bringing home Italian wine

You'll love the wines in Italy. Bringing some back, though, can be difficult. Wineries can ship cases home, depending on what your home state's import laws are. You can bring some wine home with you, but you may run into restrictions on how many bottles depending on the state laws of the airports you're flying through. Customs isn't a big deal. Declare how many bottles you have and the duty is small. Many people say it's waived. But managing more than a few bottles is tough when you're flying.

Concentrate on tasting and finding varieties you like. My guess is that the Costco in Kahalui will have a good selection of the varieties you liked when you get back. .

We were in Tuscany last summer and wanted to bring some wine home. It was in the middle of our trip and we didn't want to cart it around so were forced to ship it home. We shipped a case and it wasn't cheap...about $200. Most of the wines we bought (Poggio Antico, Rocca della Macie, Altesino) were more expensive than wines we would usually buy in the states. It doesn't make much sense to ship home cheap wines b/c your tacking on about $17 per bottle to ship. Hope this helps.

I just got back from Italy a couple of weeks ago. My wife and I brought back 3 bottles in our checked baggage that I wrote on the customs form and brought in to the US with no issues. I think as long as you're not bringing the whole liquor store home that you would be fine. Remember to pack a little lighter to leave room to take home the bottles.

Obviously check your wine; Either bring, or find while there some packing materials, maybe even bottle shaped styrofoam packers. The Federal Govt. (Customs) does not limit in any way how much you bring back for personal use, just make sure you declare what you bring back, as Doug mentioned, chances are you will not need to pay duty, if so, it is minimal. As for Customs enforcing State liquor laws, if your Port of Entry (First stop in US where you will go through customs) is also your home state or destination, then maybe they will. If you are "passing through" then they will not. Not to encourage bootlegging, but if Customs does not enforce the state laws, no other mechanism or check is there to enforce them. Shipping is whole other subject and is much more sensitive to State laws and regulations of the shipping company. If you choose to ship, please do your research ahead of time or you risk having the shipment confiscated by customs.

Other than something you might want to purchase for a special reason (e.g., as a momento of a wedding or anniversary), I advise leaving it in Italy. Besides, I think more than half of the Italian wine drinking experience is drinking it IN ITALY!!! I've found excellent Italian wines at Costco, Cost Plus, and Trader Joes. But it has never tasted the same as that one magic glass of red, sitting on the patio, looking over the green hills of Umbria, in the warm May sunshine.

If you're smart, you will bring home just a few bottles. Most Italian wines can be purchased here in the states. Yes, it's a little cheaper to buy them there but remember you will have to check them in your luggage as you will not be able to carry them on to the plane. I believe it's better to enjoy drinking them in Italy and forget about the headache of bringing them back home!!!

I will agree that many Italian wines are available in the US, but more are not, than are. Many smaller wineries and distinctive regional wines are simply not available, all at the discretion of the importer. Further, some of the premium wines, like a Brunello, can (OK, with the exchange rate maybe less so now) be had at deep discounts to what is found in the US. My strategy for wine; to avoid lugging it around, buy only select few unless you have a rental car or home base. Focus mostly on lower cost regional wines, mixed with a few bottles of super premiums found at bargain prices. Figure out what your checked weight limits are, baggage costs are overpriced. I think for a couple, you could safely figure on a dozen bottles. To resolve the "available in the US" issue, locate a wine store near you that has a wide selection of Italian wine and a website, get familiar with the regions, and while there use the internet to compare availability and price

Another alternative is talk to your local wine merchant before leaving for Italy. See if he/she may be able to order the wine for you once you have the important info. I know my local wine merchant is able to order almost any wine in the world.

I would also only bring back finer bottles not likely available or affordable in the states. By the way, the amount of labels available locally in Italy is a thousand fold what you could get in the states, no matter who you know. As for shipping, as stated above do so only for the best wine you can afford. If you are dealing with a knowledgable pro, you should be able to work a much better deal on a case to help relieve the cost of shipping. I personally fit wine into every cubic inch of checked or carried on baggage.

