Wine
Tips for Shipping Wine
August 4, 2023
We take our wine seriously, and shipping is no exception. The ability to ship wine directly to our customers all year long has been deeply impacted by the recent record heat. July 2023 has been confirmed as the hottest month ever recorded on Earth. With global temperatures on the rise and record setting days, we’re focused on making sure your wine arrives safely and soundly.
Picture this scenario: you recently ordered a new hard-to-find wine you’re excited to try, but you weren’t home to sign for the delivery. Because the delivery wasn’t successful, the wine then rides around in the back of a hot truck for 12 hours before getting loaded back into a hot warehouse where it sits for another 2 days before another attempt on Monday. After your package finally arrives, you open the box, and notice the wine has somehow leaked from the cork and stained the label. Extreme temperature shifts and prolonged exposure to high temperatures can deeply impact the integrity and flavor of wine. Even if the damage to the wine isn’t visible to the naked eye, it’s important to know that letting wine sit in hot temperatures for even a few hours will degrade its quality.
At Sommsation, we take every precaution to avoid this situation. We work closely with our winery partners to ensure the integrity of your wine is properly handled and preserved throughout its journey from the winery to your door. In order to do so, we recommend brief heat holds on shipping wine and closely monitor the weather with the desire to get the wine to you in a safe and timely manner. Rather than shipping in less than ideal conditions, our winery partners may delay or recommend alternative shipping methods like overnight or cold packs to ensure your wine arrives as it was intended. Below, we dive into why shipping might be delayed, how it impacts your wines, and what we do to prevent any potential shipping issues.
Weather
Similar to how plants can only be shipped a certain time of the year, our wines share a kindred shipping schedule. Weather that is too cold runs the risk of freezing your wine. Not only could this damage the precious liquid inside, water expands approximately 9% when frozen. This expansion could cause your glass bottle to explode.
Heat is another problem altogether. The scenario listed above actually happened to one of the most expensive bottles of wine in the world. Excessive heat can cause your wine to maderize, or “cook” itself. The flavors would take on a quality similar to Madeira, which is not desirable unless you are actually drinking Madeira. If your wine is in an area that is too hot, when the liquid inside tries to evaporate it can sometimes create a pressure inside the bottle, causing the wine to leak out of the cork
Direct to consumers
Here at Sommsation we are working directly with independent wineries. This is fantastic news for you for many reasons (see article Why Independent Wines?), but also it ensures there are no storage issues we are unaware of. Our wines are coming right from the source, with your hands being the first to touch it when it leaves the winery. Source to Sip! With that being said, we are adamant that the wine arrives in the perfect drinking condition. If we delay shipping, it is to maintain the pureness of your wine, as well as the experience you deserve when shopping with us.
Not to worry
Here at Sommsation we take pride in getting you the highest quality of wine possible. If there are delays in obtaining your wines, don’t worry. As soon as it is safe for your wine to reach you, it will be sent your way. Thank you for trusting us with your wine.
Experience the wines featured at this event with direct-to-door delivery when you shop online with Sommsation.
Shop All Wines
If you’d like to bring the magic of the tasting room to your next event, inquire about reserving your own private wine tasting with our Concierge.
Inquire Now
