Shipping Alaska Beer Home

[maryandmarge]

We are doing a Holland cruise/tour - 8/10 on the Oosterdam from Seward to Vancouver and then 6 days in the Canadian Rockies. We have excursions planned for all ports - but will have time to hit some shops while in each stop. We live in Ohio and my son is big into trying different beers and I thought it would be cool to get some different Alaskan beers to give him as a Christmas present. I would have to buy and have them shipped home. I have too much luggage to worry about packing and getting it home myself. Are there stores that do this? Any help you can give me will be greatly appreciated.

[Ashland]

Is there a "BevMo" in your area...they carry Alaska beers ;)

[sherryf]

Alaskan Brewing Co. beers haven't made it to Ohio yet, but it looks like you could get them in Michigan, according to their availability map. Might be easier than shipping a bunch of heavy bottles and risking breakage.

[slider728]

Shipping beer is pretty regulated.

 

You cannot send alcohol via USPS at all legally.

 

Shipping via UPS and FedEx requires that the item ships from an entity licensed to ship and sell alcohol. People do ship alcohol via private carrier. When asked, I've heard of people stating they are shipping yeast samples for consumption.

 

That being said, to do it legally, you will need to ship it in your luggage or have a company ship it. If you are having a company do it, you might as well just order it from an online company

 

I'm sure everyone will have a different experience, but everytime I've gone to Alaska and brought beer back, TSA has always ended up opening my baggage to inspect it and has never repacked the beer carefully. Several times, they left the bottles right on top and closed the bag. Luckily, I have yet to lose a bottle in my baggage.

[maryandmarge]

Thanks to everyone for their responses.....guess I'll have to find another great Christmas present. We make a trip up to Frankenmuth Michigan every year at Thanksgiving time....maybe I can find a place close to there that carries the Alaska beer. I knew that if this was possible someone one cruise critic would know.....I've gotten so many good ideas over the years just by reading up on places we were heading.....thanks again

[Ashland]

Shipping beer is pretty regulated.

 

You cannot send alcohol via USPS at all legally.

 

Shipping via UPS and FedEx requires that the item ships from an entity licensed to ship and sell alcohol. People do ship alcohol via private carrier. When asked, I've heard of people stating they are shipping yeast samples for consumption.

 

That being said, to do it legally, you will need to ship it in your luggage or have a company ship it. If you are having a company do it, you might as well just order it from an online company

 

I'm sure everyone will have a different experience, but everytime I've gone to Alaska and brought beer back, TSA has always ended up opening my baggage to inspect it and has never repacked the beer carefully. Several times, they left the bottles right on top and closed the bag. Luckily, I have yet to lose a bottle in my baggage.

Just back from an Alaska cruise and some members of my family brought back a few Alaska beers...had them in the "Wine Diapers" aka Jet Bags that they had taken their cruise wine in and had "no" problem at all. Just a method of packing liquid/wine/beer etc. that some may want to consider...you can easily buy them on Amazon.

[donaldsc]

I typed "Alaska Beer Online" into Google. Guess what the very first hit was -

 

"http://www.alaskanbeer.com/faq.html"

 

Read the third FAQ. Google is wonderful.

 

DON

[maryandmarge]

The wine diapers sound like a good idea if I decided to pick up a couple and fit them into my luggage but then I wonder if I would get stopped coming back into the US in customs at Calgary airport. Don't know what the restrictions are - so I think I'll just try and order some after I get home and have them shipped to the house. Someone asked if we have a BevMo in our area but we don't and when I went on line it says they won't ship to Ohio. Thanks everyone for your responses. Happy and safe travels to all....

[camella]

I've used the bubble wrap wine bottles with pretty good success in my luggage. Then I put the bubble wrap wine bottle inside a 2 gallon ziploc just in case. I would think you could call the Alaskan brewery in Juneau and see if they can ship home. Otherwise, I would maybe carry a shipper with you - and let your airline ship it for you :) I buy wine shippers every time I'm in CA and they are styrofoam and hold 12 bottles and they're about $7-10. Hope this helps.

[betty barnacle]

Like others have already said, there a few online stores that can ship the beer for you - but while you are up there maybe consider buying some of the labels to send your son. Alaskan breweries put out some beautiful labels - my brother even had some nicely matted and framed because they were so unique! We grew up in Alaska so there was some nostalgia there, too I guess.....

