I was so impressed with the Cookie Exchange, that I wanted to start the great Beer Exchange for all the legal drinkers, but it turns out, nobody will ship beer, and it's actually illegal to mail beer unless you're a distributer.
What a bunch of crap!
I mean, I'm glad to live in CA, but I sure wish I was able to get some sweet, delicious Leinenkugels Berry Weiss beer over here. Pyramid Ale is nice, but it's no Berry Weiss.
Stupid Big Brother!
Feel free to rant about the injustices of the government, or your love of beer.
Posted by Roseauthor (Member # 148) on :
yeah.. I found out I couldn't ship beer to my son in Bosnia either! He wasn't exactly happy! SO, I'll stick to sending him chocolate.
Posted by MightyCow (Member # 9253) on :
I just wrote both my Senators and my Representative letters asking them to sponsor a bill making it legal to send beer for personal use between adults of legal drinking age. Thank goodness for School House Rock!
I'd recommend everyone else do so as well. Maybe I'll see about getting a website started. Grassroots is the way to go.
Seriously, write letters people. The only way anything gets done is if concerned individuals speak out to those who have the power to make change.
Posted by Tante Shvester (Member # 8202) on :
...and someday I'll be a law. OH YEAH! Posted by Lyrhawn (Member # 7039) on :
I can just see the little bill now, slurring his words together on his way to capital hill.
I just hope he doesn't drive there, it's a long long journey to the capital city. You know, a long long wait while they discuss and debate.
Posted by erosomniac (Member # 6834) on :
Honestly, it's ridiculous that you can't mail alcohol. UPS and Fed Ex even have a delivery option specifically intended for age-restricted parcels, where the recipient is required to furnish proof of age before they can sign for receipt.
Then again, who knows how closely they monitor this kind of crap? You're not supposed to ship compressed/pressurized substances without declaring them, either, but I personally shipped at least 500 packages containing hairspray and spraypaint at my last job without declaring a damn thing.
I say go for it. What's the worst that could happen?
Posted by Jim-Me (Member # 6426) on :
I had a new beer yesterday... really good.
Rogue Hazelnut Nectar, from Rogue Brewery in Or.
great stuff... maybe a shade on the sweet side of perfect.
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
Lets all start shipping beer to our local Senators and Representatives! But we'll ship them crap beer, like Natty Light and Pearl!
(like sex in a canoe)
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
quote:I say go for it. What's the worst that could happen?
Considering you can go to jail for 6 months for misusing the depiction of Woodsy Owl, I'm not sure you want an answer to that question.
Federal laws are surprisingly harsh.
Posted by The Pixiest (Member # 1863) on :
<insert foot stomping libertarian rant here. You know the drill>
Posted by erosomniac (Member # 6834) on :
quote:Considering you can go to jail for 6 months for misusing the depiction of Woodsy Owl, I'm not sure you want an answer to that question.
Federal laws are surprisingly harsh.
Dag, you ruin all my fun. ALL OF IT!
<seconds the libertarian rant>
Posted by aspectre (Member # 2222) on :
A man went to to federal prison for about the same amount of time for paying his tax bill. Admittedly he paid it in pennies, but still substantial prison time -- for "showing disrespect toward the InternalRevenueService" as the judge put it -- seems to be overkill. The judge also pointed out that coins are not money in the same sense as dollar bills to further justify his harsh sentence with the argument that folks (including the IRS) do not have to accept coins as legal payment for anything. ie Coins are not covered by laws making "this note is legal tender for all debts, public and private": therefore the man legally did not pay off his tax debt.
[ April 28, 2006, 01:48 PM: Message edited by: aspectre ]
Posted by zgator (Member # 3833) on :
You can mail wine, at least in some states. Florida is hammering out the details on restrictions right now.
Posted by Kristen (Member # 9200) on :
We could all sign each other up for the Beer of the Month club.
Posted by aspectre (Member # 2222) on :
From reading the title alone, I originally thought this thread was going to be about an internet beer marketer taking advantage of the 6thCircuitCourt's decision inregard to WineExchange. Did anyone see / does anyone remember the outcome at the SupremeCourt?
