You do not have to be a wine connoisseur to appreciate French wine (note the big smiles on our clients above)!  Whether you are visiting wine estates on your trip to France or not, we highly recommend you make the most of your opportunity to taste French wines.  A number of our clients have asked us for advice regarding buying wine and specifically, finding the best way to bring it home to the United States. To our wonderful clients who happen to live outside of the U.S., check out our suggestions on buying wine (they apply to all!). To purchase wine in France you have three options: Did you love a bottle of wine so much that you want to take it home? Or better yet buy a whole case? The simplest way (and likely the cheapest way) to bring wine home with you from France is to literally bring it with you. US Customs allow one liter per person to enter duty free; after that you may have to pay duty (about $1-3 per gallon).  We say “may” because often we hear stories of travelers not having to pay duty on their wine.

There is no federal limit to how much wine one person can import but bringing too much can raise suspicions that you are using it for commercial purposes (a federal permit is needed to import alcohol for commercial – or resale- purposes). best new world wine regionsThe general rule of thumb is that one case or less per person can be considered “personal” but there have been travelers who have gotten away with more.  buy wine on tapYour wine will be assessed at your port of entry, where it will be decided if it is subject to duty and Federal excise taxes.  good wine shop londonThere are 329 US ports of entry; red wine dry scaleto find yours, check an online listing.best white wine with salmon

Before traveling with wine, make sure you check with your airline on their regulations regarding wine travel, as some airlines are very strict.  best red wine with cake The difficulty with regards to bringing wine into the US lies in the power of state laws. best red wines italianWe highly recommend you familiarize yourself with your own state’s regulations. best wine stores massachusettsUsually, state regulations apply to residents of a state, but it’s possible for regulations to change. best red wine parkerWe recommend double checking the regulations of your port of entry while you are at it. If you don’t want to carry your wine with you, about half of all US states allow you to ship it to your home. 

There are a number of specifications necessary for your shipment. It must be labeled as wine and you must have the correct customs documentation. FedEx, for example, provides this shipment service, but only from properly licensed sellers.  Most vineyards and wine estates will not ship directly to your home in the US, but many do ship to businesses in the US. If you love a wine you try at an estate, do not hesitate to ask if they ship to any businesses in your state– you might be surprised to find out you can purchase it near home! If you want to ship wine home, our recommendation is to purchase from a wine merchant.  Most wine merchants will ship to the US for you and they are familiar with the process. That being said, their abilities to ship to your home depend entirely on the regulations of your state. US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will enforce the regulations of the state in which your wine first enters the US (the wine’s port of entry) unless you specify to your shipper that you want your goods sent “in bond” through the port of arrival to a port in your state of residence (assuming these are two different states).

Then, CBP will enforce the rules of the state to which your goods have been sent “in bond” rather than the rules of the state where they first arrived. This is important if you are abiding by your own state’s regulations. The process of shipping wine can save you the trouble of traveling with and carrying wine but it could take a month or more to be delivered. If you choose this method, you will not have to pay VAT (French Consumption tax, 20%) on your wine but you are subject to US taxes and duty the US CBP deems appropriate upon arrival (usually quite low compared to value of the wine). To give you an example of shipping cost, Badie Vins et Spiritueux in Bordeaux estimates that shipping 12 bottles of wine to the US costs around 266 euros. Overall, carrying your wine with you is likely the least expensive solution to bringing wine home. But of course if you don’t want to actually have to carry the wine with you while traveling or flying, shipping can be worth the cost. 

No matter which method you choose, it is key to look up the regulations of your state. Enjoy the wine, enjoy the travel, and cheers from Cyclomundo! Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,The organic wine company is a family company started by Veronique Raskin in San Francisco thirty years ago.  Véronique is a French native, born and raised by generations of physicians and land-owners in the Languedoc region, in southern France. Veronique was always passionate about the study and practice of health and well- being. When her 75-year-old grandfather, Professor of Medicine Pierre Fabre, started pioneering organic viticulture in the South of France, she decided to do the same here in California. We began importing organically grown wines, starting with the wines carefully made on our family property, Château Bousquette. We quickly expanded and added the wines of like-minded friends and neighbors. In 1980, the public was becoming more and more aware and concerned with the impact of pesticides and chemical fertilizers upon their health and they began to seek out organically grown produce. 

We were sure they would move their attention from eating organic to drinking organic as well. We continue to be totally dedicated to selecting and bringing directly to your table our “vins biologiques,” unique wines which are not only grown safely, in accordance with the hippocratic oath (to do no harm), but are also delightful to drink. We carry a whole range of these wines for all tastes and to accompany all styles of food and life celebrations. To order, click here. We thank you for your support of our intention and your trust in us. We hope we have earned that trust over the last 30 years. Please contact us via email or phone, we are very happy to connect with you directly, answer your questions, and help you find the wines that will best match your desires. We also offer an affiliate program and we would love it if you’d join to help us spread the word. Excerpts are optional hand-crafted summaries of your content that can be used in your theme 1 888 ECO WINE – 1 888 326 9463