+2
I’ve done lots of business with Ben and found him quite responsive. I would follow up and push back a bit.
You should post a photo of the bottles here too.
Ben is once of the coolest guys in the Bizz. He would never not fix a situation like this one.
Ron, I think it would help if you could provide the following:
1.) What was the purchase date?
2.) What was the date shipped?
3.) Did you authorize them to ship or did you request a weather hold?
4.) When you called back to change the shipper to FedEx did you express any concerns about shipping ground or the temperatures?
Most out of state retailers I deal with (and there are many 
) generally state if you authorize shipping, damage due to weather is on you in most circumstances.
I once had 3 bottles of burgundy shipped from NY to CO when I thought the weather was going to be fine. It wasn’t and they all had significantly raised corks. My Bad.
Just recently, bought 3 bottles from CA retailer and requested a weather hold. They got shipped anyway and haven’t yet arrived. If they are damaged, I will certainly request a refund or replacement.
Thanks in advance.
Ron, I think it would help if you could provide the following:
1.) What was the purchase date?
Ordered Wine on 12/26/14
When you order it says we will contact you regarding shipping rates.
There is no choice to hold wine that I saw on the order screen.
2.) What was the date shipped?
I was sent an invoice for $20 on 12/29 that it will be shipped UPS.
I called them that day saying why didn’t they contact me about shipping and they said that they choose UPS because
it’s the cheapest. I said I would pay extra for FedEx as the holiday’s were very difficult to time deliveries with UPS vs.
Fedex they deliver to the office down the street.
He then bills me another $4 or so dollars.
3.) Did you authorize them to ship or did you request a weather hold?
I ordered the wine and there was not a place that I saw to say to hold the wine or notes about any shipping issues. I was told I would be contacted about shipping. Instead I was billed and told they were shipping out on 12/29.
When I called to change shippers I guess I assumed the weather was ok as he never mentioned anything during the phone call. My first concern at the time was changing the shipping option because I had actually put in the FedEx address when I ordered and they were shipping that day UPS I was concerned how I would even get the wine. So no I did not directly ask when on the phone with I assume was Ben the owner.
4.) When you called back to change the shipper to FedEx did you express any concerns about shipping ground or the temperatures?
One thing I need to add to the mix is I really didn’t know where Cellarraiders was even located. I had thought they were actually from Texas.
Also I had ordered other wines a month before and most sent to me the wines and they were fine. I’m also in Cali so I’m not all that aware of how things are outside of my state. Two companies I bought from told me to hold or send 2 day and I did end up holding those wines back. I guess I kind of was relying on the companies to guide me. Lastly this is the first time I’ve bought wines from regular online stores in winter. I usually buy direct from wineries and they are all super careful not to send out at risky times so I guess I was expecting this from Cellarraders.
Ben sent me anther response that he contends he only followed my wishes to send the wine and is saying basically it’s my fault.
I probably will not protest the Visa card because I’m going to just pop them and taste them and learn from the experience. I bought them because I’m not able to get on the wait list and I’ve never had any wine before from these wineries. The next guess is if they will taste true to form after going through a freeze, I guess one of you think they may taste ok. We’ll see. I’ll let you know.
By the way when people say their wines are corked is that due to the wine getting too cold or hot or some other reason?
I just got a 6-pack of wine today that came from Back east via UPS ground. Capsules all spin and no corks pushing out. And they even came in flat cardboard shippers which I hate!
One thing I never do is order by e mail. I have too many things to ask, where the wines came from, are they shipping from the store or a third party etc etc which you just don’t get answers from on the order form. If it is someone I haven’t ordered from before, I want to get a sense of how they sourced the wines, both in general and in this particular case.
Shipping is always brought up, and unless I have a tasting I generally do not ship until the weather is warm enough. I know your wines are a little younger than I tend to buy, but the Alban is old enough, that the questions are still relevant.
Ben is fantastic to deal with. I’ve had many successful transactions with him and have also met him in person a couple of times.
I hope you both resolve this matter in a mutually pleasing way.
This happened to me once when a case I ordered from a wine shop in OR got hung up in Chicago during a cold snap (all corks pushed up and one bottle actually shattered).
I contacted the wine shop, and they offered to replace at no cost. Most of the wines were purchased to age, but there was some value to me in trying them early, so I offered to pay a discounted rate, which I did (they had told me to keep them originally).
The wines weren’t damaged, but aging them was not an option.