One tip I can give not yet stated is to take your locks off checked baggage. US customs may cut them to peek and snoop, and will not be as thoughtful as you in the strategic placement of your bottles once they've messed up your system. Josh.

I guess Josh & I don't share the same wine merchant. Let me clarify my prior posting. My hubby & I have been doing business w/a local wine merchant for yrs. The respected wine merchant had told us over the yrs if we ever get to Europe and drink a bottle of wine that we enjoy very much, he would search for a way to buy a case of it for us, even if it's not sold in the USA. This man had no reason to lie to us and we had no reason to believe he was lying. I offer this wine merchant idea as only a possibility to eliminate red tape headaches if buying by the case.

Here was my reasoning: Someone who is looking to return with a "nice selection of Italain wine" anticipates discovering new varieties - the Barbera, the Brunello, maybe the Super Tuscan.

The varieties can be bought here at home. One can assemble here at home a representative collection of the varieties tasted in Italy. However, the magical bottles must be bought there and shipped home.

Dennis,

I brought home 3 bottle of wine and did not have a problem. I put them in the check-in, wrapped them good and had no problem. I did bring a smaller bottle of wine and olive oil on the carry on and again had no problem.

Thanks everyone for all the feedback. I am interested in the Brunello di Montalcino. I'll ask the local wine store if they can get it.

Check out www.CBP.gov, click on the OFO (office of field operations, new name for customs), then the electronic version of "know before you go" publication. You can bring one-liter per adult home, checked luggage only, without duty. I'm not sure what the duty is if you go over.

the duty is very low -- i dont remember exactly but it's something on the order of 7 cents per liter or something ridiculous like that.

Does anyone remember how much it cost to send a case home to the states? I've heard this is the way to go, especially if your wanting a special Italian wine as souvenirs to give to others? Of course, we'll drink a few ourselves. :)

Shannon: I have heard fees from $90 to $200 per case for shipping. Beyond that, some purists will certainly question the handling cases might encounter in transit (Temperature and shaking) causing ruin to the wine. I think this would only be a concern with older vintage wines or very premium wine, but only my opinion. By far, if shipping, please research your State's regulations (some states allow no shipments), Shipper limitations (US Postal Service, UPS and Fed EX do not ship alcohol) and Customs procedures (If they reject the shipment, it is confiscated, the shipper is notified, but not the receiver) My preference for a case is to pack well and check as baggage.

We shipped a case home from a Mail Boxes Etc type place last summer and it cost about $200-$250.

We shipped a case of Brunello last october. We used mailboxes etc also... it was on the order of $200. The wine itself cost about the same...
With shipping included, it ended up costing me about $35 a bottle -- still less than 1/2 of what I've seen Brunello sell for here...

Just another thought. I sent back wine this past September and had the wine shop ship it. They charged me $85 for 6 bottles (well packed in styrofoam cases) so that comes to about $170 per case of 12. It was worth it, and my suggestion is to check with where you are buying, they may ship for a little less.

Can anyone give me some good full bodies red wine recommendations? I'd like to bring home some wine that I can't find in the US

Look for smaller, independent producers. As I mentioned in my first post, look at Costco's selection of Italian reds so you have an idea of prices and availability here. Unless you have a good wine shop in Lahaina. Believe it or not, Costco takes wine seriously and there have been stories in the wine press about their buyer.

So Brunellos are famous, but expensive. In Chianti, look for Super Tuscans (which are hard to identify because they are blends of grapes and are not labeled "Super Tuscan." Also in Tuscany are the Vinos Nobile of Montelpulciano. The other great reds are from the Piedmont - Barberas and Barolos.

Kent - we probably spent another $350-400 on the wine. Neither the wine or the shipping was cheap, but we love wine and felt that it was worth it.

We bought two cases last September and the winery packed them in styrofoam and then in cardboard boxes. We checked them with our other luggage and they arrived safely. We declared them on the customs form but the customs officer did not charge us duty.

My husband uses Wine Spectator on line to check ratings of different wines. He is quite happy with their reviews. Apparently the reviewer and my husband have the same taste.