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Ordering
If I see a wine on the website, does that mean it's really in stock?
Yes! Unlike ‘virtual retailers’ that simply list every wine in every catalog that is dropped on their door, then wait to order until you do, hoping the wine is actually in stock or even the same vintage, we purchase all of our wines up front and have them in stock. Our web page will not list wines that we do have in inventory. The exception to this is the rare occurrence that more than one person orders the same wine at the same time, before our site updates. If this happens, we will notify you before processing your order to see if you would like us to hunt the wine down for you.
Is there an age requirement to buy wine on the website?
Duh! You must be 21 to order, pay or take delivery of your wine. By placing an order, you are certifying that you are 21 years of age and a 21 year old must take delivery and sign for your wine when it arrives.
Do you have order minimums?
YES ! One case (6 bottles) is the minimum order.
How do I know what size the wine bottle is?
Every bottle of wine is 750ml in size, unless otherwise noted.
Can I make changes to my order after I place one?
Yes, but with some limits. If your order has not yet been shipped, there is no problem altering it and unlike other retailers, we do not charge a ‘restocking fee’. Once an order is shipped, shipping costs have already been assessed and there is an additional shipping fee of $12 for UPS to reroute your shipment. Since we don't store your credit card data, we'll have to speak with you over the phone to get payment details.
What if an item is out of stock or the wrong year is displayed?
If a wine ends up being out of stock, you will not be charged for the wine and if for some reason your card has already been charged, we will refund your money unless otherwise instructed. If you would like us to order an out of stock wine and we can still get it, we will charge your card accordingly. We consider vintage changes to be the same as ‘out of stock’ and will contact you before charging your card. We make every effort to make sure the vintages shown on the text portion of the site are accurate. Sometimes, the image of the bottle may show a previous vintage, so the text which is displayed is the vintage that we actually have in stock.
Is there a restocking fee for cancelling my order?
We do not charge a restocking fee for the wine on a cancelled order. However, once a bottle has been shipped, the shipping charges are not refundable including the return charges for having wine shipped back to us.
If I don’t like or want the wine, what can I do?
Wine is not like other commodities purchased on line for legal reasons. It is against state and federal laws to return a bottle of wine once you have taken possession of it just because you changed your mind or don’t like it, unless it is clearly spoiled and unsaleable. The legal authorities look at returns in the same manner as if we are buying the wine from an unlicensed seller. However, if a bottle is clearly spoiled upon delivery, corked (TCA, not crumbly cork) or has damage upon delivery from heat or cold, we will take it back as ‘unsaleable’. Please contact us as soon as possible if this occurs. A bottle must be returned within one week for spoilage issues. Truly corked wines can always be returned, regardless of how long you have had them, but the determination of TCA needs to be made by us after it is returned. Dumping it down the drain first does not count. Industry standards for the warranty of aged wines is 5 years from the bottling dates. We take pride in our storage here as we have never turned the heat on in this building since we opened nearly 15 years ago, so we guarantee the soundness of all bottles up to 10 years past the vintage date. We cannot be held responsible for wines once they enter your cellar, no matter how sophisticated the system is, so please inspect your bottles carefully upon delivery and notify us immediately if there are any problems.
What is "use my card on file" all about?
Card on file makes ordering from French Gourmet Import quick and easy and eliminates the need for you to type in all your credit card information each time you place an order. We will take your credit card information. Your card information gets stored on an off-site bank level data encrytion server that is PCI compliant. It's quick and easy. Give it a try!
Shipping
How much does shipping cost?
Shipping charges are calculated based on the weights of the wines you order, plus the service you choose ( UPS GROUND, 1 or 2 Day Air or 3 Day Select). We don't charge a premium or handling fee for your shipment. We work closely with UPS to ensure we are getting the best rates possible to minimize the cost of shipping. It costs a bit more than buying other heavy items, as by law, the UPS driver has to obtain and veify the reciepent is at least 21 years old.
When will my wine arrive?
Delivery is normally 1-6 days when we ship via ground transit, unless you specify ‘air’ or 3Day. In the winter and summer months, we do not ship wines UPS Ground for fear of damage if the temperatures get to extreme. In these cases, it will take longer to get your wine, but it is being held in our secure storage, not bouncing around in a truck being cooked or frozen.
How will my wines be shipped?
We typically try to ship all of our wines via UPS Ground. During winter and summer we will often reccomend you ship UPS 3Day Select when temperature extremes exist. We can also use FedEx and can ship via air by both carriers if you prefer. Just let us know in advance so we can confirm the shipping costs. We cannot ship via USPS and cannot ship to PO Boxes. Someone 21 years of age or older must be present to sign for your packages. UPS cannot just ‘leave it on the porch’ for obvious legal and security reasons. Unless you specify otherwise, we ship via UPS. We often get request to use a customer's FEDEX account. This is easily done, please let us know in the comments field at checkout.
Will you hold my wine until the weather get's better?
Yes! We know you want your wine as soon as possible, but we want to insure that it gets there safe and sound, so we will hold your bottles for you in our secure storage area until the timing is right, at no extra charge.
What kind of shipping material do you use?
We ship our wines in UPS approved pressed pulp wine shippers. In some cases we will reuse the shippers instead of tossing them out.
Do you ship to all 50 states?
In a nutshell, no. Each state has its own laws in regards to shipping and they change all the time. Please e-mail us if you have specific questions about your state. Currently, 09/2016, we only ship to California .
Sorry for the inconvienence, as much as we would love to ship you wine, individual state laws govern inbound shipments.
If nobody is around to sign for my shipment, what do I do?
We cannot leave your wine without an adult signature. Many of our customers have their wines shipped to their workplace to insure there is somebody to receive it when it arrives.
My wine must arrive by a certain date. Can you arrange that?
Yes, within reason. We are limited by the pickup and delivery times of UPS and FedEx and by the weather. We will certainly do our best, but there are limits!
Searching
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How do I search for a particular type of wine, i.e. Cabernet Sauvignon?
Type the name of the grape, appellation or vineyard you are looking for in the search bar at the left top of the page. That should do the trick. If the search isn't giving you a result, try adding an asterik in front and behind at least one word of the wine.
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