Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

General

What does In Bond or Under Bond mean?

Wine 'In Bond' (or Under Bond) has not had UK Duty and VAT applied to it. Wine must be stored in a bonded warehouse approved by HM Customs & Excise.

What is Duty Paid wine?

‘Duty Paid’ wine has had UK Duty and VAT applied to it at the prevailing rates. Once a wine has become Duty Paid, it cannot be sold under bond.

What if I want to buy some wines In Bond and some Duty Paid?

It is clearly stated (in your basket and across the site) which wines are In Bond and which wines are Duty Paid. Once you proceed through to the delivery stage of the checkout process, you will be asked to provide storage or transfer details for your In Bond wines and delivery details for the Duty Paid wines separately.

I am not a UK customer; do I have to pay UK duty and taxes?

If you purchase your wine under bond, UK duty and VAT charges are not applicable. Our UK Bond can transfer to an international bond and this will also not attract duty or VAT. You will be liable (if applicable) to pay your country's local taxes and duties.

VAT can also be removed for all Duty Paid wines which are exported from the UK.  Please contact the team if you with the receive a VAT free invoice for your wines.

Are you able to source wines not offered on the site?

It is possible that we can source wines not offered on our website, however the minimum order quantity would be one case (12 bottles). If you would like to enquire about a wine that we do not stock, please contact us or call us on +44 (0)1622 859161 or using the Contact Us page.

Why is the cork crumbling? Will this mean the wine is ‘corked’ or faulty?

Often, especially with older wines, it is common for the cork to crumble a little due to age, but this does not mean the wine is faulty. We recommend that a good quality corkscrew is used and not the two-armed type as these are notorious for damaging corks.

Will this older vintage of wine still be drinking well?

Yes, we will never sell a wine that is too old and often revisit them ourselves. Many wines we sell have aging potential of several decades or more. With a mature wine you can expect to find a certain amount of sediment.

My wine looks cloudy, is it faulty?

No, many wines are bottled unfined, unfiltered (or both) and may have a natural sediment that has formed over time in the bottle. We often recommend you leave a bottle stood upright for 72 hours to allow the natural sediment to settle before opening, however some may still be evident in the wine. This is not a fault and will not affect the taste. We also recommend decanting or straining a wine off of its sediment to ensure that it is not disturbed back into the wine. 

Policy on returns/damages/faulty wines

Although very rare, damages can occasionally occur en-route via the courier within the UK. In this case, we will happily issue a replacement (where possible) or a credit towards your next purchase.

For European deliveries we will give you the option of a fully insured delivery service which will cover the cost of any damages as we unfortunately cannot credit for any breakages to Europe.

If you do receive an out of condition, damaged or corked wine, we will happily replace it or issue a credit note for that wine. If this is the case, we do ask that you contact us immediately as the wine will need to be returned to us, via courier, to our HQ in Lenham for analysis, we will cover the cost of the return provided the wine is faulty.

Ordering

Do I have to buy a full case?

No, you can buy as little as one bottle from the vast majority of our range. However, there are certain wines in our portfolio, which are specifically sold by the case and cannot be split down.  All wines sold under bond are available by the case.

Do I need to have an account with you to place an order?

No, you can checkout as a guest, however there are many benefits to creating an online account. You will be able to view your previous orders, track your deliveries, view your storage cellar, create a favourites list, save your delivery preferences and also edit your email subscription preferences.

Do I have to enter my credit or debit card details online?

Please be assured that our website is fully secure, we use JudoPay to process your payment online and no payment details are stored on our servers.

We accept all major credit cards including American Express.

I want to re-order a wine I purchased previously but have forgotten which one it was.

Please log in to your account and view your order history.  Provided the wine is still in stock you will simply be able to add this to a new basket and order again.  Orders placed prior to 1st April 2022 will not be listed in your order history.

Please also note that you can save any wines you like to your own 'Favourites' list and revisit this, within your account area, at anytime to order.

Will I receive an order confirmation?

