For The Love Of Port

Just placed a small order (four 375ml bottles of VP) with Benchmark and wondering what people think is the best course of action re: shipping...

I live just outside of Cleveland, Ohio. So it's winter (cold!). I selected "wait to ship until it's safe" and they followed-up with an email to let them know if I'd prefer a Spring delivery to be safe.

I know Benchmark uses a service that ships a good portion of the way in "temp controlled" trucks, but at the very least it's exposed to the elements when it's on the delivery truck to my house.

Should I have them hold the wine until Spring? Or do we trust Benchmark's ability to pick a proper window of time for the shipment?

I didn't break the bank on this order, but I'd rather not risk anything.

If anyone is willing to leave feedback, I'd appreciate it!

-Scott

As you know historically Port was shipped for weeks in hot and humid wooden ships. Do what you think is right, but unless these are particularly sensitive bottles I personally wouldn't stress about 3 days in a chilly delivery truck.

If it was the peak of summer then that's a different story, as there are reports from UPS drivers regarding dangerously hot 120 degree temperatures inside the trucks and the absence of air conditioning in the trucks. More details on that: https://jalopnik.com/ups-refuses-to-ins ... 1849377501

I haven't ordered from Benchmark itself but I have purchased from Brentwood at auction and I am pretty sure they share fulfillment. They ship in well-insulated styrofoam molds.

When I'm actively buying, I buy year-round. But I don't ship in the hot summer nor the coldest part of winter. Not willing to pay for overnight shipping, I use ground services, which can be either UPS or FedEx. And I'm not really sure that overnight is much better in winter anyway--sitting outside on the tarmac in Memphis vs. inside a truck for a longer amount of time. Given the alcohol content, Port will freeze around 10F. Where I live, a lot of stuff comes across the divide on I-70, which can be subject to closure in the winter during snow. We had some days last month when the high at my house was below 0F. Most boxes are styrofoam insulated, but for multiple days I don't know how much that helps. Maybe I could risk it, but I generally buy from places that will hold stuff for 6 months for free, so why? Also, waiting lets me consolidate to 6 or 12 bottles even if I buy one bottle now, four next month ... I have a cellar, there are other things to drink until April.

I would let them hold it until spring. Unless you really desperately need it right now, it's better to be safe.

I buy year-round, but only ship in the spring and fall unless the Port is just coming up the coast from CA to WA. Ground from CA only takes 2 days to get to Seattle, and the overnight is almost always in Portland. So I can pretty accurately judge the weather that a shipment is going to encounter and will either hold or ship based on that information.

It's safer to cheat on the cold side, because as Eric pointed out Port won't freeze until about 10F. But if you're shipping to Ohio in January... you're very likely going to hit 10F weather somewhere along the way so at least to me that's not worth the risk.

Thanks everyone! I've opted for spring delivery. I think they *probably* would be fine to get to my house right now, but in the extended forecast there's a few days with low temps in the teens...no sense in risking it, I suppose.

Scott Esterly wrote: ↑Sat Jan 21, 2023 8:06 am Thanks everyone! I've opted for spring delivery. I think they *probably* would be fine to get to my house right now, but in the extended forecast there's a few days with low temps in the teens...no sense in risking it, I suppose.

You'll be safe to ship now unless you're not hot for the wine and in that case wait a couple of months. Maybe you'll have additional bottles they could ship together?

Moses Botbol wrote: ↑Mon Jan 23, 2023 11:18 am

Scott Esterly wrote: ↑Sat Jan 21, 2023 8:06 am Thanks everyone! I've opted for spring delivery. I think they *probably* would be fine to get to my house right now, but in the extended forecast there's a few days with low temps in the teens...no sense in risking it, I suppose.

You'll be safe to ship now unless you're not hot for the wine and in that case wait a couple of months. Maybe you'll have additional bottles they could ship together?

I’m already strategizing a second order to add to the shipment

Lets start with Temp-controlled shipping. This is got to be the biggest BS there is. Depending on the shipping company, there is no temp control when you drop it off and it sits to be loaded onto a truck, you hope the truck has a working temp control unit, you hope the driver actually turns it on, then there is no temp control once it gets to the hub and is sorted onto a truck and sits for who knows how long before it heads out to you.

There was no significant temp control shipping until the 1970s when the modern reefer was developed. Yes, some rail cars started getting a version of it for food in the 1800's, and a type of modern reefer for food in the 1950's, but it was expensive and wasn't used for much other than food. Certainly not used for wine. Until then all that old VP we now drink never saw a degree of cold until it hit the store or its first cellar. Think about that when you open a bottle of 1970, 66, 63, 60... That said, I tend to avoid shipping in the middle of summer unless it's overnight/next day and packed in styro shipper (I'm not a fan of the cardboard shippers. But that's a diff discussion). I also avoid shipping from a place, or what I know will be on a shipping route, that goes through a beautiful frozen winter wonderland.

If you're in the southern part of the country where it doesn't turn into a popsicle, shipping in winter is generally fine. If you're in those "my driveway is a sheet of ice" places, best to wait until it warms a bit to ship.

Lets talk about how wine gets to your favorite retailer. Almost every reefer van/truck I have run across from a local wine distributor never had the reefer turned on. Even in the raging heat of summer (same for many food delivery trucks too). It cost money to run the reefer and most places don't want to spend the extra money to turn them on. Don't even get me started on most auction house shipping practices.

In short, wine is much heartier than we give it credit for. Just avoid the extremes on both ends and you are normally fine.

Andy Velebil wrote: ↑Wed Jan 25, 2023 8:07 am
If you're in those "my driveway is a sheet of ice" places, best to wait until it warms a bit to ship.

Haha - this is good advice. I'm glad I decided to have them hold until spring because I've already added four more bottles to the original order!

Scott Esterly wrote: ↑Wed Jan 25, 2023 1:35 pm

Andy Velebil wrote: ↑Wed Jan 25, 2023 8:07 am
If you're in those "my driveway is a sheet of ice" places, best to wait until it warms a bit to ship.

Haha - this is good advice. I'm glad I decided to have them hold until spring because I've already added four more bottles to the original order!

Well done, keep that credit card warm

Scott Esterly wrote: ↑Wed Jan 25, 2023 1:35 pm

Andy Velebil wrote: ↑Wed Jan 25, 2023 8:07 am
If you're in those "my driveway is a sheet of ice" places, best to wait until it warms a bit to ship.

Haha - this is good advice. I'm glad I decided to have them hold until spring because I've already added four more bottles to the original order!

Two slippery slopes there.