This is not having a “corked” wine to answer your question (nor is heat). Search for threads with “TCA” for better and more scientific explanations than I can provide.
Now that the whole story is laid out all I can say is chock it up to experience and move on. In the future you will know better than to order wine without knowing full well where it is coming from, how and when. Due diligence prevents future mishaps. While I can understand frustration since any wine retailer should perform their own due diligence when shipping during the Winter it is ultimately up to the buyer to control when things happen.
The cold isn’t going to affect how the wine performs so enjoy them and learn a valuable lesson from this. On the bright side the corks could have been pushed all the way out and leaking. Count your blessings.
![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
You’re a better man than I.
No way I’d pay for those wines.
Tell him to send you pictures of the wines before they were shipped, and to provide evidence that they are in fact the same exact bottles you received. Tell him to provide the evidence showing that you asked he ship the wines immediately.
That’s such crappy customer service.
I understand you could’ve taken action to improve the situation, but with so many great retailers out there, I’d have a very hard time taking the responsibility for this. Especially with the “I don’t know what to tell you” line. Terribly mis-handled, IMO.
I’ve bought from them, too, and have had positive experiences, but there’s no way I’d take the hit on this - especially with the responses he’s providing.
Update if anyone is interested: All of my bottles of Olive Oil were frozen. The Wines were cold as hell, but no corks pushed up. A couple capsules seemed a little loose at the top, but I think that’s just me overthinking.
Because of the alcohol, wine freezes at a much lower temp than water and other liquids. So unless its sitting in 20 deg F temp for a couple days, I don’t think there will be issues in shipping in the colder months. The next time I ship any though, I’ll be sure to check the extended forcast for any cold fronts.
When I ship from the east coast to California, I’m often worried about either heat or cold so I generally ship it overnight. I haven’t bought from them recently, but Cellaraiders will ship this way because most or all of my purchases from them have come next day air (at my request). Costs more but minimizes the risk.
-Al
I ordered some from the east coast new years day, weather went to hell, with highs in the midwest in the teens, shipped Monday, delivered this morning, was -8 overnight, regular ground shipping by Fedex. It is all perfect, not even close to freezing, I had never ordered when it was this cold and was a little worried I’d have some corks pushed out, or worse. The high hasn’t been over 12 degrees since it left, maybe I got lucky.
Ben should chime in here 
I prefer not to respond on a Board to one disgruntled customer, but there comes a time where a response is necessary.
I prefer not to ship when the weather is too hot or cold unless the buyer specifically requests me to do so. I routinely hold hundreds of orders-- at no cost to a buyer–over the summer and winter months.
This disgruntled buyer requested shipment and even specified I use Fedex, which I rarely do, as their rates are much higher. The bottles left Cellaraiders in perfect condition. Most likely the cork and contents were affected due to temperature changes. Now he expects Cellaraiders to bear responsibility, saying he didn’t know about the weather issues; this after he admitted to ordering wines from another retailer who would not ship due to weather.
Are we now at the point where it’s okay to make a decision, regret that decision and blame someone else? Enough said!
Welcome to the boards!
Ben, welcome to the Board and thank you for sharing your side of the story.
Really unfortunate case of HE SAID, HE SAID.
Very different stories. Of course, the 9 other accounts on this thread alone, all pointing out that Ben is very reasonable, very aware of shipping, etc, all seem to point to which story seems to reflect reality.
It certainly pays to wait and hear the other side of the story, doesn’t it?
John, while I appreciate Ben’s response, he’s still placing the blame squarely on the customer, when that doesn’t seem to be the case.
He never advised a shipping hold, and was intending to ship the wines the same day via UPS. All the customer did was switch to Fedex.
Had the wines gone via UPS, and still been damaged (likely what would’ve happened), would Ben be liable then?
Ben is saying that because the customer called to switch to FedEx, and because another retailer placed a shipping hold, the customer should have asked Ben to hold his wines as well.
The fact that another shipper placed a weather hold is irrelevant. Where was that shipper located? Where is Ben shipping from? Now, if Ben had advised against shipping, and the customer insisted, the blame is squarely on the customer. However, not even Ben admits that was the case.
While I’m not saying the customer has no fault, I stand by my statement that Ben could’ve handled the situation better, based on what both parties have told us.
Edit: Again, I’ve bought from Ben with no problem, and would have no problem doing so again. I’m just saying it doesn’t seem fair to place the blame squarely on the customer in this case.