As soon as you have placed your order, you will receive an automated email with confirmation of your order.

You will then receive a despatch email confirming that your wine has left our warehouse and this will include the tracking details so that you can manage your delivery.

These details can also be viewed within your online account.

Storage

How do I open a storage account?

You can open a storage account simply by purchasing your first case of under bond wine.  At our online checkout you can select the 'Customer Cellar' option and we will create your online cellar account and your wine will be stored here until you wish to take delivery.  Any future wine orders will then be added to your own personal online cellar.

Can I transfer wines from other locations into my storage account?

At present, we can only provide storage for wines purchased from The Vinorium.

How much is storage?

In bond storage is charged at £11.95 ex. vat per 9 litre case, per year.

This fee includes full replacement insurance.

Storage fees are invoiced twice per year, in January and July. 

Any new wine purchased will be charged the pro-rata rate to the next standard invoicing date at checkout.

I have spotted a difference between the stock listed in 'My Cellar' and what I thought I had stored with you?

Over 17,000+ bottles were filed under the ‘My Cellar’ document upload. Unavoidably, and despite spending days looking over individual accounts, we may have missed a case or two. Do not worry as we are currently working through each email received. Please contact us if you think you spot an anomaly and we will respond to you directly, and as soon as possible.

Why are my pre-arrival orders not showing in ‘My Cellar’?

We are currently developing a Pre-Arrivals section in all customers’ cellars – we will let you all know when it’s live. This will include 2020 / 21 Utopos (and sparkling), Clarendon Hills Astralis, Glaetzer-Dixon La Judith and 2020 Standish orders. 

Please note that pre-arrival orders for Zalto glassware will not show in your cellar but delivery updates will be posted on the website and included in our emails.

Where will my wine be stored?

We are determined to provide the best possible care for your wines and use the following fine wine storage facility: Vinothèque Limited, Derby Road, Burton-Upon-Trent, Staffordshire, DE14 1RY, England.

Please contact the team if you would like to discuss storage in any further details.

Delivery

How much do you charge for delivery?

Express Next Day Delivery is FREE on orders of £150 or more to a single address within mainland UK. There is a charge of £9.95 inclusive of VAT per delivery address for all orders under £150. 

Delivery charges apply on all wines delivered directly from our bonded warehouse.  These are calculated based on the delivery postcode and volume of wine ordered.  This is automatically calculated and applied at checkout.

More details on our delivery options can be found here.

Can I collect from your offices?

Yes, you can collect wine from our offices at Unit 14, The Glenmore Centre, Moat Way, Ashford, Kent, TN24 0TL between Monday and Thursday, 8.00am-4.00pm.

Please contact us before you arrive so that we can ensure your wine is ready.

Can I use my own shipping agent?

Yes, however this is at your own discretion. Risk of damage or loss to goods passes to you the moment the goods have left our premises.

Can I delay the shipping of my order?

Yes, you can select a date up to two weeks in advance at checkout.  If you wish to delay your delivery further than this, please let us know by indicating any delivery instructions in the box provided at the checkout or email us at enquiries@thevinorium.co.uk with your instructions.

How soon can I expect delivery of my wine?

For all wines despatched from our HQ in Kent, provided we have received your order by 3pm Monday-Thursday we will despatch the same day for next working day delivery. Saturday deliveries, pre-noon and pre 10.30am deliveries are available with a surcharge. This can be added at checkout.

You will receive tracking details when we despatch your order which allow you to track and amend your delivery directly with DPD.

Orders from our bonded warehouse are sent via their own transport department and delivery timescales are subject to postcode. We will confirm a delivery date for your order but these are usually within 1-3 business days.

On the rare occasion that a wine we are listing is not immediately available, this will be clearly indicated on the product page and at our checkout.

What are the overseas shipping costs?

Our overseas delivery service is subject to disruption due to Brexit.  Please refer to our shipping/delivery page for our current options. We are able to provide bespoke, insured shipping quotes via our specialist wine shipper, which is highly recommended. Please contact us for further details.

