Living in Vancouver, BC, I've always had an easy time getting red wine
grapes from our local wine region home. October harvests nearly
always guaranteed cool weather for the five hour truck drive to and
from the vineyard. I never worried about spoilage. Unfortunately,
with such a small area of land in BC available to grow premium
vinefera, today I can't guarantee getting the grapes. So, I've gone
south to friendly neighbours in the Pacific States.

We recently had frozen must shipped from Napa. That worked out well
but was extremely expensive, although I got good handle on
international refrigerated (reefer) shipping in the process. Last
year, we had a really good experience buying grapes for a winery near
Yakima, WA, but we got really lucky with weather, which was unusually
cold the day we picked up our grapes. In that area, late September
can still bring 80's or higher during the day.

My problem is opportunity... I can access fine grapes now, in
Washington and Oregon, all within a maximum 8 hour drive from my
house. BUT, how to keep them cool??

I've tried to find a company that will rent refrigerated vans or small
cube trucks, but with no success. And, in spite of an engineering/
science background, I can't come up with any viable solution that will
keep 1/2 ton of ($3K/ton) Pinot Noir safely chilled, in back of truck
or van, during its transit home.

In a word: help. Any suggestions, strategies (hare-brained or not),
or proven solutions most appreciably welcomed.

Darin