Hey All,
I am headed to philly for NHC hopefully this year and I wanted to bring some brew as the friend we are staying with is a new homebrewer and I wanted to share.
What’s the best way to travel with say a case of bottles? will the airlines allow them if they are checked baggage? if I have to ship them it’s only gonna be a couple bottles as that is expensive!
You can check as many as you want, but the extra baggage fees might be as much as shipping them.
I have had good luck covering them with a sock or use one of the styrofoam bottle inserts.
I recently flew to FL for a wedding, and checked 2 cases of homebrew without any issue. Just make sure everything is well packed.
I have flown cross country a couple of times with more than my fair share of homebrew in my checked luggage. I have also flown internationally with purchased brew in checked luggage with no problems. Just make sure you pack it really well so none of the bottles break and make sure to weigh it before you leave for the airport. If it’s overweight they will charge you out the nose for the extra weight. I’ve found that it’s actually cheaper to pay for an extra checked bag than to pay for the overweight charge.
Pack it like you’re going to ship it via fedex.
Having tried pretty much every variation imaginable, I think what I’m going to do from now on is pony up for a case of the 500 mL PET bottles, tape it up well, and ship it as-is. A case of glass is flirting with the weight and size limits once you include all the packing material, and shipping is less expensive anyway.
I have had the check-in people inspect the box of beer before they accepted it, but that was just to make sure it was well packed.
It’s a good reason to reserve with Southwest, if I may say so, since bags fly free.
I do this for my beery Christmas presents that go cross country. Works great!
You can find a scale for weighing your checked bags. You might be surprised how much beer you can fit into a checked bag. Just saying from experience.
I have shoved enough beer into a suitcase that it exceeded the checked bag weight limit. I ended up carrying (or rather my wife carried) a paper bag full of clothes onto the suitcase to get under the limit. I have no shame. I think we brought back like 11 bottles of beer ranging from 12oz to 750ml.
Shoes are the easiest way to transport 12oz bottles in a suitcase, especially athletic/well cushioned shoes. I wear size 12 so I can get 22oz bombers in my shoes. Otherwise, I wrap them in clothes and try to place them in the middle of all the clothes so if the bag gets tossed hard, as they often do, they should be ok. I haven’t had any broken bottles yet. You might want to put them in ziploc bags just in case a bottle breaks. If you just have a couple bottles you should have enough padding to have a very low risk of breakage.
Get yourself a semi and an old Trans Am and you should be set.
We have shipped pallets of beer & gear numerous times from the east coast to the NHC in Denver, Oakland, & San Diego. Perhaps you can find out if there are any clubs out your way that are planning a presence for Club Night or the hospitality room, and shipping their stuff via freight. You could share their pallet with a couple of your cases (or kegs) for a small portion of the freight.
I have also done this. The wife was not happy at all but it worked. I was a little worried that we ended up taking a lot of the clothes and therefore padding out of the suitcase to get it under the weight limit but it worked and luckily nothing broke. That’s why I suggested weighing it before you get to the airport. We had to carry on a paper bag full of clothes and hope for the best with the bottles. Glad I’m not the only one who’s done this though. 
I drive. ;D
On the way to NHC in Cincy we stopped in Lynchburg and Loretto. We hit liquor stores on the way up and back to Texas. We joked that if you saw a blue flame on the Interstate, it was us.
I’ve wrapped up bottles in my checked bag, but there is a limit to that. For a full case I’d consider this.
http://www.mrboxonline.com/bottle-styrofoam-beer-shipper-p-7582.html?osCsid=2a869669b8f3d4ed9e9ac62be274c954
ooooh that is awesome! Thanks for that link.
If you are bringing any 750ml or bombers I have used Jet Bags in my checked luggage. They will absorb 750ml of liquid if it breaks. Really great product and rather cheap. I found them at a wine store.
Google ‘beer shipper’ and you’ll find other options too.