Allways Cool = Allways Cooked?

G

Gene Vilensky

Yevgeny Vilensky
If you buy from Kermit Lynch and don't have a storage solution in California, beware of using Allways Cool, their suggested shipper/expediter to New York State. They seem to have trouble distinguishing between necessary and sufficient conditions.

I bought a few bottles from KLWM and told Allways Cool to wait shipping until I had a full case (full case = necessary condition for shipping). They read this as "ship automatically without even confirming with me as soon as I had a full case" (full case = sufficient condition for shipping). They still don't understand or agree that these are not logically equivalent. Bottom line, I bought a few more bottles from KLWM, completing the case and Allways Cool shipped it FedEx Ground through Southern California in 90+ weather, without asking me first or telling me that it will go FedEx Ground.

KLWM has been kind enough to replace most of the wine. Sadly, the 2010 Clape Cornas is all gone from them. If I want it, I now have to buy it at 150% more than I did originally. And on top of that, Allways Cool refuses to refund their outlandish shipping charges, because after all, there is no difference between necessary and sufficient conditions.

Thinking this might be of interest to disorderly types.
 
Well, if you told them, wait to ship until there is a full case, your directions were not explicit that that was a necessary condition. It would have been safer to say wait to ship until I contact you.

Still, common sense would dictate that they wouldn't ship in such weather without contacting you so they were at least negligent.
 
I kind of have to agree with Jonathan, though I'm sympathetic. If you specified as to necessary but not to sufficient, it's not outside the scope of your agreement to ship when necessary is satisfied. Although I'd likely have made the same mistake, considering they are working with Kermit.
 
That's ridiculous. What kind of specialists are they if they would do this ever? (Ship that distance by those means in that weather.)
 
I've got to agree. If these folks are in the business of storing/shipping wine for KLWM, how can they not understand the problems of shipping wine in hot weather? Especially given Kermit Lynch's history of pressing for climate-controlled shipping, this is painfully ironic.

Mark Lipton
 
I am probably guilty of both a minor thread drift and stating the obvious, but these accidents happen a few times a year, within the immediate circle of my wine collecting acquaintances. They tend to occur in cases where there isn't a long established relationship between a client and a retail outfit, and where the right hand (sales) and the left hand (shipping) aren't always on the same page. Occasionally, packages have shown up at someone's home (most annoying when the person is away) rather than at their storage facility, but more frequently shipping is indeed triggered unexpectedly by availability of some pre-ordered wine.
 
We're no strangers to shipping accidents and it's good that KLWM is trying to make it right. But it's pretty surprising that the shipping company didn't double check with Gene, given the extreme weather. Especially, as others have pointed out, given their name. Obviously it was a huge mistake on their part and the fact that they are unwilling to refund their charges should be enough for KLWM to stop working with them. How many other shipments did they send out that day?
 
Kermit doesn't ship themselves? Weird. They are a big enough wine merchant to handle a shipping department.
 
originally posted by Sharon Bowman:
That's ridiculous. What kind of specialists are they if they would do this ever? (Ship that distance by those means in that weather.)
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Perhaps new specialists, which is to say, not specialists at all. If this is the case (conjecture) much responsibility resides with KL for recommending them, without taking reasonable measures to make sure they understand the business. As far as this possibility goes, Joe's suggestion is to the point.

If AC has been providing this service for Lynch for a while, then I'd agree it's very weak for them to ship in heat and deny responsibility.

In general, whatever the case, it's a good practice to pin down all the essential conditions when entering into an agreement with a new service provider. But Gene's message is a good PSA, since it's easy to overlook the obvious.
 
There is a little bit more nuance to this, but not much. At the end of the day, Allways Cool says that they shipped because they thought that as soon as there is a case they should ship without letting me know. When I asked why they wouldn't let customers know and they claimed that because some customers get angry at them for receiving unnecessary emails asking them to confirm shipping.

KLWM has been nothing but exceptional in handling this. They can't ship to NY because they are not licensed as a retailer to do so and therefore use a third party. Allways Cool, in turn, uses (in sounds like 50% of the cases, though when I established the account, that this is only 50% of the time was not disclosed) ILS whose shipping terminal is based in Southern California. ILS in turn handed it over to FedEx. When I asked ILS why they did that, they said, "because Allways Cool told us to".

It was even 90 degrees in Northern California that day, so shipping on that day would have been a no-no either way (KLWM were surprised that Allways Cool shipped because KLWM ceased shipping for that week to any of their customers). Allways Cool's excuse was, "well, we can't check every possible day on the weather conditions for every customer to every place it is going". So even if it was legitimate for them to assume, "ship automatically with no notice", it was not legitimate for them to do that when throughout most of California, the weather was very hot that day. Otherwise, what's the point of their service?

I'm not sure KLWM has many other good solutions as Allways Cool actually comes and picks up the wine from there. But, either way, it's disturbing. I wouldn't use them if I were you. They seem to have the position that proper management of shipping temperatures is too much to ask. I am thinking that I'll use Vinfolio from now on.

I agree this is a function of my account being a new one and there not being a longstanding established relationship, etc etc. But, I've had no issues with shipping from anywhere else in California, K&L, Rare Wine Co, Woodland Hills, etc, whether it's the first time or not. I would imagine if KLWM could do so themselves, they would be extremely competent at it. That they have to use Allways Cool for NY shipping is a problem.
 
... and i should add, that the wine would ultimately end up with FedEx was never disclosed. I even asked Allays Cool why they don't use a common carrier and they said, because they are not licensed to ship to NY either through the common carriers and never mentioned that they will hand the wine over to an entity that will ultimately hand it over to a common carrier. I would have happily paid extra for 3-day air had I known this is how my wine would be handled.
 
originally posted by Gene Vilensky:
...even if it was legitimate for them to assume, "ship automatically with no notice", it was not legitimate for them to do that when throughout most of California, the weather was very hot that day. Otherwise, what's the point of their service?
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As I said above, that they're doing this at all invalidates them for the type of business they run. If you're shipping, I dunno, insulin, you don't do it in those conditions. Wine isn't life or death, but FFS, it'll spoil in such conditions and they ought to know and monitor it, if that is the service they are selling.
 
originally posted by John Ritchie:
We're no strangers to shipping accidents and it's good that KLWM is trying to make it right. But it's pretty surprising that the shipping company didn't double check with Gene, given the extreme weather. Especially, as others have pointed out, given their name. Obviously it was a huge mistake on their part and the fact that they are unwilling to refund their charges should be enough for KLWM to stop working with them. How many other shipments did they send out that day?
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They claim they sent out 60 others to New York in the same exact way as mine (not sure if all were KLWM wine) and I was the only one to complain...
 
originally posted by Gene Vilensky:
originally posted by John Ritchie:
We're no strangers to shipping accidents and it's good that KLWM is trying to make it right. But it's pretty surprising that the shipping company didn't double check with Gene, given the extreme weather. Especially, as others have pointed out, given their name. Obviously it was a huge mistake on their part and the fact that they are unwilling to refund their charges should be enough for KLWM to stop working with them. How many other shipments did they send out that day?
Click to expand...

They claim they sent out 60 others to New York in the same exact way as mine (not sure if all were KLWM wine) and I was the only one to complain...
Click to expand...
In 90* heat???

Wow, stake 'em out for the ants.
 
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