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No more carry-on bottles

I'm sure some of us have heard the stories about expensive bottles of wine being tossed recently at TSA checkpoints. Wednesday's Seattle Times article by Paul Gregutt included a photo of a wastebasket full of Napa wines that passengers had intended to carry on.

That got me to thinking about my trips to Mexico, and the bottles of high end tequila I bring back. Naturally, I carry them on, and unnaturally, I can't do that anymore. My plan last year was to bring back a case, but I settled for four bottles. Nobody at Customs said a word, since the Feds allow at least 60 liters for "personal use" if you travel by commercial airplane or steamship. (Yep, I researched that heavily, and got confirmation from a U.S. Customs agent.)

I called Alaska Airlines today to get their take on the new regs. For starters, they told me they have a limit of five liters of alcohol per passenge , "because alcohol is flammable." Okay, I get that tequila is 40%, and that could be considered flammable. But have you ever tried to light a glass of cabernet or pinot grigio? And what if

300 passengers all check in with five liters apiece? That's a lot of "flammable" in the hold.

If we have to put our liquor in checked baggage from now on, it's going to be problematic on a number of levels. First off, have you ever tried to find a styrofoam shipper in Mexico, or anywhere outside a wine specialty shop? Not an easy thing to do. How about a five liter shipper for bottles of irregular size?

What about the limit of two checked bags per passenger? Or the weight of a fully loaded 12-bottle shipper (assuming some airlines will allow it)? If it's over 50 lbs you get surcharged. Sometimes there are surcharges for oversized boxes.

Okay, big can of worms here. Gregutt recommends investing in a wine 'suitcase' made to safely transport bottles. "Some even have roller wheels that fold up, and can be checked as baggage," he says. He has a 6-bottle version with velcro insides so it can be adjusted to accommodate any sort of bottle.

Of course, that doesn't begin to address temperature and humidity issues in transit.

Anybody other ideas out there? Anyone else checked with other airlines?

Cheers,

Jef

Reply to
jj
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What I've done in the past (from California) is put the wines in a 12 bottle case (the cardboard boxes that wines come in), padded with newspaper, and put that box in another, bigger box, also padded with newspaper or styrofoam peanuts. It's sometimes hard to get such a box and I have to make it by putting several smaller ones together with packing tape.

It's a big box (allowing the two inches of padding all around) but not too big for the airlines. When I claim my baggage, I open the bigger box and toss out all the packing material, taking home the smaller case with the wine.

However, I'm getting tired of having the terrorists being the only ones that can bring stuff on a plane. I may in the future simply opt to have it shipped. Maybe I can send the bill to the White House.

Jose

Reply to
Jose

[SNIP]

What I used to do (pre-9/11) was check 2 empty styro-shippers with web bands, as "checked" luggage, fill these with wines from CA (usually), and then check them for return trip. Never a problem. However until recently, I stopped doing this. Besides the potential for problems with checking 'em, I hated the rental car return at SFO and getting my cases to the terminal. Also, on my last two flights, I had to check them inside, and shove them along, as the line moved.

Now, there are many more considerations. No more Port from Duty-Free at LHR - bummer. It will be interesting to see how it all shakes out. As I have three major trips in the next few months, I'm checking the TSA site, UAL and BA's sites, and all of the travel NG's. Who knows?

In the meantime, I can always drive to the meetings in SF (full day from PHX) and bring back a truck-load of styro-shippers full. Sometimes, I have to drop wife off at airport, as there's just too little room for her!

Hunt

Reply to
Hunt

Something to keep in mind for trips to NoCal is that unlabeled wine shippers can usually be sent by UPS or FedEx with a wink and a nod. ("Glassware?" "Yes. Very fragile") I've done this on multiple occasions when carrying on a plane was impractical. Now, this won't help for those international trips, but oh well...

Mark Lipton

Reply to
Mark Lipton

Some people, especially in other countries, need to know that you can not ship liquids of any kind, except for very small containers of a few things, by the US Postal Service. This has been the policy since at least the early 1900s. In fact several things have become restricted for any kind of air service since 9/11. I do not think these new restrictions include wine. However, I just ordered some tiny lithium batteries used for backup in electronic devices. I specified the cheapest service for fast delivery, which was USPS priority mail(uses air). I received an email from the supplier that the batteries, because of restrictions, could not be sent by air and that they would have to be sent by ground service.

Reply to
cwdjrxyz

I brought back some Bacardi Rum from Puerto Rico... just made sure to have some bubble wrap with me... I wrapped the bottles first, then packed them between layers of clothing. Had no problems.

Your mileage may vary, though... ;-)

Reply to
DWACON

I typicaly use a wine safe or check 1-2 of the empty styro cases and then check as luggage.

Secondly I use curbside check in to avoid have to carry at airport. At SFO and PDX in states easy to use curbside.

Just returned from both after a two week trip. Not really a problem.

Mark Lipton mentioned shipping via UPS / Fed Ex without their knowledge. I have done same but if you are caught depending upon state you are in it could be criminal. Fine min of $25000 in my state.

Amazing you can buy guns but not ship wines,

Reply to
Richard Neidich

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