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Have travel restrictions changed your wine-buying habits?

Have TSA restrictions changed the way you buy wine when you're visiting another wine region?

According to a survey by BottleWise, a company that makes wine carriers, many wine travelers have significantly changed the way they handle wine purchases. Here are the results of a survey conducted last month by BottleWise:

-- 41.2% wrap bottles in clothes or bubble wrap and check them in their luggage.

-- 24.4% no longer buy bottles of wine when traveling.

-- 18.1% ask the winery to ship the wine home.

-- 10.4% never travel with wine anyways.

Typically, when I travel to California, I've almost always shipped wine home, even before the TSA began restricting liquid in carry-ons. This was a matter of convenience, as I didn't want to deal with the bottles in my luggage. If I bought just one or two bottles (a rarity), then I would put them in my carry-on. Anymore, I don't bother.

Where the TSA rules have affected me more is taking wine from home to my destination. If I'm flying to a wine competition, I'll try to bring two or three bottles of wine to share at dinner or have as a gift. With the travel restrictions, I don't.

Last year, I decided to drive to a competition in Northern California rather than fly. There were several reasons: I wanted to bring home a fair bit of wine; I wanted to make some stops at wineries in Southern Oregon; and I visited my aunt in California. Most of all, though, was to avoid the hassle of air travel. With the state of the airlines these days, more of us will take a look at whether we want to fly anymore if we can simply drive someplace in less than 12 hours. Of course, then there's the cost of gas. ...

By aperdue at Apr 20 2008 - 6:52am | regulations | touring tips | aperdue's blog | 1723 reads

After all the greek island

After all the greek island cruises i have been on and the home made wines i tasted on the islands there was no way i wasn't coming home with as much as i could so i packed bottles anywhere they fit declared them and was on my merry way back at JFK with out any problems. One year though the food i brought back just didn't make it through i did declare it and had my bags checked by USDA

By mikese at Thu, 04/02/2009 - 11:23am | login or register to post comments

driving vs. flying

Last year we went to Napa and Sonoma for our honeymoon. It was a last minute change of plans (literally on the phone with the airline most of the day before the wedding) due to Hurricane Dean. It was a great trip. We're going back this year and we plan to drive. I figure either way we lose a day to transportation and the gas might be less than two plane tickets. But it's certainly less than two plane tickets, a week of rental car, and the hassle of checking a case or two of wine on the way home. The airline did fine with our case last year, we bought a nice sturdy shipping box in Napa at the UPS store. But, I can do without the worry from the time I give it to the airline folks until it comes out of the chute at home. It's a good thing we can pack light, most of the space in the car is going to the cooler and that shipper.

By irisphnx at Mon, 04/21/2008 - 6:25am | login or register to post comments

Flying vs. Driving

Easy decision for me...I dont fly. I have a Toyota that gets great gas mileage. We took the pickup, which does not get good gas mileage on a trip to Napa, and even with high gas prices I would still drive. If nothing else, it isnt worth the hassle the airlines put you through now.

We take a "wine box" and a cooler to transport our wine home from the tri-cities and Walla Walla.

By cjmath at Sun, 04/20/2008 - 12:07pm | login or register to post comments

flying versus driving

Easy decision for me, too! We always fly on our wine trips. In the last few years, we have made three trips to Sonoma/Napa and one to Santa Barbara county, as well as our many driving trips to Walla Walla and the Columbia Valley. Bringing back wine is a pain in the @ss when you fly!!!!! We used to carry-on cases, but once the liquid bans took effect, we shipped the wines back. It was a total pain in the @ss to find a shipper in Santa Barbara county (finally found a UPS store in Solvang that shipped us two cases of wine via a third party shipper, and it took over a month to get our wine here. Who knows where it was stored.....). Since we have made friends at wineries in those areas, we have our wine shipped from a particular Russian River Valley winery, even though the cases are mixed from several different wineries. It is certainly getting harder to have fun!!! On a side note, our time is limited, so spending two or three days driving, from the Spokane area, completely defeats the purpose of our vacation since half of our time would be spent on the road. Another side note..... it cost us $160 (yes, that is right...) to ship 2 cases back from Solvang!

By timinspokane at Sun, 04/20/2008 - 6:28pm | login or register to post comments

Paso

Hey Tim,
Do you ever go to the Paso Robles area? What are some of your favorites? We may be going down later this summer.

By alanjpatrick at Thu, 06/04/2009 - 7:16am | login or register to post comments

Paso Robles

Hey Alan!

We haven't toured much in the Paso Robles area, but we have been to a few places there when we drove up for a private tasting with the winemaker at Kalawashaq Cellars (Tara Gomez). We were down in the Santa Barbara County area and, through an interesting turn of events, ended up on a cell phone with Tara, who was a friend of our server at the Kalawashaq Resort and Casino... long story! Anywhoooo... There are a lot of wineries in that area, especially when you consider that within a 100 mile stretch or so, you have the whole Santa Barbara/Sta Rita Hills etc pinot area (which, in my humble opinion, produces better Rhone varietals than pinot noir...), the Edna Valley, and the Paso Robles area. If you can get in, Kalawashaq is very cool. I can get you Tara's number if you want to stop in. She is happy to meet people since her day job (at J. Lohr Wine Estates, just down the street) is close to there. Her wines are typically massive and ripe in that Paso Robles style, but they manage to have the acidity to hold it together. Killer barbeque wines! Their cab sav and syrah are monsters, the zin is a bit port-like but good, and a petit verdot blend called "Unity" is a big boy that will cellar for 10+ years. If you venture a little further south towards Solvang, Los Olivos, etc, let me know and I will give you the names of some great places to visit, and possibly a few to avoid. For me, that was a more fun area to tour, but to be fair, we did spend more time there, so I know it better.

Have fun!!!

Cheers!
Tim

By timinspokane at Thu, 06/04/2009 - 3:43pm | login or register to post comments

Kalawashaq

Tim,
Thanks for the info, those wines sound pretty good. Not sure if we will make it that far South, but I'll contact you if we need those numbers. I'll try to come back with a full report, especially if we get some of that Eberle "Up Shiraz."
Thanks again!

By alanjpatrick at Fri, 06/05/2009 - 12:20pm | login or register to post comments

Kalawashaq

Hey Alan! I am not sure if I understood you correctly about getting "that far south". Kalawashaq is right outside (due east, right off of a main highway) Paso Robles. If you are around the Paso Robles area, you will be very close! Also, there is a second winery that shares space with Kalawashaq. I don't remember their name, but their labels have a dancing skeleton on them and look like something from the Grateful Dead! Pretty good stuff, too. Again, J. Lohr is right down the street, and they are a fun place to try. Everyone knows their grocery store stuff, but like many large wineries, they have some killer reserve wines that are only available at the winery. And, their hundreds (maybe thousands!) of acres of grapes that surround their facility are very cool to admire.

Whatever you do, and wherever you go, have fun!!

Cheers!
Tim

By timinspokane at Fri, 06/05/2009 - 2:48pm | login or register to post comments

Paso

Alan,

Eberle is a don't-miss winery in Paso Robles.

Andy

By aperdue at Thu, 06/04/2009 - 10:36am | login or register to post comments

Paso

Thanks Andy,
I just checked out their website, prices look pretty reasonable too.

By alanjpatrick at Thu, 06/04/2009 - 10:40am | login or register to post comments

Eberle

Eberle's most "famous" wine was called Up Shiraz. Took three or four tries to get it through the TTB.

Not sure they still make it or if it's generally available (I think it was a wine club wine back in the day).

By aperdue at Thu, 06/04/2009 - 4:20pm | login or register to post comments

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