Beers available in Virginia and not Texas & packing beers in luggage

I'll be in Virginia in a few weeks and am looking for suggestions for beers to try that I can't get here in Texas. Also maybe the DC area.

Has anyone ever tried packing beer in checked luggage for trip home and, if so, any suggestions for it to arrive safely? I don't think I can have beer shipped to Texas from out of state.

My tastes follow a wide range and I'm always up for trying something different. This won't be an all out beer trip because I'm the only one who will be drinking and I'm also driving [emoji37]. I do, however, want to bring home some beers if I can.

You can check as much beer as you want. 12 oz. bottles fit in a gallon Ziploc like a glove. Baggie em up, wrap in t-shirts, done. Bombers will be more difficult to seal up, but the same principle applies.

And who told you you can't ship your own beer to yourself?

I had good luck placing the bottles in Zip-Loc bags, wrapping them in my clothes and making sure that everything was pretty snug/no wiggling around inside of the luggage. I puposefuly took a hard-sided suitcase.

1977Brewer said:

And who told you you can't ship your own beer to yourself?

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I've just always heard you can't ship alcohol into Texas and you have to order it from some place local. Maybe things have changed in the past several years? I dunno, have you done it and there's no issue? If so, that may be the route I'd take so I can get more volume and variety.

It is a federal violation to ship alcohol via the USPS. FedEx & UPS, it is just against company policy.

Having said that, I have definitely broken laws & policies in the recent past...

Will you be exclusively in the NoVa area? Or other parts of the state as well? I can give recommendations for CoVa (Coastal Virginia aka Hampton Roads).

NoahBeach said:

Will you be exclusively in the NoVa area? Or other parts of the state as well? I can give recommendations for CoVa (Coastal Virginia aka Hampton Roads).

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We'll be all over the costal areas of the state I'm sure. Not too far from Virginia Beach. I'll be taking my munchkin to do some educational stuff that she's really excited about and then some fun, relaxing stuff. I just don't want to miss out on the opportunity to try some new beers and hopefully bring some back for my husband to try since he won't be with us.

Lbm said:

We'll be all over the costal areas of the state I'm sure. Not too far from Virginia Beach. I'll be taking my munchkin to do some educational stuff that she's really excited about and then some fun, relaxing stuff. I just don't want to miss out on the opportunity to try some new beers and hopefully bring some back for my husband to try since he won't be with us.

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Sounds like fun!

Here is a rundown of breweries in my neck of the woods (CoVa). Maybe someone else will chime in about the NoVa area or Central/Western Virginia.

If you don't mind taking the munchkin into some breweries then I highly recommend O'Conners Brewing Company (Norfolk, their Norfolk Canyon Pale Ale is one of my favorite commercial Pales) and Back Bay Brewing Company (Virginia Beach, only a few blocks from the beach actually, also good friend of mine is head brewer).

Reaver Beach Brewing Company (Virginia Beach) is also quite good as is Young Veterans Brewing Company (Virginia Beach), both are right across the street from Taylor Farms and right down the street from Hunt Club Farms, both always have some kid friendly stuff going on.

If you'd rather not go to a brewery or would just like to pick up some bottles for the trip home then I highly recommend Grape and Gourmet (Virginia Beach) as a bottle shop. They have a clearly labeled and well stocked section of local brews from all over Virginia. They also keep an updated tally on what beers they have available on their website, as well as taking reservations for limited release beers through their Facebook page. While you're there keep an eye out for bottles from the breweries mentioned above, as well as breweries from other parts of the state such as Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery (Goochland), Champion Brewing Company (Charlottesville), Devils Backbone Brewing Company (Charlottesville), Hardywood Brewing Company (Richmond), Starr Hill Brewery (Charlottesville). This is definitely an incomplete list, there are many many more excellent breweries in the state, but those are just a few of my favorite.

If you happen to be in Virginia Beach and hungry, take a visit to The Whiskey Kitchen, you'll find the food to be excellent, the atmosphere family friendly, and the craft beer selection (including local selections) to be outstanding.

I know you didn't ask for it but I thought I'd include some Non-beer related stuff to do with kids (in or near CoVa):

Virginia Aquarium (Virginia Beach, near the oceanfront) - Lots of exotic and local species of fish and reptiles, nature trails, aviary, and otters (which my son loves). Great place to take kids (and right down the street from Back Bay Brewing Company).

Children's Museum of Virginia (Portsmouth) - Fun and educational place that my son loves.

First Landing State Park (Virginia Beach) - The park is where English colonists first landed in 1607. Miles and miles of nature trails, beaches, exhibits, etc.

Historic Jamestowne (Jamestown) - Captain John Smith, Pocahontas, we've all know the story, this is where it went down.

Colonial Williamsburg (Williamsburg) - Living history museum, a section of the city is preserved and run as life was in the 1700s. Very fun place for kids and adults alike.