Policy on returns/damages/faulty wines

Although very rare, damages can occasionally occur en-route via the courier within the UK. In this case, we will happily issue a replacement (where possible) or a credit towards your next purchase.

For European deliveries we will give you the option of a fully insured delivery service which will cover the cost of any damages as we unfortunately cannot credit for any breakages to Europe.

If you do receive an out of condition, damaged or corked wine, we will happily replace it or issue a credit note for that wine. If this is the case, we do ask that you contact us immediately as the wine will need to be returned to us, via courier, to our HQ in Lenham for analysis, we will cover the cost of the return provided the wine is faulty.

Can I have my wine delivered to a bonded warehouse?

We are able to transfer our 'in bond' stock to any other bonded warehouse, the relevant charges will be applied at checkout for this service.

However, we are unable to deliver our duty paid, by the bottle stock to any bonded warehouse as part of our standard next day delivery service. Our courier, DPD, are unable to book in their deliveries or wait for a slot at these warehouses.

We can request for LCB to collect duty paid wine from our HQ for delivery to the bond but the charge for this service is £16.95 inc vat for up to 12 bottles.  

 

My Account

Why can't I see my previous purchases?

This was an expected consequence of moving our website to a new platform.  All orders placed prior to 1st April 2022 will not be included in your order history.

All orders placed since this date will be logged and you will be able to re-visit these within your online account.

We have transferred any wines which you store with The Vinorium, and these are listed in your 'My Cellar' page.

 

I have spotted a difference between the stock listed in 'My Cellar' and what I thought I had stored with you?

Over 17,000+ bottles were filed under the ‘My Cellar’ document upload. Unavoidably, and despite spending days looking over individual accounts, we may have missed a case or two. Do not worry as we are currently working through each email received. Please contact us if you think you spot an anomaly and we will respond to you directly, and as soon as possible.

Why are my pre-arrival orders not showing in ‘My Cellar’?

We are currently developing a Pre-Arrivals section in all customers’ cellars – we will let you all know when it’s live. This will include 2020 / 21 Utopos (and sparkling), Clarendon Hills Astralis, Glaetzer-Dixon La Judith and 2020 Standish orders. 

Please note that pre-arrival orders for Zalto glassware will not show in your cellar but delivery updates will be posted on the website and included in our emails.

Why can't I access my account?

New accounts have been created for all existing Vinorium customers.  Please use the 'forgotton your password' link to request a new password and you will be able to sign in.

Why have I not received a re-set password email?

In most cases, this is because you do not have an account or you have changed your email address. Please proceed by creating a new account which is a super simple process.

I have wine stored with you but cannot access my account online.

Please contact us and we will look into this for you and provide you with a password to log into your account.

I have ordered from The Vinorium previously but have had to create a new account on the new website. Will I still receive complimentary 'member status'?

Please rest assured that we have access to ALL previous orders and can verify any purchases made via our old website.  In the coming weeks, when accounts are converted to 'memberships,' all active customers will have their accounts upgraded to 'member status'. 

Gifts

Do you offer Gift Packaging?

Yes, we offer smart Single and Double Wooden Boxes, which are available on our website here. Our team will carefully pack your selected wines inside the wooden box, which will also receive an outer cardboard layer for secure delivery. You may also choose to buy wines and spirits which come in their own original wooden cases or gift boxes.

Can you supply wine for my wedding?

We would love to work with you. Please contact us and let us know a couple of things about your wedding. For example; how many are coming and what food you are serving? We will then get to work and draw up a short-list of wines (white, red and Champagne / sparkling) which would be available to sample at our HQ.

Can I include a gift message?

Of course.  Please complete the 'Gift Message' box at checkout and we will handwrite this into a card to be included with your gift.

We also never include invoices with our wines so you can be assured that no prices will be sent to your recipient.

Get in Touch

What should I do if my question has not been answered above?

Please contact us and one of the team will be happy to help.