I'm a bit of a oenophile and I'm taking a trip to Paris with my girlfriend in early/mid March. We'll be staying there for about 12 days.

I'm greatly looking forward to the wine. We've planned a private wine tour (leaving from near Dijon) of the Burgundy region, which I'm sure will be great.

But what I'm very interested in is the wine prices, both in stores and in restaurants.

We spent 15 days in Italy last May, and I was extremely happy with the prices there. I was able to purchase bottles for 1/4th of the price in wine stores, and about 1/3rd of the price in restaurants, of what they cost back in the states.

Is France similar?

Also, what about getting wine shipped back home? I was thinking about purchasing several cases (if the price is right) and shipping it home. What can I expect as far as shipping prices (per case)?

Thanks.

Shipping cases of wine has a whole lot of issues - depending on what state you live in. You need to investigate this - since in many states you are strictly limited in what you can ship unless you are licensed as a legal importer.

Separately, I would think the cost of shipment for (relatively) small amounts would far outweigh the savings of buying on the spot versus buying at home. Never mind the amount of time it would take - unless you ship by air - really expensive - and the vinyard would have to know a commercial shipper willing to do it. (Many shippers won't handle alcohol.)

nytraveler - Good points.

Alas, I live in MA, which has some of the most draconian laws regarding alcohol in the country.

Luckily, I have a friend in CT that will re-ship things like this to me since CT has no such stupid laws.

When I was in Italy I visited a tiny winery call San Donatino in the Chianti Classico region of Tuscany. Their 2000 Chianti Classico Reserva was among the best wines I've ever had, and they don't sell outside of Italy.

Me, being an idiot, only bought 3 bottles and carried them home personally.

I want to be prepared if I encounter a similar situation in France.

ThinkFr33ly, Oh, I just love the Chianti Classico Reserva. I made the mistake of only buying 2 bottles.

I'm going back to Italy this year and plan to bring back 2 cases in styrofoamed wine boxes, in with my checked luggage. You are allowed 2 pieces per person -- 2 boxes of wine and 2 suit cases. Can't carry on with you on the airplane anymore. I took 14 bottles in the past.

The duty on still wines is minimal and not really worth the time and paperwork to charge you when you come back.

When I was in Italy, the winery I purchased a case of wine from told me that they shipped wine back to the States. The price was in the neighborhood of 160 Euro per case. They did all the shipping/customs documents and wrote it up as olive oil, so they told me.

Also doesn't hurt to do a little digging and find out if they do have their wines sold in the USA. I used to work for an importer, and the wineries would have handy a list of distributors in the States.. this way, when American tourists came and tasted wines, they could go home to their stores and tell the shop owners that such and such a distributor carried the wines. The store is able to order any wines from any distributor so don't get discouraged if you don't see what you want on the shelf-it doesn't mean that some tiny little distributor someplace doesn't have it.

Budman, where do you get the styrofoamed wine boxes?

The wineries/wine shops should have them.

I was in in Provence, the Rhone Valley and Burgundy this past Sept/Oct. I had hoped to ship wine home as cheaply as possible. It was not to be!! I had wanted to ship home 3 cases of rose from Tavel. The vintner was very helpful but said that the cost of shipping wine back to the US. She called Fed Ex, as I was willing to use my own Fed Ex account number to ship it back. I asked for the cheapest shipping option available.

The cheapest quote for shipping 3 cases back to the US (New York) was $591. Needless to say, I wasnt going to spend nearly $600 to send back $250 worth of wine.

I have since found out how to cheaply send wine back to the US: Via transatlantic ship!! This requires some planning but it can be done. You would need to contact a transatlantic freighter in France, then drop off the wine yourself at the dock from where the ship departs i.e Bordeaux, Marseille or any other coastal city from where ships depart for transatlantic crossings. Your wine would take several weeks to get home, but you could ship back several cases if you wanted to.

My next trip to France, I will arrange this all in advance.

My suggestion is bring as much back as you can. My husband and I toured the Burgandy area a couple of years ago, before the restrictions on carry-ons, and I managed to bring back quite a bit in my checked luggage and carry-on. Now when I go to the wine stores and see the prices for Burgandy wines I wish I had brought back even more. So, bring back the maximum.

I live in a state (Maryland) with real stupid laws about alcohol, also. It is nutty, as they don't allow sales in supermarkets, only liquor stores. Separate stores, anyway (these are not state-run, just private). I think there is some idea that actually looking at wine will harm children or something totally ridiculous. The one saving factor is that they also have some exemptions so for a particular grocery chain, they are allowed to sell wine in about one store in each county or something weird like that. Maybe it has something to do with money and the liquor store industry, also, and competition, who knows, it's just idiotic. LUckily, I can buy wine in Virginia or DC easily.

But I was thinking of going to Burgundy next summer sometime, so was interested in the wine tour you have planned? Could you say who that company is or how you are doing that, and where you are going briefly? Just curious.

Same problem with Provencal rose's. The 2 "caves" simply wouldn't send to the US citing that they found "labeling" and duty problems. (???) The cost was a factor. And then by boat, Michael worried that the wine would "cork" or taint if it got to warm in the "hold".
So? We're trying to get our wine-store to talk to his distributor because we wanted A LOT of it (1/2 pallet?)