Fort Monroe (Hampton) - Completed in 1834 and named in honor of President James Monroe, Fort Monroe is recognized as the largest stone fort ever built in the United States. Nicknamed "Freedom's Fortress".

Nauticus (Norfolk) - Museum highlighting Virginia's rich maritime history. Also home of the decommissioned USS Wisconsin, one of the largest battleships ever built.

Mt. Trashmore Park (Virginia Beach) - Virginia Beach City Landfill turned into park. Playgrounds, huge hill to climb, kite flying, etc. Good place to visit just to say you've played on a mountain of trash.

A few very cool places outside CoVa:

Monticello (Charlottesville) - Home of Thomas Jefferson. The home/grounds is preserved as a museum. Loads of history here.

Barboursville Ruins - The home of James Barbour (Virginia Governor, US Secretary of War, and US Senator) was designed by his close personal friend Thomas Jefferson. The home burnt to the ground on Christmas Day 1884, but the ruins are preserved as a historical site. This location is also an excellent winery.

Also, as a last note, if getting outdoors for some day hikes is your thing, then check out Hiking Upward, a website run by my wife's uncle. There are several National Forest throughout Virginia and hundreds of places to go on day (or overnight) hikes, lots of them located close to breweries! If this is your thing I recommend Crabtree Falls and/or Humpback Rocks.

Virginia is packed to the brim with history, outdoors, and excellent beer, I really hope you enjoy your visit!

My parents live near DC and last time I went there I went to Bluejacket brewery right in DC. It was hands down the best brewery I've ever been to (out of 50 or so). Every one of their beers was more unique and complex than most of what I'll see at other breweries. Seriously, check out their menu online, totally worth it. I remember seeing it on best bars in America on Esquire network and persuaded my parents to go there instead of some touristy bull$%^& at the Capitol building.....

Also, every time I get to take a business trip (last one was to Columbus OH, they have a whole brewery district) I turn it into a beer pilgrimage and always check my suitcase to bring back beer. Glad my company doesnt know the reason I always have to charge $25 to my company card for baggage is solely due to beer...

I wrap the bottles in socks and shirts and put them in big zip locks just in case. Havent had a soggy suitcase yet.....fingers crossed

Lbm said:

Has anyone ever tried packing beer in checked luggage for trip home and, if so, any suggestions for it to arrive safely? I don't think I can have beer shipped to Texas from out of state.

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I bring home beers in checked luggage all the time. I simply wrap them up with my clothes and ensure there is some cushioning all around them - it works very well. You can also aim to purchase cans which will alleviate the "breakage" issue and lighted the load a bit.

My buddy packed 81 bottles of beer in his luggage about a year ago. When the bag arrived there was a notice that TSA had searched the luggage. Upon opening the luggage he found all of his beer intact with a note from TSA with two words on it: Good Job!

slym2none said:

It is a federal violation to ship alcohol via the USPS. FedEx & UPS, it is just against company policy.

Having said that, I have definitely broken laws & policies in the recent past...

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Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. I mean homebrew competitions gives you specific instructions on mailing in entries. How many of us repeatedly ignore this law?

Wow! This is great info. My daughter is very interested in history, so those things will definitely be on the list. My mom will be with us so probably no hiking or anything overly exerting. I don't know if my mom would be up for a brewery (she doesn't drink, but she won't drive either), but I have no problem taking my daughter. Hell, I took her to a tattoo parlor once when a friend was getting a tattoo!

I'll definitely be checking a bag for myself and one for my daughter. I guess I'll pack some ziplocs, tape, and bubble wrap to take with me....

I'll check out those brewery links when I get home from work and add them to my GPS just in case [emoji3].

Many thanks for the great information. Now I'm getting pretty excited about the trip.

Remember you must check your bag, you can not carry on.

Any thoughts on packing up a box of beers and checking it with baggage? Probably not a good idea? I imagine baggage handling would be too rough.

I took a beercation to Belgium a few months ago, brought half the beers back wrapped in clothes in a rollerboard bag (rigid back, but soft front), and the other half in a bottle-shipping box (came with "bottle-shaped" molded styrofoam to completely immobilize the bottles), all the beers made it back unharmed.

The bottle box is a little pricy unless you're planning on re-using it on future trips (or unless you realize the day before you're leaving that you've got 2x the beers you can fit in your suitcase), but the suitcase worked great, I'd probably do the "bring a smaller suitcase packed in a big suitcase out, and bring 'em both back full of beer" trick if I were to go back.

I've packed beer in my luggage a few times in recent months. I bring a roll of bubble wrap with, wrap the bottle a few times with bubble wrap, tape it, and then put into a ziplock. None have been broken, though TSA has inspected my bag every time. They will unwrap the bottles, sometimes all of them, and do a crap job rewrapping.