What's a good way to safely check bottles of wine?
 

My family and I will be traveling to Germany March 12th. Both hubby and I love a good wine and so we plan on bringing several bottles back with us from France, etc. I know I will have to pay a 3% tax per bottle, but how do I get it back safely. Would hate to get home with nothing but busted bottles. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks,,Jennifer

I wrapped mine well in plastic wrap (would have used bubble wrap if it had been available),packed them tightly in a their own small suitcase, and had the airline mark the suitcase "FRAGILE." They all arrived safely and intact. Wish I could say the same for my regular luggage, which arrived 24 hours after I did!

I must tell you that 3 of my bottles were in round, cardboard containers (sort of like a poster tubes), which may have helped a lot.

Good luck!

You can ship it to yourself. You can get packaging from someplace to ship it to yourself & check it (watch out for weight restrictions !) or you can carry it on.

All I do is pack the bottle (one bottle per suitcase) inside a plastic bag with some clothes, and then pack this in another plastic bag with some clothes, put it all in my suitcase, and send it along and hope for the best. So far it's worked.

Brutforce, sadly, I don't believe you can carry it on any more. Bottles of wine hold more than 3 oz!

A friend had a liter of Spanish olive oil confiscated at Security in Frankfurt, and wine (other than duty free) would be no different.

If you are going into France, then find a French Post Office where you should still be able to purchase a special postal shipping container, a box that will securely hold six bottles of wine. The last ones we picked up we purchased at La Dernière Goutte in Paris a couple of years ago, but they should still be available. You can then check the box in as checked luggage for your return home.

I've had good luck with the wine pouches made out of neoprene. (Available almost everywhere these days.) It lies nice and flat and takes up no space until you need it. Just slip the bottles in and they are prevented from bumping against each other - then put in center of suitcase surrounded by lots of soft clothes.

I think what Packed2Go is talking about is this:
http://tinyurl.com/2oxn4u

I took home 2 bottles of wine from Paris in the double pouch and they made it just fine.

You may not want to do this but we have brought back 12 bottles in our suitcases. We just pack the in our clothes very well. Also travelling from Germany you will probably have white wine and if a bottle breaks oh well. This part will be up to you but we never declare any wine and have always gotten through. They even searched our suitcases and saw the wine but didn't say anything. The poster tubes sound good as well as bubble wrap. Also I thought good wine comes fron Italy (just kidding

Thanks for all of your help everyone. You have all given me some good tips. Jennifer

Check your local wine source. They may stock your foreign wine choice. Take packing materials with you. ZipLock bags and bubble pack. Paper towels or toilet paper can also be used. Don't waste free transport on inexpensive wines. Maximize free transport by posting dirty clothes and such home.

Liquor/wine stores will also have special cardboard boxes with Styrofoam insets especially made for shipping bottles. These can then be checked separately or put in suitcases.

We have boxes that hold 3 bottles and boxes that hold 6. The bottles have their own "separate" compartment, so no chance of bumping into anything else.

The boxes are bulkly, but we pack them in our suitcases when we go and that way the "space" is already reserved. We just have to worry about weight.

We brought back 15 bottles from South Africa this way.

Hi J,

Bubble wrap.

((I))

I use wine skins and have a wine cargo case that I shrink wrap and check. Also If you wrap a piece of cardboard around the base of the bottle it prevents breakage and is cheap.

wineskin: http://www.ftscontent.com/

cargo cases can be found here:

http://tinyurl.com/ys2yjx

The 12 bottle trolley is checkable though you will need to bubblewrap, use wine skin or otherwise secure the bottles. It is not a hard case, but never have had problems with it.

The 6 bottle platinum case also works, though I also secure the bottles a bit to be sure and always shrinkwrap before checking.

You can declare the wine, the form for some reason does not ask how much you have, just the value. I have never paid tax or been asked how much I have.

I recently took six bottles from France in a small case.

I put them each in a ski sock and then in a plastic bag.

I think that if your case is in any way rigid then you should be ok.

You are correct, I was thinking of 'duty-free' purchases. Some places may also ship it for you at a minimum cost.

Shipping wine overseas is never a "minimal cost." Besides weight, you are paying duty, costs associated with any licensing the vendor has to pay to be allowed to ship to the US, etc.

I would only have wine shipped if the price was upwards of $200 euro a bottle and it was an entire case--only then does it pay for itself. One can easily transport their own wine in cargo without breakage.

Bubble wrap, then a plastic bag, and then dirty clothes around that. That system has survived several trips even in a soft-side suitcase.

And don't think that buying wine (or any liquid, for that matter) in the duty-free store will mean that you can carry it on the plane in the US. Unless your destination airport is the same as your port of entry (ATL, JFK, EWR, etc.), you will have the sublime privilege of having to deal with the Totally Stupid Arseholes of the TSA when they tell you that you need to check that bottle of duty-free of 1953 Dom Perignon.

I have carried wine in checked luggage many times without problem, but only if it is not available at home. Method: Each bottle is protected by a piece of laundry (socks are good sleeves) and then a plastic bag. If it is softsided luggage, several layers of clothes between the bottles and the walls, top, bottom, and sides. Case full so bottles can't slide and clink. Allow 3.5 lbs per bottle as weight estimate.

I have used the method that is mentioned above by AJPeabody on six return flights from France. I take along some old socks and put a a bottle in each sock and pack in the middle of the suitcase. I have never had a problem and take 6 bottles home with me every time. I have never had to pay a tax. When I went through customs and they ask if I have anything to declare and I say that I have 6 bottles of wine and nothing was said and I have never paid anything. I think when you have a few hundred people getting of a plane at one time they don't want to take the time to do the paper work for the small amount collected.