Grape buying co-op in the Raleigh/Durham NC area

[winemaker81]

I am a member of a grape buying cooperative group centered in Durham NC. Our coordinator works with a grape shipping company to transport West Coast USA grapes to Durham. This relationship has been ongoing for a number of years, the grape list is extensive, and we get a good price due to longevity and the size of the purchase.

This year's order is expected to arrive in late September or early October. We get the final date a few weeks in advance. The delivery date is decided by the ripening of the grapes, so the delivery date is projected at this time.

The focus is red grapes, although if there is interest, white juice in 50 gallon barrels is available. [Interested members work together to collectively order juice.]

• This is a co-op -- it is NOT retail!
• The minimum order is 6 lugs (~36 lbs each).
• Payment is due at ordering time.

In addition to the grapes, we rent a forklift to move the grapes on arrival day. The cost for this is known at order time and the cost is divided among the participants -- the more people, the lower the cost per person. Last fall we moved 13,000 lbs of grapes, so the forklift is not optional.

The order arrives on a Friday, when we unload the truck and the grapes are stored in the coordinator's garage. Saturday we crush -- the coordinator has a crusher/destemmer and for those who want it, we crush/destem order-by-order until done.

Grapes & juice MUST be picked up on Saturday. The storage garage is NOT refrigerated.

Anyone interested in joining the co-op, PM me with your name and email address and I'll forward to the coordinator.