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Wine

Is it worth it to bring a suitcase to transport wine back from Italy?

Posted by
7731 posts

Why not if you can afford to pay for it? You just have to pack it yourself so the bottles don't break when they throw your bag around after you check it in. I have seen bags unloaded from the plane fall of the trailers on the runway and get run over accidentally. I use to work at Chicago O'hare airport as a passenger service agent and saw all kinds of baggage at arrivals that were leaking because the bottles broken.

You might be better off seeing if your local wine has the same stuff

Posted by
1674 posts

If you're looking for wines to cellar, it might be worthwhile for uniqueness but not for saving money. Good wines can also be surprisingly hard to find, and often hard to sample. If it's the dreamy fresh, fruity aspect of Italian local wines that you're after, you'll be disappointed - they just don't travel well.

Posted by
2281 posts

hey hey arne
you can do whatever you want, is your allowance 50 lbs or pay for excess weight? we bought a bottle or two, wrapped in bubble wrap (i took with me) around clothes and fit in slip on shoe in checked bag.
you can look at title and see if a distributor in your city. we did this years ago in abita springs, bought case of bottled beer, town outside new orleans. didn't sell it in california yet. long story short, flight delayed in new orleans, missed flight outta houston bags went ahead of us, spent night with no clothes/makeup/toiletries but had $$$. day late to oakland, bags with our "southern booze" waiting with some broken bottles and suitcase smelling like a brewery!! we laughed so much, not bringing more booze than handle.
just be prepared by anything that happens (devil's advocate here) suitcase gets thrown about airport airplane, falls of conveyor belt, plane employee runs over bag before getting to baggage claim.
enjoy whatever you do
aloha

Posted by
170 posts

Assuming you intend to put your wine bottles in checked luggage you need to factor in the weather. Wine is temperature sensitive and will go bad if left in the heat. A delayed flight with your wine stuck on a hot tarmac, or in the belly of a hot plane will ruin it.

Posted by
4616 posts

We have a Wine Suitcase, with wheels, that accommodates 12 bottles, with each bottle protected in a styrofoam "cocoon". It cost about $60. I use it regularly for [domestic] trips to Sonoma and Napa. [Of course, I fly Southwest with free curbside check-in.] The weight is under the allowable for checked luggage.
Not sure how this would work internationally regarding import/export laws , sitting on the tarmac in heat, the fact that many Italian wines don't have preservatives, etc.
Good luck and safe travels!

Posted by
243 posts

I have used shipping boxes in Italy, France, and the US as my checked luggage and then brought my regular luggage as carryon. You can pick up these shippers at most large vineyards.

I reserve the slots for wine that I cannot get at home. It has worked well for me many times.
I have seen the wine suitcases that hold a case and thought those would also work very well but have not picked one up yet.

Posted by
7453 posts

What I have done, is pack a duffle or my Rick Steves Backpack bag in my carryon on the way over, then on return, pack wine in the more substantial Carry-on type bag that I then check, and put excess clothes and durable items in the soft bag, that I then either also check or carry-on.

I can fit 6 bottles easily, wrapped in clothing, that proves plenty of protection.

As for ruining wine by traveling...I have not experienced it. Maybe if I were to buy 50 year old bottles at hundreds of Dollars, then maybe (Ain't gonna happen); but the typical recent vintage bottle is not as sensitive to handling, and the temperature extremes are not what one thinks (Time on tarmac is really limited, cargo holds are generally under ambient temp, insulated bottles see less temp shift). Good wine bottles are also really durable, breakage is not a concern if you pack reasonably well.

Posted by
1542 posts

"Is it worth it to bring a suitcase to transport wine back from Italy?" - Not if you don't drink wine, unless you are buying for a friend.

Posted by
15560 posts

I learned recently that wine needs to "rest" after a plane trip. What I haven't yet found the answer to is how long.

I've often packed bottles in my suitcase. I now save the 2-bottle cartons I get at some local wineries. I try to wrap any bottled liquids (olive oil, liqueurs, etc) in a plastic bag and then a zip-lock bag as well as some kind of padding, whether it's bubble wrap or clothes. Then I pack them in the middle of the suitcase with soft things on all sides.

Worth it for you? It depends on you. How special is the wine you're considering? If its no more than 2 bottles per person, it's allowable without customs duties. If you want more than that, it may be safer and worth the price to ship it. I'm not a connoisseur, so I wouldn't bother with wine.

Posted by
7453 posts

The idea of wine resting is dependent on it's age, just like people, old wine needs time to recover. Wine, as it ages will develop sediment that falls out and collects on the lowest surface of the bottle, stirring this up causes wine to be cloudy and taste off. This is also one reason that bottles of old red wine are decanted before serving.

However, a recent vintage will have no sediment, a ten year old bottle, probably some. This all applies to Reds, White wine is usually drank young anyway, so not an issue. I rarely if ever buy an old bottle of wine, so have never had a problem.

Posted by
1321 posts

We do! Or we ask at the Enoteca for a shipper box or the local "packing" store. We also have a wine suitcase but we find it's cumbersome to pull when it's full.

Posted by
23178 posts

Probably not. We have always brought back a couple, three bottles buried in the checked bag with good success until the last time. One bottle was broken -- huge mess, pink underwear and strange colored socks for the next year or so. Now we just drink it and take a picture of the bottle so we can search for it later at home.

Posted by
76 posts

Every time I’ve visited Italy I’ve brought wine home (5 Times) and shipped as well, three times. I pick special wines that can’t be found in the USA from smaller producers. It has always been worth it. Very special to open up a wine from our travels 6 months to years later and reminisce about our times in Bella Italia.

Posted by
15560 posts

Thank you very much, Paul. The closest I've come to an old wine is a 2011 port I brought back from Portugal in June. It's been resting nicely since then. Other than that special purchase, I never get anything more than 3-4 years.

Posted by
55 posts

to Chani,

17 days, in a place at the temperature a wine cellar should be, 14 +/- 3°C.

Posted by
540 posts

I guess it depends upon how much wine you are going to bring back with you.

We were just in France and brought home 6 bottles, and 3 easily fit in each of our carry onsuitcases, even with putting in wine skin, wrapping in cardboard, clothes, etc.

We travel very light, so even with the wine bottles we were still around 35 pounds each suitcase.

We did meet some folks that were planning to bring more wine back and they were just buying a suitcase in France to use for trip home.

Posted by
76 posts

I'm in Frank's camp on this one. If you know the good wine stores in town, take a picture and work with them to get what you want. Yes, you will have to pay import fees as part of the price, but better than pink underwear/wierd socks in my book!

Posted by
473 posts

If you are really serious about traveling with wine, there is a wine suitcase you can buy. It holds 12 bottles. It’s very sturdy. I believe it cost about 250 bucks. If you have a Total Wine store they carry it.