Sometimes It seems that every single Authority out there is trying to make whisky drinkers feel bad. be it taxation , customs, silly regulations (750ml bottles in the USA!?). joy.
The latest bit of idiocy is happening as we speak and is changing the reality of online whisky shops, and making the life of whisky lovers worldwide a little (or a lot) more tough. If you are a whisky lover / geek / aficionado, i am sure you could have not missed the latest : whiskey is now being categorised under new Civil Aviation Authority regulations as ‘dangerous goods’, yes you heard that right. Dangerous goods. logical huh?
Essentially what this means is that whisky can not be shipped using regular mail anymore from the UK (using non-cargo planes), apparently some mail is transferred this way. This “can” sounds a bit logical ( you know, protecting your safety when you fly, and all that crap), but i really do not understand how come people can carry tons of “dangerous” whisky in their suitcases, bags, and rucksacks when they board an airplane (after massive duty free shopping, for example), without that being “dangerous”. In my opinion there is no difference.
What is also annoying is that you can send really dangerous stuff over the mail, but not whisky.
silly as it may seem this means trouble fro non EU countries such as the USA ( a big market i am sure), South Africa, and also the tiny Israeli market. Some online retailers have found other solutions that will enable them to continue shipping whisky with couriers worldwide, but that makes the shipping more expensive as well as making all goods go through customs, which makes it even more expensive. For Israeli whisky lovers it (almost) means, the end to online shopping, as prices of shipment are crazy and silly. If before the “reform” a package would ship for around 20 GBP (not cheap, but still logical), now according to LWF shipping tables, a single bottle shipping costs will be around 50 GBP, very unreal when speaking of bottles under 100 GBP, add to that 200% customs (which will then be compulsory) and you can do the math yourselves. paying X 4 for a bottle of whisky is not realistic. What do you know? being a whisky lover in Israel just got more frustrating than it was (and i thought that was impossible!).
i would love to hear your take on those new regulations. share your thoughts.
That sucks man! What might solve some issues is that you know massive amounts of people willing to receive packages and send them as personal stuff instead of a shop sending bought goods. Just let me know if I can do anything for you!
Thank you my friend 😉
I know there are a few essential shops in the UK, but why not use decent shops in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany or France?
yes, this is an option Ruben. what i fear is that it’s going to become a EU thing too. and UK is the hub. some stuff only available in the UK….
Ruben — can you share some good non-UK stores that might ship to the US?
Josh, try whiskybase shop… they are good and have a lovely range.
I’ve shared a few but apparently my post gets blocked for mentioning URLs and Gal doesn’t want to approve them 😉
Ruben & Co. those are approved now. when you insert a URL the automatic spam proff doesnt let it in unless i approve, but it doesnt send me a message to approve. very smart. just noticed i had to approve a few . all are up.
enjoy
I dont think this has ever really been about dangerous goods, if it was then no whisky would be allowed to travel by air. It is all about people avoiding excise duty. The dangerous goods thing means a better chance of duty being paid. As Ruben has said buy from the rest of the EU and enjoy it
while you still can.
Yes, that is the plan.
And I’d like to hear which non-UK shops have decent price international shipping
AFAIK : whiskybase….
of course, But looking for more options 🙂
jurgens whiskyhuis will ship to Israel, £30 for 5 or 6 bottles dependant on weight. i thought his bottle prices were good.
Perhaps it’s time for representations to be made to the UK Embassy to see why this was done and if it can be reversed. At the least you are making the Trade Secretary and Ambassador aware that this issue is a painful one for Israeli whiskey drinkers and needs addressing
I doubt they give a damn Jonathan 😉 but you are the one with the UK citizenship, lead the way!