Wine Shipping

the latter option will likely be cheaper. With only six bottles, I don't imagine customs would bat an eye. But they certainly could. That said, prior to my trip I tried to pin down exactly what the customs fee would be for bringing back more than the allowed and I couldn't find it readily. It appeared no one had been charged... One thing to be aware of, is the weight restriction. You may want to take it as carry on due to its fragility anyway, but wine is a lot heavier than clothes when checking luggage.

Checking it is much cheaper. You ain't about to get that much liquid in a carry on.

You can't ship it with Fedex or UPS. They won't accept wine shipments from a private party - only from licensed exporters. Don't carry wine in your carryon unless you're flying directly from Europe to your home airport. If you're going to have to change planes in the US, you'll be under TSA's 3-ounce rule for your second flight. Same caution applies if you have to change planes in London. The UK restricts liquid carryons to 100 ml. If it's in your checked bags, you're OK. As long as a bottle doesn't break (it's happened to me). When you get to US customs, declare your wine. The duty, if any, isn't very much. With 6 or so bottles, they'll probably wave you through.

Pack it in your checked bag. Even in Europe it won't get on in your carry on, since they have the same liquids restrictions (especially for US bound flights) and shipping is a long list of hassles you really do not want to get into. As for US customs, there is no limit as to how many bottles you can bring back. Do make sure to d.e.clare them on your customs form, anything over two bottles (i think that is still the rule) you technically owe duty on, but in my experience bringing anywhere from 4 to 60 bottles back; no duty was ever requested. Basically for the small amount owed, they simply do not see it worth trying to collect.

A lot of people buy their wine in the airport duty-free shops in Europe, after their bags have already been checked. They HAVE to carry it on for the first leg of their flight. But if they're going to have a connecting flight down the road, they have to find a way to transfer the wine to their checked luggage before their next security check. You can bring in one liter per 30 days duty-free. Over that you'll pay a 3% duty, plus a 36 cents per bottle federal tax (rates as of 2009). Also, you may have to pay a state tax, and some states restrict the quantity you can bring in. If there's a state tax, the US Customs officer will collect it. All that being said, people on this message board who've brought in wine usually say they were just waved through. There's no restriction on the quantity you can bring in, although large quantities may make them think you're importing for resale, as opposed to bringing it in for personal use. If they decide you're an importer, I guess that opens a big can of worms.

There's a difference between buying in the duty free shop (inside the security perimeter) and at the taco/wine stand out in town. Wine bought at the grocery store will not make it past security screening - - nor will a forgotten jar of olives (been there). Plus, don't count on finding wine in the duty free joint that you particularly enjoyed as you were traveling - - odds are it's not carried.

Great suggestions everyone, thanks alot. Another question i would have is where do you buy your wines if you are not going to a vineyard? Do they have wine stores in town that you can pick up quality wines?

You'll see wine stores all over the place. Most seem to be aimed at tourists and are pricey. According to my wife, who knows about the stuff and brings it home in droves (without getting hit by customs), you'll do just as well in the regular old grocery stores.

Alfonso, I brought three bottles of wine, a bottle of olive oil and some pesto and anchovies back to the U.S. from Italy last May. Packed in my checked suitcase using the nice corrugated carrier for one bottle and a mixture of bubble wrap (obtained from an artist packing a painting I purchased from her-she gave me extra packing material), and ziplock bags I packed in the suitcase before I left the U.S. Not one bottle broke. In my carryon, I brought three beautiful Majolica ceramic pieces, art work and posters that are now framed and above my mantle. There are wine shops everywhere but as another poster suggested, just go to the local grocery store - they have a nice variety. Happy travels. Ciao!

I brought back three bottles of wine and delicious olive oil that I picked up at some wineries in Tuscany countryside. I wrapped them with my clothes and the luggage went into the baggage dept. Once home, the wine and olive oil was fine...no problem. There are also wine/small restaurants (I forget what they are called). We went to one in Spello and had some wonderful food and wine. As we talked to the owner, he showed me all of his orders to the states. It looked like he was charging around $100 for 6 bottles to the states.

Pack it in your checked bag, wraped in a t-shirt then in a baggie ,nest among some heavier clothing. Keep ALL reciepts with you. You only have to if above certain $ amt.
Check out some of the larger grocery stores rather than a wine shop, their table wines have been great.

My daughter, who lives in Italy, brings back 6-12 bottles of Brunello at least twice a year the way i just mentioned.

We bought wine at an enoteca in Montalcino that arranged shipping. Some of it was "free" as a promotion, so 18 bottles cost $50 to get to Oregon. Was it worth it? Yeah, for the fun, and because we paid less in Italy than the same wines sell for in the US if you can find thme, and I was able to cost compare on the web. We also bought 1/2 dozen at a family winery that had a distribution arrangement in the US, so the wine was already in Maine for limited distribution. Shipping cost was not significant when you consider the uniqueness of the wine. :-)

We also brought back about 14 bottles of wine, 6 bottles of olive oil, plus an assortment of other items. We also brought along a $15 luggage scale (amazon) that REALLY comes in handy - were able to keep each suitcase at the 50 lb mark and had no troubles at the airport. We declared everything at customs and were not charged a fee, though I was expecting to be charged.

If you are going to buy expensive wine, please note that air shipping will affect the taste. It is somehow connected with pressurization in the airplane. You will have to let those bottle to rest for period of time before trying them cheers

Can't be the pressure if the cork's still in the jug. (For a demonstration of the effect of pressure on liquids, take an unpressurized flying machine to twenty grand. Hold thermos between legs and take cap off of what was luke warm coffee at sea level. Put oxygen mask back on since you really want to breath, bad. Repeat every couple of weeks if you have feeble memory). It might be the movement and sloshing around. Back in the days of sailing ships some wines didn't trave so well, but I think it was port and sherry that did. I know nothing about wine, but after a few years figured out how to open a thermos very slowly so it only burned a little bit.

We bought a box and the styrafoam wine shipper (they come in a variety of sizes) from a Mailboxes Etc in Florence and then checked that as baggage on the plane. Everything made it without any problems, and I didn't have to worry about anything breaking and getting on my clothes!

Air pressure has nothing to do with wine's taste. Wine is shipped by air all over this country all the time. Heat, however, does. I bought three cases in Beaune one time and had them shipped back in June when Portland was having an early heat wave. A kind clerk at the United freight warehouse brought them into their air conditioned office for storage until I could pick them up. Think through if you're wine will spend time in baggage handling in hot weather.

Absolutely correct, air pressure has nothing to do with taste otherwise all of our wine in the mountains would taste bad since luggage area in a plane are pressurized to about 10,000 feet. The other big issue with shipping wine is that all of the US liquor laws are state specific. The are no standard federal law governing how wine can be shipped. For example -- recently want to send six bottles to my son in Chicago -- No Way. Finally had to have my local wine shop send the wine because they had a permit to ship wine which I did not. None of the shipping companies would touch. Carry it in your luggage or drink it.