Going to France for a wine buying trip

por

A friend and I are thinking of going to France to buy wines for 2 weddings. We are planning to get the ferry to Cherbourg and try the Carrefour shop at the ferry port.

Has anyone experience in doing this, how cheap is the wine at these hypermarkets, is it woth it ?

p.pete

Think the hypermarkets are good but if you've gone to the trouble of going to France your best bet is probably to travel an additional 30 or 40 km away from the places just off the ferry ports.

happydayz

is definelty worth it, way way cheaper, lots of my friends did it for weddings but you are caught again on this side as the corkage fee here is hilarious.

Anyways when purchasing you are actually better travelling from the ferry ports (here they stock wine but a lot of it is not from france !! and some charge in sterling ) to some french supermarkets like Carrefour, here the french buy it and here is the best

por

happydayz wrote:

is definelty worth it, way way cheaper, lots of my friends did it for weddings but you are caught again on this side as the corkage fee here is hilarious.

Anyways when purchasing you are actually better travelling from the ferry ports (here they stock wine but a lot of it is not from france !! and some charge in sterling ) to some french supermarkets like Carrefour, here the french buy it and here is the best

Thanks for the info, I am aware of the corkage issue but even with that shopping abroad could be cheaper than the hotels wine.

There is a Carrefour and an Auchan in Cherbourg so I will try them.
What sort of prices do they charge and how does it compare to what you would pay in an Irish supermarket ?

parsi

Way cheaper ! Spirits are around half-price , wine is cheaper - bag in box wines are aroun 7-8eur upwards for 3l and aren't bad. Michel Lynch white bordeaux is around eur11.90 here and around eur6 over there. Malesan Bordeaux is also around half the price..

The Aachan & Carrefour in Cherbourg are grand and big though I did see the Auchan being overrun by a boatload of British travellers !

kmulryan

Hi,

Has anyone gone on a Wine buying trip recently? Do you have to go through customs on the way back in?
Are they strict on how much wine you bring back into the country?

Thanks,

trotter_inc

Agree with all the above....

I used to work for Irish Ferries and sail the Rosslare - Cherbourg route. The Carrefour is dirt cheap alright but travel inland if you can where you'll get even better bargains!

parsi

kmulryan wrote:

Hi,

Has anyone gone on a Wine buying trip recently? Do you have to go through customs on the way back in?
Are they strict on how much wine you bring back into the country?

Thanks,

You go through Customs alright just like anywhere else. However the quantities allowed in for personal use are vast - around 100litres of wine or thereabouts...

penexpers

A friend of mine went in November last year and brought back 150 bottles of wine and a couple of hundred bottles of beer with no trouble.

Gone West

we went over in a camper on hols and my parents brought back LOTS of cases of wine, they were definetly over the limit, but noone cares. this wine costs around 25E a bottle here and they got it for 25E per case over there. 6 in a case methinks. Hope this helps

iknorr

has anyone gone on a trip to france for wine recently....how much can you bring in now? I know they are clamping down on import tax recently.....is it affecting wine?

mikedragon32

Father in law brought back a jeep full of wine last month with no issues. He does it once a year, but it IS for personal use.

metrovelvet

Given what happenned in the qualifying match do you really want to give the french your money?

penexpers

metrovelvet wrote: »

Given what happenned in the qualifying match do you really want to give the french your money?

Funny. A lot of the wine shops over there are run by ex-pat Brits, in any case.

iknorr

mikedragon32 wrote: »

Father in law brought back a jeep full of wine last month with no issues. He does it once a year, but it IS for personal use.

Hmmmm yeah, how can i persuade them its for personal use.

iknorr

metrovelvet wrote: »

Given what happenned in the qualifying match do you really want to give the french your money?

either way...im a fan of the cheap french wine....JFYI, i think paris is a sh*thole....& always disliked their smugness

P. Breathnach

Customs work on a guideline of 90 litres of still wine: that's about 120 bottles. That's per person. It's a guideline, so there is probably a scope for a little argument or discretion so long as it is obvious that you are not taking the piss. I have occasionally shaded over the guideline; I have been open about it; but I don't bother with beer or sprits, and they don't make an issue over a few bottles of wine.

Bear in mind that 120 bottles of wine is a fair amount of weight -- probably over 200kg, with about half of that being the bottles. Twice that amount, if there are two travelling, and you could affect how safe your vehicle is. You can get a better wine/weight ratio if you buy some cubitaners (boxed wine).

iknorr

Thanks, thats exactly the info i need.
One more Ceist....the ferries from cork are not running now? i check the usual ferries but they dont seem to be bookable...

Any advice on where to go exactly for the wine... any favourite shops?

P. Breathnach

The Cork-Roscoff service is summwer months only. Your main options now are Irish Ferries or Celtic Link between Rosslare and Cherbourg.

