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Getting British beer to the US

Applespider

Applespider

macrumors G4
Original poster
In the days before liquids were limited to 100ml containers, I used to bring out 4-6 bottles of proper British beer to friends in the US when I came to stay. I'm coming out to California in a few weeks and would like to be able to enjoy our convivial beer-tasting evenings.

I'm not convinced I want to put it in my luggage since although I know the hold is pressurised, I'm sure it would make a mess if there was a problem. There's also that inconvenient 1l of alcohol rule and since I'm travelling on my own, that's harder than usual. 🙄

So can anyone recommend any online retailers (US preferably) who would deliver UK beer to California? I found the 1-800-beerclub who do a British case of the month. Anyone used them or have any other retailers or ideas?
 
I'm sure that you could buy certain british imported beer in the states, except you probably could only get a very limited selection.

I do know they sell guiness hear in Canada, but i'm not sure about anything else that may be imported from Britain.
 
ebouwman said:
I'm sure that you could buy certain british imported beer in the states, except you probably could only get a very limited selection.

I do know they sell guiness hear in Canada, but i'm not sure about anything else that may be imported from Britain.
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ermm Guinness is Irish not British.
 
Fearless Leader said:
could you not just ship them?
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Probably although I seem to recall there were lots of weird Prohibition-era rules about which carriers can deliver alcohol when I googled it. And the weight and customs duty issues might just make it prohibitive.

The beer of the month club is 36 bottles for $120 (£60) over 3 months. I'm not entirely sure I could buy and ship bottles for less than that.
 
You can find some variety depending on where you look....I think it comes down to being in a city and knowing the right shops. The Liverpool FC fanatic down the hall from me last year at college always managed to have a good stock of Carlsberg on match days, and I saw some Carling around at one point or another.
 
My drinking friends swear by BevMo and Trader Joe's. I don't know exactly which import brands they stock, so I'm not sure if they have what you are looking for.

I'm not sure about BevMo, but I'm pretty sure TJ's doesn't ship. That said, they're all over Cali, so chances are good there will be one near where you are chillaxin'.
 
TheAnswer said:
My drinking friends swear by BevMo
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That's one impressive site... and there's a branch in the town I'm staying in so makes it easier to stock up. That might just be the answer! Sadly they don't have my favourite that I hoped to take out but sure I can make up a reasonable selection! Thanks
 
Applespider said:
That's one impressive site... and there's a branch in the town I'm staying in so makes it easier to stock up. That might just be the answer! Sadly they don't have my favourite that I hoped to take out but sure I can make up a reasonable selection! Thanks
Click to expand...

I don't know how the individual locations go as far as stocking all the labels offered on the site, so you might that location ahead of time just to make sure the regularly stock the one's that look interesting to you (and that way, if they don't stock it, maybe they could order some in for you).
 
Fearless Leader said:
could you not just ship them?
Click to expand...

How would this allow Applespider to avoid the pressure problem she was afraid of? I guess shipping is better because if it explodes, it won't explode in her bag, but it's probably expensive.


What type of British beer are you looking to ship? Is it common like beers like Boddingtons, John Smiths, Kilkenny, Guinness?
 
TheAnswer said:
I don't know how the individual locations go as far as stocking all the labels offered on the site,
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They do deliver so I could just order and get it delivered and then top up when there.

Abstract said:
What type of British beer are you looking to ship? Is it common like beers like Boddingtons, John Smiths, Kilkenny, Guinness?
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adk said:
Just curious, but what do you consider to be a proper british beer?
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Nope, it's the more interesting smaller breweries - Harviestoun (their Bitter & Twisted is lovely), Wychwood or those that make more ales than lagers.
 
Applespider said:
In the days before liquids were limited to 100ml containers, I used to bring out 4-6 bottles of proper British beer to friends in the US when I came to stay. I'm coming out to California in a few weeks and would like to be able to enjoy our convivial beer-tasting evenings.

I'm not convinced I want to put it in my luggage since although I know the hold is pressurised, I'm sure it would make a mess if there was a problem. There's also that inconvenient 1l of alcohol rule and since I'm travelling on my own, that's harder than usual. 🙄

So can anyone recommend any online retailers (US preferably) who would deliver UK beer to California? I found the 1-800-beerclub who do a British case of the month. Anyone used them or have any other retailers or ideas?
Click to expand...

There should be a liquor store that will carry British beer. The liquor store near my condo carries "Old Speckled Hen," for example. And the one a few miles away carries "Abbott Ale," and a couple other UK ales that elude me right now. Your best bet is to pack a second suitcase or a third suitcase if you're worried about loss of pressurization. That way you can have the beer you want--and drink it, too.
 
Some of the American Micro Breweries actually produce very good bottle conditioned (top fermented) beers. They do take a bit of searching out, but some are surprisingly good.
 
Sly said:
Some of the American Micro Breweries actually produce very good bottle conditioned (top fermented) beers. They do take a bit of searching out, but some are surprisingly good.
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There's a lot of decent American beer and I'll have a lot of fun drinking that while I'm out there. I just like to take some nice UK beers out to my beer drinking pals that they might not usually get.
 
Go ahead and pack them in your luggage, preferably in a second bag. Last time I came home from England, I had 18 bottles of various British beers in my luggage. Only one ended up breaking. There was no damage except for the terrible loss of all that delicious British nectar.

There are lots of wonderful imported beers available here in the US, but alas, a proper bitter is near impossible to find.
 
OutThere said:
You don't know icky fizzy yellow water until you've had Keystone Light. ~$11 for 30. Ewwwww.
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oh there is even worse than keystone. PBR or Old Style come to mind...

but AS, i'd guess that if the one place doesn't work out (i'd call to make sure its do-able), shipping it over would probably relatively easy so long as you get the right carrier and such.
 
Applespider said:
That's one impressive site... and there's a branch in the town I'm staying in so makes it easier to stock up. That might just be the answer! Sadly they don't have my favourite that I hoped to take out but sure I can make up a reasonable selection! Thanks
Click to expand...

Yes, BevMo is probably your best bet in California. They do have quite a few smaller British beers, although the selection for individual bottles varies somewhat depending on what's in stock. I don't know if the website's selection is more comprehensive. They opened one in the city I live in a couple years ago, so I go there way too often now.
 
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