Bringing or shipping wine home from Italy

I don't have any experience actually shipping wine home but I did see a few other people doing it at wineries. One place had a shipping fee of 110 euros to the US to give you an idea of the cost. I'm not sure if this was a flat rate or not but it was definitely the minimum cost. This winery was just outside Panzano in Chianti.

Shipping can be very expensive and not all states allow it (be sure to check your local laws). As noted above, wineries may not ship only a bottle or two. Regular carriers like UPS or Fed Ex will not ship alcohol.

If you bring some back in checked bags, you are best to buy wine sleeves that cushion the bottles and seal them up just in case they do break. Some use dirty laundry as the cushion and seal them in zip-lock bags. Be sure your bags will be checked through all the way. On occasion if changing planes in route, you must re-gather your checked bags and take them through security to re-check them.

Declare all alcohol. Most likely you will not be charged a duty for a few bottles, but follow the rules to avoid getting fined.

There's a place online that I wish I'd found prior to our trip to Italy (and we haven't used it yet), but its called The Wine Check. I have no financial interest in the company, just a wish I could've had one with me... because I didn't bring home wine because of the shipping costs :(

It also looks like they have an international partner that you could use to ship to a destination during your trip, if you worry about getting it in time. (Other retailers page > Other Area Partners/Online:

EUROPE - The Wine Check is now available throughout Western Europe, via Lazenne

www.thewinecheck.com

I shipped three bottles of wine from Florence, the wine shop owner used FedEx. Cost was about €70.

I shipped a case home of Brunello from Montalcino that I bought at Les Barriques in the center of town. Cost to ship was 120 euros (with insurance) and arrived undamaged in 4 weeks. That's about $12-$15 per bottle, which I think is minimal to open a bottle when you get home and relive your vacation. I've also brought 4-5 bottles home from Burgundy in checked luggage. Do declare it.

We brought back some bottles this last trip. We used padded sleeves and cushioned with clothing. They arrived in good shape - no breaks or leaks. I've seen some inflatable sleeves but they looked like they took up more room than I had in my regulation Rick bag.

I am in the camp of bring it with you by checking rather than shipping. Unless you have it on high confidence and are comfortable with cost that a winery or service will get it to your door, then shipping comes with considerable risk. As mentioned, your state laws, customs processing, shipping company quirks, all come into play, you probably do not know the ins and outs, nor do many random wineries given the myriad of US State laws. That said, many ship successfully, a number do not, problem is, if something goes wrong, it is you that are usually out.

I find that you can safely pack about six bottles in the typical carry on size bag (that you will check). Good wine bottles are heavy and have a punt, so by wrapping with dirty clothes or other padding, the breakage risk is low. (many trips, combinations of beer, wine and liquor, maybe some 200 bottles, I recall 2 cheap wine bottles breaking.)

Do declare your wine, I would be amazed if you have to pay any duty (well, if you brought back a couple cases of $200/bottle Brunello, then maybe)

in a moment of whimsy, and space in my bag, I brought home one EMPTY wine bottle this summer....no problems. I also vote for handling it yourself instead of paying for someone else to lose it.....

Hi:
Just got back Tuesday. I bought 2 "Vino" wine bags with. They inflate and take up alot of room but I used them on each end of the suitcase. Then I purchased some "wine skin" bags from a vineyard. They were only 2.5 euros but can only be used one time. I brought a duffle that packed into a small pocket and put most of my clothes in it on the way home. I also brought the Jumbo zip lock bags to put any other clothing in. I was really stressed out about my bag but brought 5 bottles of wine and 2 of olive oil home without any issues. Shipping is VERY expensive. I toured 4 vineyards so I was buying wine from more than one place. Mailboxes etc., wanted 75 euro for 3 bottles and it would take 3-4 weeks for delivery!

Vineyards had some better pricing but still way too expensive for me. I didn't end up using it but Mailboxes sells the styrofoam inserts for 6 bottles and a box- it was 13 euros. If you only bring one bag with you that can be a carry on you can check the box of wine as your "free bag" as long as it's not over 50 lbs. Once you go over the 50 lbs limit it the same cost of a second international bag (on Delta/KLM) which is 100 USD - same price as the 3 bottles for Mailboxes. I was wishing I had a trash bag and packing tape to line my suitcase but didn't need it. No problems for me or my friend who also brought wine back. I had heard that you were allowed one or two (depending on where you look) bottles to bring with you but later found that you can bring more but could be subject to paying a duty on the additional bottles. The site I found said it was up to the customs agent and most don't want to be bothered. We were asked what we were binging in and I told him wine/olive oil an he said "Souvenirs", so we didn't have to pay the duty!

Good Travels!
Theresa - MN

When we took our recent RS Best of Sicily tour we purchased a case of wine at a wonderful winery near Mt Etna. I was apprehensive about shipping but they said it averages $12-$15 US per bottle for the shipping. It took a few weeks for it to get to New York, but once there we were emailed with a FedEx tracking number. At that point, it took 1 week using fedex ground service to arrive. Came last Saturday well packed. The bottles were completely surrounded in Styrofoam and very secure. Once the credit card statement arrives, I'll know for sure how much the shipping was. I would do it again (considering I don't have a mindstaggering cost show up).