1 bottle on up. There are Texas laws which probably make it illegal to receive the wine in Texas, because Texas distributors own your ass, bought and paid for in Austin.

I feel so protected from myself.

Legal under the TABC regs with the correct permits, surprised more people are not direct importing into TX.

Thanks, Mark. I happily stand corrected.

+1. Everyone at Grailey’s is very connected, and extremely hospitable. Give them a shout out.

I bought nine or ten cases of de Montile in '05 from Seigel’s. I assume that they still carry them.

Which Siegels, Mike?

I just moved from London to Houston and was able to ship just shy of a 1,000 bottles that I had in storage with Berry Bros & Rudd. I used an importer, with the proper permits, that BBR recommended and had no issues at all getting the wine to Texas.

Need any help drinking 'em?

Fitzhugh store is where I picked them up. But I snagged them, as well as some Domaine Dujac, via an email offer, as best I can recall.

Anyone have any experience with Centennial Wines and Spirits in Dallas…and know whether they have temperature controlled storage for their Burgundies?

Website looks impressive with a representation of all of the “names”. Interesting to note that for shipments to Massachusetts (and a number of other states, presumably also non-direct shipping at least in the USA) – Maryland, Kentucky, Utah, and Maine – there’s a warning that delivery will take an additional week.

I had no idea that this was possible. Or legitimate. Thanks for posting it. [cheers.gif]