Congratulations you’ve accepted our offer, but what happens next?
1. Shortly after you have accepted an offer, a member of the logistics team will contact you to discuss the best way of getting your wine & whisky to our London shop or bonded warehouse. We have developed a range of options to safely transport your wine and whisky to us, while at the same time remaining viable solutions for the business. The chosen method will depend on the quantity of bottles you are selling, as well as their format, value and geographical location.
2. Once a member of the buying team has had eyes on the bottles, we are able to process payment. If we discover issues with the bottles our buying team will then contact you to discuss the problem and suggest either returning or a reduced price. If a reduction is necessary and you decide you are not happy with that price, we will return the bottle to you at our cost. To avoid this happening, please send in photos of your bottles so that we can provide an accurate quote. See Sending in photos and Quality checks below for more information.
Are my bottles insured in transit?
Yes, if we collect your bottles then they are covered by our in-transit insurance up to £1million. If you are posting to us please take a photo of your bottles once you have them packaged up and share it with the logistics team, so they can ensure that you have correctly and securely packaged them, to reduce the risk of breakages.
The Logistics bands
< £100
We will ask you to post your bottle/s to our shop, and will contribute £5 towards the postage and packaging costs. This will be added onto your valuation following acceptance of our offer.
£100 - £200
We will ask you to bubble wrap and package up your bottle/s, we will then send you a pre-paid label to fix to the packaging. We will then arrange for the package/s to be collected from you.
£200 - £1,000
We will send you our specialist secure packaging and a return label, once packed up please notify us and we will arrange for your bottles to be collected.
£1,000 – £10,000
We will either send out special protective packaging and arrange collection or use one of our fine wine couriers, who will collect the bottles by hand.
> £10,000
We will either use one of our fine wine couriers or a member of the buying team may be able to visit in person to inspect and collect your wines.
N.B. there can be exceptions to this, so if you feel that the above does not suit your collection then you can discuss this with the logistics team when they call you, or let us know in advance of your acceptance.
Can I drop the bottle in instead of posting it?
Yes, you can visit our shop during office hours and drop the bottle in in person. If you do, we will be able to pay via bank transfer immediately. Let us know when you plan to visit the shop and we will ensure a member of the buying team is available to meet you.
Can I park outside?
Yes you can park directly our offices and our team will help you bring the bottles or cases into our store.
Packaging your own bottles:
When packaging your bottles yourself, it is important that you make sure they are securely protected. Our suggestion would be to wrap the bottle in bubble wrap, more is more! then place into a sturdy box (e.g. a shoebox), make sure that there isn’t room for the bottle/s to move around whatsoever inside the box.
Original Wooden and Cardboard Cases:
If we are using one of our specialist hand collected couriers, then they will collect the cases as they are.
If you are posting in your bottles, or we are using DHL to collect them. We will require the wooden box, however the bottles can move around and become damaged. So please carefully remove the bottles from their box and package them into the carboard provided but ensure the OWC is sent too with its own return label which will be provided.
Cardboard boxes can be flat-packed and included within the packaging.
Whisky tubes should be wrapped in bubble wrap and included in the packaging.
Wooden cases can either be included in the packaging, or can have a second label attached and sent separately.
Bond to bond transfer:
If your wine is stored under bond then we will ask that you request your merchant to deliver it under bond to our LCB Vinotheque account as follows:
Account Name - HAT010 (Hatton Edwards Fine Wine)
London City Bond Vinotheque Limited
Derby Road
Burton-Upon-Trent
Staffordshire
DE14 1RY
Duty paid wine stored with merchants:
If you have duty paid wine stored with merchants, such as The Wine Society, then we would ask that you request that they deliver the wine to our London shop at the below address:
Hatton & Edwards & The London Wine Cellar
130-132 Petherton Road
London
N5 2RT
When will I receive payment?
The London Wine Cellar delivers the fastest payment terms in the industry. The moment our buying team has had eyes-on your bottles we are able to issue payment. If we are using DHL or our specialist couriers in the South East of England, then this usually occurs the day after your wines have been collected.
If we are using our nation-wide courier, then this can take up to a week, as they do clockwise loops around the country.
In bond transfers depend on the particular warehouse and range from 1-4 weeks.
Sending in photos
To enable us to provide you with an accurate valuation we require clear photographs of your bottles. We require the photos to show the level of the liquid, condition of the label and condition of the capsule. The best way to do this is to stand the bottles up in front of a white background and to take a photo from as close as possible however showing the entire bottle. see quality checks for further info.
For white and sparkling wines, we are looking for the colour to bright and clear. If it is darker yellow/brown and murky, then that would indicate that the wine has been damaged by light, heat, or exposure to oxygen. This can be more clearly seen when held up to a white or natural light.
The photo depicts liquid colour variance in the same vintage. The darker bottle has not been stored correctly and sadly the contents have oxidised.
Quality Checks
Ullage
Wine can evaporate from a bottle if it is not stored properly. This can occur if the bottle is stored upright for too long and the cork dries out, or if it is stored in variable temperature conditions. If the level has dropped too much it is likely that the wine has had too much exposure to oxygen, reducing the drinkability and value of the wine.
We would expect very old bottles to have undergone a certain amount of evaporation, but please see the image below for examples of different levels. These would be labelled: Good, Very Top Shoulder, Top Shoulder, Mid Shoulder, Low Shoulder, and prices would be reflected accordingly.
Raised cork
If the cork is raised, as in the photo, it could indicate that the wine has been exposed to too high temperatures. This can result in the bright, fruit characteristics turning to cooked and unpleasant flavours, and severely impacts the longevity of the wine. It is unlikely that we would buy wines that have raised corks, so please inform us if this is the case with your bottles, or ensure that this is visible in the photos you provide.
Sunken Cork
If a bottle is exposed to very low temperatures or is stood upright for too long, then the cork can become shrivelled. This prevents it from forming a complete seal with the bottle, meaning more wine evaporates the remaining wine becomes oxidised. With very shrivelled corks there is the risk that it will simply drop into the bottle when it is stood upright.
Woodworm
If your case shows signs of woodworm then we will not be able to put it into our cellar, as it could spread to other cases. We would therefore need to destroy the case, and to purchase the bottles as individual loose bottles rather than a complete case. As a guide, this can reduce the price by 10-15%, so please examine your case carefully to avoid the need for renegotiation and possible disappointment.
Port Leakage
On older ports it can be acceptable that there is a small amount of staining around the capsule, however this should be minimal (perhaps a couple of the bottles from a dozen). Please check that your bottles are not damp/sticky around the corks, and that you cannot smell the port on the outside of the bottle prior to collection/shipping.