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Delta Air Lines is introducing a new baggage initiative, offering certain passengers the chance to transport a case of wine for free when flying back from certain vineyard destinations in the US state of California. The ‘Golden State’ is known for its winegrowing prowess, and it attracts beverage enthusiasts from all over the world. Now, bringing your wine wares home is about to get a little bit easier.
Indeed, the ‘Sip, Savor & Fly With SkyMiles’ program will enable eligible members from the Atlanta-based US ‘big three’ legacy carrier and SkyTeam founding member to check a case of wine in for free when flying home after their Californian adventures. Delta is following hot on the heels of several other major US airlines that also offer similar setups, having also recently launched a new onboard wine program.
Wines Fly Free
Delta’s new program applies to flights out of five Californian airports: Oakland (OAK), Sacramento (SMF), San Francisco (SFO), San Jose (SJC), and Sonoma County (STS). From these facilities, passengers flying to destinations within the United States of America who are aged 21 years or older and have an active SkyMiles membership can check in a case of up to 12 750 ml bottles of wine for free.
Delta notes that the case may weigh no more than 50 lbs (23 kg), and it must also fit the “standard checked baggage size limits of 62 linear inches.” This initiative is designed to save passengers the hassle of having to ship their wines home separately after visiting the vineyards of California, with Delta hoping that it will make it these passengers’ carrier of choice for such trips. The airline adds that:
“Whether you’re visiting Napa Valley, Sonoma County, Livermore County, or other wine destinations, Delta makes bringing your favorite wines back home even easier.”
The Move Follows The Rollout Of A New Wine Program At Delta
The last few weeks have been a busy one for Delta Air Lines as far as news that relates to wine is concerned. Indeed, the airline announced on September 16 that it had launched a new onboard wine program. This, it said at the time, will see it “bring Napa icons and global classics onboard.” Separately, the carrier began rolling out Champagne Taittinger in Delta One on domestic routes on October 1.
Delta explained that the latter of these moves was “building on the success of customer reaction to Champagne Taittinger poured on International Delta One” and in its Delta One lounges. In terms of the wider new onboard wine program, the carrier whittled down a shortlist of some 1,600 wines to just 13, with these having been sourced from 11 different winery partners, with Napa at the heart of it.
With that being said, there was also more of an international flavor to some of the wines that Delta Air Lines chose. On this side of things, three are from France, along with two from Spain and one from New Zealand. With taste sensations working differently in the sky, Delta notes that its selection is “curated for approachability at 35,000 feet,” making the wines easy to appreciate even for novice wine drinkers.
Other US Carriers Have Also Offered Similar Initiatives Over The Years
Given California’s rich winemaking pedigree, it is unsurprising to see that Delta Air Lines is not the only major US carrier to have deployed a ‘wine fly free’ program in order to gain market share from this valuable leisure market. Indeed, Simple Flying reported back in 2024 that Avelo Airlines had rolled out a similar initiative, initially from Sonoma County Airport and later throughout the entire western United States.
In that same year, Simple Flying also took a look at Alaska Airlines’ offering on this front, which is available from a whopping 34 different airports. These facilities stretch all the way from the likes of Bellingham, Everett, and Seattle in the Pacific Northwest to San Diego in the far southwest of California. Certain inland airports are also included in the initiative, such as Spokane, Washington, and Boise, Idaho.
