Shipping Homebrew

[BrewItNow3]

Most likely a stupid question but all advice I find while researching how to ship homebrew discusses making sure it doesn't break by including bubble wrap and such. Nothing is mentioned about keeping the beer cold. Is this not important? Let me know thanks.


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[user 30639]

You can include some cold packs if it's that important. I've never worried about keeping it cold.


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[Hello]

It is definitely not important but you probably want to try and mitigate the amount of time it sits on a truck in the dead of summer or winter. Winter can result in bottle bombs, not sure if 100+ temps in a truck can do damage, but I think someone recently mentioned that to me.

If you're going to ship, try to do it so that it is traveling the whole time and avoid it having to sit around on weekends. FedEx and UPS will give you an estimated delivery date. The most being 5 days, I think. So plan accordingly that way.

 

[flippedcracker]

It is definitely not important but you probably want to try and mitigate the amount of time it sits on a truck in the dead of summer or winter. Winter can result in bottle bombs, not sure if 100+ temps in a truck can do damage, but I think someone recently mentioned that to me.

If you're going to ship, try to do it so that it is traveling the whole time and avoid it having to sit around on weekends. FedEx and UPS will give you an estimated delivery date. The most being 5 days, I think. So plan accordingly that way.

I've always correlated bombs with heat, not cold for some reason. I've never shipped beer, but figured if I did, I would include a small cold pack just in case.

 

[Hello]

I've always correlated bombs with heat, not cold for some reason. I've never shipped beer, but figured if I did, I would include a small cold pack just in case.

I can tell you with absolute certainty that freezing temps can create bombs. Not sure about heat because I haven't had the pleasure of finding out the hard way.

 

[jotakah]

Very hot temperatures can increase the gas pressure in the bottles --> bottle bomb
Sub-freezing temperatures can freeze your beer. With nowhere else to go --> glass breaks, once the box is above freezing again it will leak everywhere and out of the box

Also very hot temps (over 90) could cause some funky off flavors from stressed yeast. Unless you don't bottle condition, in which case it probably doesn't matter

ship your beer with UPS or Fedex because it it technically illegal with USPS. Don't worry about temps if the weather's temperate and just bubble wrap the crap out of everything so the bottles clinking together doesn't cause breakage

 

[flippedcracker]

I can tell you with absolute certainty that freezing temps can create bombs. Not sure about heat because I haven't had the pleasure of finding out the hard way.

Oh, I gotcha. I've some of those. Minifridge got turned too cold and I had about 5 of those. Luckily it was contained. I had some bottles conditioning under a built-in bench in a closet that got too hot, and exploded all over the place. that was not fun to clean up. You can still smell old beer when it gets really hot in there.

 

[WayFrae]

I've always correlated bombs with heat, not cold for some reason. I've never shipped beer, but figured if I did, I would include a small cold pack just in case.

It definitely happens with cold. I had a 8 out of 12 blow up in my car when I accidentally left them overnight in winter.

 

[rico567]

I've never shipped it, but we've transported it by air on several occasions, most recently all the way to Italy. Obviously, this has to go in your checked luggage. I use 9" non-returnable longnecks. I wrap each bottle in one layer of bubble wrap, sealed with packing tape. A gallon ziploc bag will hold three bottles, mainly as a seal that would perhaps contain the liquid in the event of a broken bottle. Which I've never experienced.

 

[Cyclman]

Heat increases the oxidation / "ageing" of beer (not in a good way). If it's being shipped for immediate consumption, probably less of an issue. Here's a great article: http://www.professorbeer.com/articles/oxidative_staling_beer.html