Port & Madeira at auction - a discussion

[Eric Menchen]

Well, winecommune.com has failed to impress me. I checked their shipping rates and for a single bottle the rate is $15, and then goes down, per bottle, after that as expected. So I won an auction for a single bottle, and figured I would add in a bottle from their retail listings as well as some other upcoming auctions. After winning the auction, there is a checkout process. I started going through it, and when I realized they were going to ship out my single bottle, I stopped. I sent them e-mail asking if I could add to the shipment, with something from their retail listings (http://www.jjbuckley.com/), and/or upcoming auctions. I got back a reply indicating that yes, I could. Woohoo! Well, at about the same time I also got an e-mail indicating they had charged my credit card (which they had for age verification when I signed up to the site) and were shipping out my auction win. I checked the tracking number and it wasn't in the FedEx system yet, so they had generated it but still had the package. I replied back to the e-mail indicating I could combine items and told them to hold my shipment, add a 1994 Delaforce to it, and if they could, hold it for another week for these other auctions. I never heard anything back from them. FedEx shows my single bottle arriving tomorrow. I might give them a second chance, but I probably won't do business with them again.

[Moses Botbol]

...add a 1994 Delaforce to it, and if they could, hold it for another week for these other auctions.

That's a good bottle. Have a case of it, and tried a couple of bottles!

[Eric Menchen]

'Twas your recommendation that inspired me Moses. They have it on sale, but just one bottle left.

[Moses Botbol]

'Twas your recommendation that inspired me Moses. They have it on sale, but just one bottle left.

I hope it lives up. Certainly, the price is right to make it a real sleeper.

[Marc J.]

I've had pretty good luck at auctions, but it does take a little bit of experience to learn how to "work" the auction format. Once you do get the hang of that, there are deals to be had and to date the vast majority of wines that I've purchased at auction were exactly in the condition that I expected (although I must say that there have been a couple of disappointments).

[Eric Menchen]

Well, after some delay I heard back from winecommune.com/jjbuckley.com, and they are refunding my shipping. So while I was about to write them off entirely, they've made an effort to fix things. I'll give them that, and look at their auctions again. In the mean time, I found that Delaforce somewhere else for less.

[Eric Menchen]

So I recently received my first auction win from The Chicago Wine Company, and I must say that the bottles were in excellent condition, and even the few caveat emptor bottles were in much better shape than I expected. I was leery of putting in bids on bottles with issues without photos, but I'm very happy with the result. And the regular auction bottles look just about brand new.

[Roy Hersh]

The Chicago Wine Company has been at this longer than all the rest in the USA. Back when I was playing auctions, they were literally the only game in town (early 1990s). They are a very quality oriented organization and although I have not purchased from them in a number of years, still keep in touch with the owner. I bought many a Magnum from them back in the day at prices that leave you shaking your heads. That was when Port seemed to still increase in price over the years.

[Eric Ifune]

Yes, I remember buying over a case of Warre 77 for under $10/bottle from the Chicago Wine Co. I actually went to school in Chicago at the time so could pick up the wines directly from them in Niles, IL. That brings back some memories!

[John Trombley]

I have a number of positive experiences, but the biggest headache, even from experienced, brick-and-mortar auctioneers, let alone internet auctioneers, is that once they get outside well-known items, they are as like as not to misidentify items frequently, and it's near impossible to get more information unless you happen to be physically present at the auction. This situation should make many an auctioneer blush. It's of course terrible with German sweeties, but even ports only a little off the beaten path are likely to be misidentified. Setubals are listed as ports, and anything that's a little strange gets listed as a madiera. I only wish it were so!

[Eric Ifune]

John,
Sometimes I see this as an advantage. If the auctioneers haven't a clue, then they don't list the items well, nor do they emphasize them. Low bids can sometimes result and an astute individual can pick them up for cheap.

[Moses Botbol]

John,
Sometimes I see this as an advantage. If the auctioneers haven't a clue, then they don't list the items well, nor do they emphasize them. Low bids can sometimes result and an astute individual can pick them up for cheap.

Usually is an advantage, as are many of the "shipper unknown" bottles of great vintages like 1908, '27, and '35. Much of the time they are big names, but it's certainly an expensive roll of the dice.

[Roy Hersh]

Yes, it is certainly a double edged sword. I have seen it cut both ways for myself and a slew of others I know who tend to feast on these poorly described bottlings.