Giving fruit at Christmas without it looking like you ran out of time
Some presents give away the time at which they were bought. The box of chocolates from the petrol station, on the way to dinner. Or the corporate hamper with a wine nobody opens and a turrón that is still at the back of the cupboard in March.
A box of oranges and tangerines from Valencia, picked on the day you ordered it, says the opposite: that you gave it some calm thought. Even if you ordered it on the 20th at eleven at night. That stays between you and us.
Why fruit works when you barely know the person
We all have someone on the list we know very little about. The new brother-in-law, the colleague who is retiring, the neighbour who watered your plants all through August. You have no idea of their size, or whether they collect scented candles or loathe them with every fibre of their being.
Fruit skips all of those questions. It gets eaten, it takes up no shelf space, and it does not mind whether the recipient is vegan, coeliac or has worn the same cologne since 1994. It also has the considerable advantage of never needing to be dusted. What anyone will notice is the difference between a plastic tray picked up in aisle seven and a box that leaves the orchard with the scent still on the peel.
What arrives in the box in December
In December we pick Navel oranges, which last until mid-January, and Clemenules tangerines, which stay on the tree until the end of December. It is the best time of year to give citrus: both are at their best at once.
You have two options:
- The mixed boxes of oranges and tangerines, oranges and lemons, or all three. The orange and tangerine box comes in 5 to 20 kg; the 5 kg one is meant for people who live alone or as a couple, so the fruit does not win the race.
- The Christmas Gift Box, with oranges, tangerines, lemons and kiwis, plus marmalade and extra virgin olive oil chosen by us. No turrón: the family usually has that covered.
The box is made of very sturdy kraft cardboard and weighs what it weighs: the courier will remember it. Inside, the fruit is just as it came off the tree, with no wax and no post-harvest chemicals. The odd orange will arrive with a sun mark on its skin. We do not hide it, because it proves nobody has polished it.
When it arrives, depending on where the recipient lives
Our foremen pick first thing in the morning on the day the order comes in. If the orchard has woken up very damp, they wait for the oranges to dry before picking them. After that, the delivery time depends on the destination:
- Mainland Spain: 24 hours.
- Germany, France and Austria: 3 working days.
- Rest of the European Union: 3 to 5 working days.
We announce the last day to order for delivery before Christmas Eve at the beginning of December, country by country. If the present is going to Munich or Lyon, count their public holidays, which are not the same as ours.
The message
The box travels with no price and no invoice inside: what it cost stays between you and us. If we send it to you, it comes with a blank card so you can write the message in your own hand. If we send it straight to the recipient, you give us the text and we put a printed copy in the box.
The box goes directly to whatever address you give us, in Spain or elsewhere in Europe, without passing through your house. All you have to do is look as though you organised it weeks in advance.
If something does not arrive as it should
Guillermo's Guarantee reads: "If something doesn't arrive as it should, we sort it out without argument: replacement, discount or refund. Your choice."
It is not a brochure line. In 2021 the damp gave us a very bad year and we replaced every box. Guillermo puts it his own way: if something goes wrong, you apologise and you are generous, because that person trusted you. With a present, the one who trusted us was you, and the one opening the box is somebody else. All the more reason.
For someone who has everything: an orange tree
There are people you cannot give anything to because they already have it all. They rarely have a tree. Sponsoring an orange tree in Valencia means giving the fruit of a tree in our orchard, delivered to their home with shipping included. The recipient has nothing to do but open the door: the fruit of their tree arrives throughout the season.
Frequently asked questions
Can I send the box to another address?
Yes. Give us the recipient's address, in Spain or elsewhere in Europe, and the box leaves the orchard for there.
Can I choose what goes inside?
You choose the box; we choose the fruit, according to what is at its best that week. In December, Navel and Clemenules.
Is the fruit treated in any way?
Not at all after picking. No wax and no post-harvest chemicals. It arrives as it was on the branch.
Are there any Christmas offers?
We do not do sales or countdowns, and shipping is included in the price. The only hurry is the season's: the Clemenules is over by the end of December.
