Liquor over the Net?

The problem is not in arranging the sale over the net, the problem is in transporting the merchandise from one location to another; that indeed may be illegal depending on the locations involved.

It depends on where you live. I most US states it is legal, but not all.

I live in WA state and buy online regularly.

Hope this helps.

Jim

Just wondering? As other have said, it is legal in some states, in others it is not. However, some distributors will sell and ship to you regardless of what state you live in, placing the legal burdon on you. The states that I know of that apparently allow this are New York and New Jersey. (NY) offers an extensive selection of single malt, and ships in bullet-proof contaniers...uh, of course I wouldn't know this first hand, as I write from Utah. Utah, where church meets state.

John

As for the US... transport of alcohol by the postal service (USPS) is prohibited, regardless of the ABC regulations in place at the sender or recipient. This is USPS regulation (if you really want the citation, I'll provide it). This regulation does NOT apply to private courier, such as FedEx, UPS, Airborne, etc. Each of these couriers may have their own restrictions. Further, the ABC (alcohol beverage commission) regulations in the sender and recipient jurisdiction may have bearing. Sending alcohol across country lines presents a completely different set of regulations that usually involve Customs, Duty, and other laws. It's a crap shoot.

I do not recommend that one lie to any government authority. For US domestic delivery via courier, send it by private courier and have it listed as gourmet cooking products. You should be fine. For international delivery, you're going to take a gamble. Some have fabulous luck, some don't. FWIW, I have had exceptional luck with domestic delivery. I have even had one of the packages destroyed in transit and UPS paid in full on the insurance claim. (It was a bottle of very nice Calvados I was sending to a friend.)

In general, you'll be fine using UPS or the like for domestic delivery. For international, you have to choose between to scenarios: Use regular post and lie about the contents to avoid paying Customs and Duty or use a private courier who will charge a lot and make you pay Customs and Duty through truthful declaration, but tell you up front whether they can legally deliver.

I've sent and received, commercial Scotch, and other spirits all over the world and US. I've also sent and received, ahem, non commercial distillates such as Suisse Blue Absinthe from small Swiss farms. In over twenty years, excepting breakage, I've lost exactly two bottles. Side note: I always give a generous present each year to my USPS, UPS, FedEx, and Airborne delivery persons!

Excellent post! I saved a copy for future reference. Good to hear from someone who has some experience with what many of us have (at least idly) considered.

Bart

One other thing to keep in mind are the federal regulations governing the transport of spirits on commercial aircraft. I had a small scare while I was bringing whiskey back from Nashville in November. The TSA manager didn't know the regulations, so I made sure to have a copy with me on my trip to Washington DC later that month.

According to the FAA, alcohol limitations are as follows:

- Unlimited volumes for any spirits up to 24% a.b.v.

- Five liters (1.3gal) for any spirits between 24% and 70% a.b.v.

- No spirits above 70% a.b.v.

This limitation is for all luggage. In other words you can't carry on five liters and check another five.

If you plan on travelling for alcohol and could potentially hit that five liter limit, print out a copy of the following CFR:

And highlight the subsection (a.17) dealing with the transport of alcohol. The TSA manager in Nashville thought the limit was one gallon. Had I been over that gallon but under the 1.3 gallon limit in Nashville, the TSA could have refused to allow me on the plane. Unjustly, but I didn't know that at the time.

Regardless of the actual regulations in effect, the TSA manager actually has quite a bit of discretion in interpreting what he/she believes to be a threat to safety. You may, ultimately prevail with fact, but the TSA manager can make your life miserable with delay and inconvenience should you decide to show him/her that you know more about the rules than they do. Best to always err on the side of caution, eh?

Agreed - there are polite and impolite ways to make sure that the person you are dealing with is aware of the letter of the rules. If someone were to show up with the pure intention of causing a stir they will get precisely what they came for.

For me, I was carrying almost $200 in alcohol both times. I wasn't about to dump one of those bottles in the amnesty box because of a misunderstanding about FAA regulations. Drop some toenail clippers there? Sure. A 750ml bottle of Auchentoshan? No thank you.

And what happens if the authorities find out it's liquor and the legal burden is placed on you? Is it just returned to the sender or what?

I thought there might be some super store on the net like amazon.com that sold all the fancy scotch drinks.

May depend; I'm in Canada. A good friend in California once sent me a gourmet care package... I received a box of goodies - complete with a note that the 2 fine bottles of alcohol that had originated in the box had been poured down a drain at the customs station as it is illegal to send booze across the border...

Aaaargh! They lied. They drank it!

Last year I tried to buy a bottle of Rare Malt from Chicago and found they could not ship to me in Indiana. So I read this thread with some interest. I was prompted to do a little research on the net and found a couple of good links at Got Mead:

Interstate and Intrastate trasportation in the US is extreamly complex. By the way, there exists certain "dry" couties in the US that still prohibit even the possession of alcohol -- making transportation even more difficult.

I was furthermore surprised by recent legislation that prohibits even "Beer of the Month" participation via common carriers. Indiana feels that the "Over 21 signature required" policy is not adequate.

Oh yes, here's a link to the UPS web site that indicates no spirits, only about 11 or so States for wine and no interstate transportation of beer.

Wow. Where in Canada are you? What they did is illegal and if it happens again I'd file a formal complaint with Customs. Proper procedure is to send you a letter notifying you that they are holding 2 fine bottles of alcohol and that you have the choice of calling them and arranging to have it sent back. If you choose not to, then they are to forward it to Canada Post's Disposal Unit and they will after a 2 month period, pour it down the drain -- but it is certainly not up to Customs to do that. FYI.

Johanna

Did you know that it is not legal in WA state? Proper procedure for bringing alcohol into WA state is to fill out an application and pay a state tax. But, the state is very lax in enforcement. And I know of at least three mail order stores that ship to WA without question. At border crossings from Canada that I have used, even the Feds do not routinely look at alcohol that I declare. And there is no state representative present, so there is no hassle.

Regards, jimbo

news:...

It's even worse in Mississippi; ALL wine and liquor sold in the state is sold BY the state, thru the state Alcoholic Beverage Commission. The liquor stores buy all of their stock from the state, for a fat profit, and no online sales are allowed. (sucks, huh?) I'm tempted to drive west for 30 minutes, and buy my bottles in Slidell, La. just to circumvent the system. In fact, I'm thinking there may be some good buys in La...did you know a bottle of the Macallan costs $50 in Mississippi? I'm having to delay buying some until March, so I can use my birthday as an excuse!

CW