I very much like the Normandie Wine Warehouse in Cherbourg. The wines are generally better than you get in supermarkets; the prices are not a great deal higher; the staff are very knowledgeable and helpful; you can taste the wines before you buy, something that you don't always get in the supermarkets and, when you do, the range offered for tasting is limited. Sadly, you then have to drive to the ferry, so you should spit out most of the wine you taste rather than swallow it ["spit or swallow?": that's a porn question, isn't it?].

jt_dublin

With the Euro being strong against Sterling, I wonder if you would not get the same value by buying in the North. I was driving from UK to Ireland a few weeks ago and stocked up on some wine from tesco. There was lots on special offer and I got decent wine for around 4.50 sterling per bottle which at the current exchange rate is 5 euro.

France may be slightly cheaper per bottle of wine but by the time you add in the cost of the ferry, you probably wont save a lot.

JT.

Spotted this this morning, just gives an inkling of savings to be made. Oyster bay is about €12 a bottle here.
http://www.sainsburyscalais.co.uk/

touchwood

sorry for dragging up an old thread, im looking into popping over to cherbourg with celtic ferries around oct to buy wines for my wedding, looking at about 100\120 btls, has anybody any tips for me, would be my first time doing it but it seems to be worth the effort with the savings, as hotel has waived corkage for me, has anybody done it recently or know of where best to go to buy the wines? thanks

dazag

Would be interested in wedding wine recommendations from France too please?.

ballooba

Went to Auchan hypermarket in cherbourg for the foire aux vins last September. Definitely worth it. Lots of does online with prices etc. Use Google.fr

Poochie05

September is good time as most supermarkets do a 'Foire aux Vins' around then. Don't aim to buy wines from New Zealand or South America as these won't be hugely cheaper than over here, obviously it's French wines where the bargains are, things like buy 5, get one free, etc. Brother bought champagne for wedding and even with hotel corkage they save nearly 3 grand! And perk of being part of the wedding party was I knew where it was kept!

berrecka

Does anyone know the dates for these Foire Aux Vins in/around Cherbourg. I am looking into going at the end of August/start of September, but I could change the dates if I knew when to expect the sales. I will be buying about 150 bottles of wine and another 50-70 of bubbles. Also, any idea when the catalogues might be released? I wouldn't mind researching whats available before I go (any excuse!).

ballooba

http://www.rayon-boissons.com/Distribution-et-magasins/Les-foires-aux-vins-2014-du-groupe-Casino-30550

8th to 20th September for Casino. Not sure about the others.

EDIT:
Carrefour 10th to 22nd September
Carrefour Market 19th to 5th October
http://www.rayon-boissons.com/Distribution-et-magasins/Carrefour-et-Carrefour-Market-devoilent-leur-selection-30280

I would recommend Auchan, dates not yet announced apparently.

gambit83

anyone do a trip to France lately? am getting married in March next year and thinking of taking in a trip to stock up on wine

First Up

gambit83 wrote:

anyone do a trip to France lately? am getting married in March next year and thinking of taking in a trip to stock up on wine

People do it every week - well worth it, especially in low season. Cherbourg is the best option with two companies (IF and Stena) on the route.

You have missed the autumn wine fairs (Foires Aux Vins) that all the big shops run and you'll be too early for the Spring ones but there is always good value on offer. I like Auchan but there are others like Normandie Wine Warehouse and Carrefour. All within 5-10 minutes of the port.

I don't advise trying to do it in the one day - i.e taking the same boat over and back. Any delay can be a disaster and you don't have time to browse properly. Spend one night ashore.

k123456

anyone do a trip to France lately? am getting married in March next year and thinking of taking in a trip to stock up on wine

Bring a copy of your wedding invite, Irish Custom check might be more favorable if you prove the wine is  for personal use, ie your wedding

You might be able to negotiate a discount from a local wine shop , producer  : vigneron wine maker 
cave : Wine shop in france 

Standard red white wine is excellent value, even better value is bubbly, Cava (Spanish , but i think avail in France you get get it) Champagne alts ; 

• Crémant. French Crémants are sparkling wines produced outside of Champagne. ... 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/9306178/Limoux-creme-de-la-cremant.html

Excellent value too is Vin Doux  :  Muscat etc, can be aperitif or desert wine

gambit83

thanks for your replies, very helpful

First Up

k123456 wrote:

Bring a copy of your wedding invite, Irish Custom check might be more favorable if you prove the wine is for personal use, ie your wedding

I wouldn't worry about that. A car load is fine. If you have a truck full you might be questioned but only if it looks like a commercial load.

However make sure whatever you bring in has the seal showing VAT paid. Anything in a regular shop will be absolutely fine but I've heard stories of people buying wine straight from vineyards in 10-20 litre drums and getting hit at Rosslare.