BeerBorg

How risky is it to travel by air with beer?

Commercial beer, not necessarily home brew. Bottles and/or cans.

I am assuming that these days, going carry-on is verboten, so it's a matter of checking it. What are the odds of a bottle or can giving way and soaking my luggage?

I'll be traveling later this month and would love to take some brews home with me that I can't get locally. But, I don't want to run afoul of the TSA, nor do I want to create a mess for myself.

What's your experiences with this situation?

None with beer, but I have flown rum home from the Caribbean. No hassle with the airlines, no problem in the luggage. I realize that the bottles are thick, and the liquor un-carbed. But I think you will be fine. Wrap it carefully, they are not gentle with luggage.

I think the beers would survive...

But, I thought I read something about possible legal implications when crossing certain state lines and international borders, so be concerned with that as well as any specific airline policies regarding the transportation of alcohol for consumption.

I have often thought about this and have decided that if I were to want to travel with some, I would most likely ship it ahead of me and not bother with the hassles of trying to get it on and off a plane.

I brought homemade cider & mead on a visit to relatives across the country, which worked fine except for sediment taking a week in their fridge to settle and clarify, to enjoy at the end of the visit. Also commercial brews a few times. In checked luggage, I put the bottles in thick clean socks, then ziplock bags, then wrap in other clothes, and pack in the middle of my suitcase, away from solid objects. Still, I an always glad at baggage claim that my suitcase is not dripping and doesn't smell like the brew. In fact, I have never had any issue.

I've done this without issue. Simply wrap the beers well, check your bags and go.

BigPapaG wrote: But, I thought I read something about possible legal implications when crossing certain state lines and international borders, so be concerned with that as well as any specific airline policies regarding the transportation of alcohol for consumption.

You can definitely run into trouble with some state laws. It's illegal to bring beer in or out of Utah, for example (with a one-time exception for people moving in or out of the state). And if you were connecting through SLC, and got delayed, that could cause the problem. There are other states with restrictions, as well.

I don't know if Utah's laws are the same for wine and beer, or what the enforcement is, but once when I was wine tasting there was a couple from Utah who were filling the trunk of their car with California wine before heading home.

Foothiller wrote:I don't know if Utah's laws are the same for wine and beer, or what the enforcement is, but once when I was wine tasting there was a couple from Utah who were filling the trunk of their car with California wine before heading home.

Any alcoholic beverage. Or at least any over 4% abv (3.2% abw). I'm not sure about weak beer.

If they get caught, it's a class B misdemeanor. But there isn't a border crossing where they search every car. But people get caught pretty regularly bringing things in from Wyoming (fireworks, in addition to booze).

Thanks to all for the advice.
I wound up not bringing any bottles home, but did bring a few cans. I employed Foothiller's method (can -> sock -> ziplock bag -> clothes -> suitcase).
No grief from TSA, no explosions, everything worked great!

I even brought home a can of http://shop.greatfermentations.com/cate ... anic-yeast Imperial Yeast from Great Fermentations (LHBS) using this method -- I put a frozen cold pack in the ziplock with the can, to keep it as cold as possible during the trip. That worked well, too - I pitched the yeast into an IPA 2 days ago and it's cruising along nicely.

Thanks, again!

Great!