I usually buy a bottle or two at a local Nicolas store. This web page gives their selection and prices. I bought a nice Pommard for 35euros last time, and a vintage Piper Heidsieck champagne at the airport for 35euros. The Nicolas stores are everywhere and I found they have selections of items I can't get back home in Canada.

http://www.nicolas.com/

I've found several wines that we like from France in Trader Joes, Cost Plus World Market, and Bev Mo. I have friends who have special ordered through their favorite wine stores. I usually stop in the duty free at the airport and pick up as many bottles as I'm allowed and bring back as gifts. Lugging around heavy bottles of wine is not much fun so i wait til the last minute. Buy it and carry it on. Have never had a problem.

In Paris I have found really good wines for amazing low prices in the local grocery stores. My other suggestion is the Nicholas chain of wine stores all over Paris.

We have found that ordering the little pitchers of house wine with our meals is a great value and have never had a bad house wine.

We also have found really good prices on Bubbly at Nicholas. I can't remember what they call it but there are several brands of white sparkling wines which taste as good as Champagne available at Nicholas. (IMO)

I don't think you need to spend lots of money to get really decent wines in Paris. We've learned that the hard way.

Can't answer questions about shipping, be DH and I go on a wine buying trip to France most years. Buying direct from the vintner is the cheapest. You get amazing value. Some large supermarkets also have good wines at good prices. Prices in restaurants are exhorbitant, the mark-up is greedy (speaking as an Englishwoman who lives in Spain, where the mark-up is very modest). To give an eg. Pouilly Fuse or Sancerre; bought from maker 6Euros a bottle. In supermarket 10-12 Euros a bottle. In restaurant 25-30 Euros a bottle. Wines in the Burgundy area can be expensive from the maker (what's in a name?) but you can also find (non premier cru) wines from 4 Euros (eg Passtoutgrain). Your private tour will no doubt have places arranged, but if you want the names and addresses of some smaller not famous makers, ask me. If your French is up to it, equip yourself with the latest version of Le Guide Hachette des Vins which you will be able to find in most bookshops in Paris. It reviews the makers in each area, tells you what he sells and for how much.

For those of us who want only a few bottles of wine, can we buy a few bottles at the duty free shop at the airport? If so, how do I get them home because we can't carry on?

Have you booked your flights yet? If not, and you really love wine, you might see if you can delay your trip so that you can be in Paris some time around March 23-26. It's the semi-annual Salon des Vins for independent winemakers (google "salon" "vignerons" "independants&quot. I've only been to the huge fall Salon; the spring one is somewhat smaller. At the fall Salon, there are over 800 winemakers offering free tastings and great prices for purchases. (You might have to buy tickets, but they are less than 10 euros each).

If you can't change your plans, a smaller version of the Salon will be held in Bordeaux on Mar 9-11.

In Paris, you should make a trip to Lavinia (check out lavinia.fr for more info), a huge wineshop (almost a supermarket) in Paris. They have a tasting room, and on Saturdays there are often free tastings in the late afternoon / early evening. A good place to end up after a day's shopping, around 6 pm. The shop has wine in all price ranges (including selections under 10 euros - and bottles that cost tens of thousands of dollars - worth a visit to their cave).

I think you can carry on things you buy after you clear security. I carried on 3 bottles of wine and 3 bottles of Absinthe as well as some cosmetices and perfumes. I stuffed it all in one of our carry on bags.

Suzanne2 is correct for most airports. However, if you are departing from or transitting through Heathrow, you are restricted to a single carry-on item, including duty-free purchases. If your stuff doesn't fit into your singe carry-on item (and there are restrictions on the size of that carry-on item), you will be required to exit the secure airside of the airport, check the extra items - and probably miss your flight. No such restrictions in French airports though, so if you're flying home from France without going through London, load up as much as you like at duty-free. (Keep in mind though that duty-free means duty-free in France. The country you're going back to probably imposes restrictions on the amount of alcohol and wine you bring back.)

Restaurant price vs. store price of various wines in France -- multiply the price by 4. If a certain wine is on special in a restaurant, it might only be multiplied by 3.

In a supermarket, a bottle of wine will cost from 2€ to 45€ (the more expensive wines will not be found in a supermarket). Frankly, you can find some pretty good wine for no more than 4€, but it is really hit and miss. We locals can test certain wines and go back for more over the months -- that's something that most tourists can't do. One of the best kept secrets for a kir apéritif is a certain white wine sold in Ed, an ultra discount superette chain. It's not even French -- it's Spanish -- and goes for something ridiculous like 1.20€. I have been to so many dinner parties where this bottle turns up. Nobody seems to use it for anything other than kir, but the reason you use it for kir is that you have tasted it straight, and it is a damn good wine for the price.

I'm curious if you would share some info on WHAT SPECIFIC wines and where that were considerably cheaper in Europe than in the US. I bring wines from Europe on every trip, but I tend to buy them because they are not available in the US, not because they are cheaper. In the old days I was able to get Bordeaux first growths for half the US price but not so anymore, often times it's cheaper here.

In recent time, I did buy a few ANGELO GAJA Barbaresco for half the price from an Italian wine wholesaler that sold them to me for cash without any receipt. Other than that I haven't found any great deal in Europe. I carry wine price lists from the US distributors when I go wine hunting.