UK budget airline Buzz is expanding its wine-shipping business to Dijon and hopes to move into three or four other French destinations – including Bordeaux.
Buzz – which operates a cheap and cheerful fleet from Stansted airport in southeast England – has run a cellar-door-to-front-door delivery service since March last year.
At present the service only operates from Bergerac airport, but spokesman Daniel Guney told decanter.com they plan to be doing the same in Dijon by the end of March.
‘We are also thinking of Toulon, Marseilles – and possibly Bordeaux,’ Guney said.
The airline has deals with seven Bergerac producers and caves cooperatives: Chateau des Vigiers, Union Vinicole Bergerac, La Cave du Coux, Chateau Masburel, Chateau Belingard, Chateau Monplaisir, and SCEA Clos d’Yvigne.
If you buy wine from one of these ‘nominated’ wineries, Buzz will take the wine and deliver it to your front door for £33 (€50) per 30 bottles. The upper limit is 90 litres or 20 six-bottle cases.
If you buy from anyone else, it is your responsibility to get the wine to the airport and collect it at Stansted.
Naturally, wineries sign up to be ‘nominated’ with little hesitation, as it guarantees a regular flow of eager tasters delivered to the cellar door, all of whom can buy their wine and then not worry about it until they pick up a corkscrew at home.
‘We should have 10-15 more producers on board by the summer,’ Guney said.
Written by Clive Barlow, and Adam Lechmere28 January 2003