 

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using Forums mobile app

[maryandmarge]

Thanks for more ideas.....unless something changes I'm going to try and find out where I can purchase in Michigan since we are about 2 hours from the border and if it's somewhere convenient I'll try and pick some up on our yearly trip to Frankenmuth at Thanksgiving....I might also see if I could purchase on line something that he would like.

[slider728]

... I'm going to try and find out where I can purchase in Michigan since we are about 2 hours from the border and if it's somewhere convenient I'll try and pick some up on our yearly trip to Frankenmuth at Thanksgiving.

 

I cannot fault this idea in the slightest. However, Alaskan Brewing usually has some limited releases throughout the year.

 

I have not purchased Alaskan Brewing beer in Michigan, but I have in Minnesota and Wisconsin. I can tell you that in MN and WI, the beers you find by then are a bit hit or miss. A store might be labeled as carrying Alaskan Brewing products, but they seem to usually carry a single variety of 6 pack. The limited edition bottles are much harder to come by.

 

If you are looking for a 6 pack of Amber, then you can probably find that in Michigan. If you are looking for something from their Pilot Series, then I would suggest buying it in Alaska if you see it.

[maryandmarge]

He likes the stout and porter dark beers ..... they always like to pull out a bottle of something different at a party and share as a treat. He's not into any of the light beers...so I'm thinking maybe buy a pack of 3 wine diapers on Amazon to take with me just in case I do find something that I want to bring home. My only question now is .... will I have any issues with it in my suitcase when we get to Canada (Vancouver) and when we leave Canada by way of Calgary airport and are going thru customs. I'd hate to go thru all that trouble and then have them take my beer. If I do this do I have to tell them that it's in my suitcase when we go thru customs? Any input will help.

[martincath]

He likes the stout and porter dark beers ..... they always like to pull out a bottle of something different at a party and share as a treat. He's not into any of the light beers...so I'm thinking maybe buy a pack of 3 wine diapers on Amazon to take with me just in case I do find something that I want to bring home. My only question now is .... will I have any issues with it in my suitcase when we get to Canada (Vancouver) and when we leave Canada by way of Calgary airport and are going thru customs. I'd hate to go thru all that trouble and then have them take my beer. If I do this do I have to tell them that it's in my suitcase when we go thru customs? Any input will help.

You'll have to declare it of course as it's alcohol - no idea if the US allows large volumes of beer to citizens; we can bring a full case each back to Canada, but then we're civilized;-)

 

In your checked luggage is the only way you can bring it on a plane of course with the stringent liquids rules for carryons - arriving at the cruise terminal in Vancouver you could balance it on your head for all they care as long as it's declared on your customs form!

[camella]

http://canadaonline.about.com/od/customs/a/alcoholvisitor.htm

 

according to this you can bring back 24 -12oz bottles of beer so you should be good to go. I just looked at the bubble wrap things and they are called "wine skins". I looked that up and you can get them in Sandusky, OH or Cincinnati, OH - don't know if either is close to you but I imagine you can order them on line as well. They should be fine in those but don't forget the 2 gallon ziplocs just in case you have any leakage!

[maryandmarge]

I looked up these products on Amazon and think I will get 3 of the Wine Diapers $17.97. My friend has free shipping on 2 day delivery so I'll order them and pack them in my suitcase just in case....you never know - they can be used for other things also. These are re-usable where the Wine Skins are one use only. I'm glad you reminded me about the 2 gallon ziploc baggies because I've added them to my grocery list. That's a great idea and they don't weigh anything to put a handful in your suitcase. I'm trying to fit all my things in one big suitcase to check on the way there and put an extra lightweight bag in my carry on (which is at the max size for a carry on with United). On the way home I'll switch this over to a second checked bag which will leave me room for anything I would purchase on this trip including the beer. But it's hard deciding what not to take when we are going to be gone 14 days.....Too bad the Oosterdam doesn't have self serve laundry. Thanks for everyone's imput.....

[Assateague Island Princes]

While the Oosterdam doesn't have self-serve laundry, HAL DOES offer the Unlimited Laundry package, which is the best bargain on the ship! For a 7 day cruise to AK, the cost is $49.00 per cabin (not per person). You send out as many bags as you'd like each day and it is returned in 24 hours (sometimes even sooner!) pressed and hung on hangers, with delicates folded between sheets of tissue paper in a wicker basket. Truly a wonderful option, and a great value - allows you to pack just 3 or 4 days worth of clothing, and wow, is it nice to come home w/clean clothes in your suitcase! I've used this Unlimited Laundry Service on 5 HAL cruises, including three 14 day Alaska cruises, and it was perfect!

