Let’s just get this out of the way: it’s technically not legal to ship liquids.
But if you must, for urgent situations, like the fact that your friends in Boston have never tasted Tuppers’ Hop Pocket Pils, here’s how to proceed cautiously.
One way to do it is to buy it online or through the Beer of the Month club. These packages never seem to get “slapped down by the Feds,” reports realbeer.com.
Want to do it yourself? The USPS is not your best bet. What you need to do is:
- Open an Internet account with FedEx or UPS and print your own documentation.
- Wrap bottles in bubblewrap, add a bag around each in case of leaks in transit, then line a sturdy box with padding. Keep the bottles from touching each other with more padding or packing peanuts.
- Drop off the box with your documentation all in order and you’re good to go.
Barlow Brewing offers this extra tip: “If someone does ask, you can say that you are shipping yeast samples. In a very truthful way, you are.”