[maryandmarge]

Good to know about the $49 unlimited laundry...it sure would help if I had mostly clean clothes when we got off the ship before we headed into our 6 day tour of the Canadian Rockies. This should make packing a lot easier. I was going to buy 2 gallon ziploc baggies to take along in my suitcase just in case I decided to buy beer. I checked on Amazon and read a few of the reviews and someone had mentioned buying them at Walmart so today I stopped at Walmart and I'm glad I did. I got 12 Hefty bags in a box that are 2 1/2 gallon and it only cost me $2.78. I figured that was a good deal since I can use this for other packing items. So I'll get 3 wine diapers and if I do buy beer to bring home - I can protect them in the wine diaper and double protect by putting it also in a ziploc baggie. I would recommend to anyone packing to pick up some of these big baggies.....they have so many uses.... Happy a safe travel to everyone.....Only 6 weeks until we leave...

[maryandmarge]

This is just an updated followup to anyone thinking of bringing beer home from their trip. I bought the wine diapers ($17 for 3 re-usable ones) on Amazon before I left home and also went to Walmart and bought a 12 pack of Hefty 2 1/2 gallon ziploc baggies ($2.78). We were able to board the ship Oosterdam as soon as they allowed people on ship - it took us 10 minutes most from check in to being on the ship....so we grabbed a quick lunch on the Lido and then went back on shore and boarded the free bus that takes you around Seward. We rode thru the whole town to see where we might want to get off and finally got off in the middle of the town and went to some of the stores. We walked over to the Safeway store and bought 3 20oz diet pop to put in our refrigerator on the ship...at the same time we went into Safeway's liquor store and I bought 2 bottles of dark Alaskan brand beer (22oz each). When we got back on the ship I passed them to the security guy to hold on to until the last night when they deliver it back to your room. During the week they had Lumberjack night at the Lido Buffet and there I bought a bottle of warm unopened Alaskan Brewery Hydrothermia beer. When I packed them in my suitcase - first in the padded wine diapers and then just for safe measures I put each one in the oversized ziplock baggies. So in the end I brought home 3 beers to surprise my son for Christmas and had no issues with doing this. I can't wait to see his face when he opens the present....he has no idea.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Glad you were able to get some beer home for your son for Christmas and that nothing happened.

Hope he isn't a member here reading this. :D

[Ashland]

This is just an updated followup to anyone thinking of bringing beer home from their trip. I bought the wine diapers ($17 for 3 re-usable ones) on Amazon before I left home and also went to Walmart and bought a 12 pack of Hefty 2 1/2 gallon ziploc baggies ($2.78). We were able to board the ship Oosterdam as soon as they allowed people on ship - it took us 10 minutes most from check in to being on the ship....so we grabbed a quick lunch on the Lido and then went back on shore and boarded the free bus that takes you around Seward. We rode thru the whole town to see where we might want to get off and finally got off in the middle of the town and went to some of the stores. We walked over to the Safeway store and bought 3 20oz diet pop to put in our refrigerator on the ship...at the same time we went into Safeway's liquor store and I bought 2 bottles of dark Alaskan brand beer (22oz each). When we got back on the ship I passed them to the security guy to hold on to until the last night when they deliver it back to your room. During the week they had Lumberjack night at the Lido Buffet and there I bought a bottle of warm unopened Alaskan Brewery Hydrothermia beer. When I packed them in my suitcase - first in the padded wine diapers and then just for safe measures I put each one in the oversized ziplock baggies. So in the end I brought home 3 beers to surprise my son for Christmas and had no issues with doing this. I can't wait to see his face when he opens the present....he has no idea.

I'm so glad it worked out well for you and am happy I suggested the Wine Diapers to you...Merry Xmas to your son :D

[maryandmarge]

Thanks Ashland - that's what makes cruise critic such a great website with everyone's input and great resources......

[PNW Traveler]

Re the OP's original question:

There is a chain of stores named "Total Wine" that also has a very good department of craft beers and microbrews. It far surpasses the selection in supermarkets and most other beverage stores. You might Google the store locations for this chain.

Several years ago, before the popularity of craft beers, I was traveling for business in Alaska and brought home Alaskan Amber bottles packed in my checked luggage. I won't do that again! When I returned home I found the beer in a local beverage store.