Posted by DarkKnight (Member # 7536) on :
quote: A man went to to federal prison for about the same amount of time for paying his tax bill. Admittedly he paid it in pennies, but still substantial prison time -- for "showing disrespect toward the InternalRevenueService" as the judge put it -- seems to be overkill.
Can you provide a link for this?
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
quote:Considering you can go to jail for 6 months for misusing the depiction of Woodsy Owl
...what in the heck is Woodsy Owl?
Posted by MightyCow (Member # 9253) on :
I'm sure the beer of the month club is fine, but I was hoping that people could just request and trade beers, rather than get a random one.
I have received auto-replies from my senators and congresswoman, but no real response.
I like the idea of sending cheap beer to congress. As I understood it, the law made it illegal to receive alcohol through the mail too. Seems like a good method of civil disobedience. Just don't put the correct return address Posted by DarkKnight (Member # 7536) on :
...what in the heck is Woodsy Owl?
He's the tootsie pop owl, I think. how many licks does it take to get to the center?
Posted by aspectre (Member # 2222) on :
"Can you provide a link for this?
Nope, all I can find are tales of: US Code 61 specifies that nickels and pennies are designated "small change" and not legal tender for the payment of debts. A USDistrictJudge ruled that no one has to accept more than $2 in change MamaCass(Elliot) of the Mamas&Papas dumped a load of pennies to pay off a disputed tax bill, and was hit with a $10thousand fine back in 1969.
None of which I can confirm elsewhere. And the purported MamaCass incident is from a lot farther back in time than my memories concerning pennies and prison, which was a big "ain't that outrageous/funny" news & TonightShow/etc story at the time.
Perhaps it isn't online. Perhaps I just can't think of the correct keywords. Or perhaps it can be found online only through legal libraries for which I have no access.
[ April 28, 2006, 03:23 PM: Message edited by: aspectre ]
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
quote:Just don't put the correct return address
...and pay cash for the beer, wearing sunglasses and a hoodie, don't park your car within range of cameras, and wear gloves the whole time. Oh, and don't use an Automated Post Office, they only take credit/debit cards, and make sure you use a P.O. not in your neighborhood, still wearing the gloves and hoodie, and...
Posted by MightyCow (Member # 9253) on :
I'm sure the beer of the month club is fine, but I was hoping that people could just request and trade beers, rather than get a random one.
I have received auto-replies from my senators and congresswoman, but no real response.
I like the idea of sending cheap beer to congress. As I understood it, the law made it illegal to receive alcohol through the mail too. Seems like a good method of civil disobedience. Just don't put the correct return address Posted by erosomniac (Member # 6834) on :
quote:...and pay cash for the beer, wearing sunglasses and a hoodie, don't park your car within range of cameras, and wear gloves the whole time. Oh, and don't use an Automated Post Office, they only take credit/debit cards, and make sure you use a P.O. not in your neighborhood, still wearing the gloves and hoodie, and...
It's beer, not heroin!
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
But if you send it to a Congressperson, hoping to make him a criminal by receiving it, and furthermore do it to several members of Congress, you can expect to be gone after.
As for the pennies thing, according to Snopes, since 1965 all U.S. currency has been equally qualified as legal tender.
Posted by aspectre (Member # 2222) on :
"...what in the heck is Woodsy Owl?
A USForestry ?replacement? for Smokey the Bear in cartoon ads which covered more issues than just preventing forest fires.
Posted by MightyCow (Member # 9253) on :
Hehe, I live under the radar man, nobody can catch me!
According to the source we all live by, THE INTERNET, people do this beer thing all the time by labeling the package "Yeast Culture" and making sure each bottle is wrapped securely in bubble wrap. They tend to use FedEx or UPS to avoid the annoyance and more strict questioning of the USPS.
I bet Woodsy Owl can get beer through the mail.
Posted by aspectre (Member # 2222) on :
Nice clarifying link, ketchup queen, but the FederalReserve is not the InternalRevenueService. So Snopes failed to address whether the IRS must accept pennies.
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
Oh Yeah! I remember a friend of mine was telling me about that. To participate in most national homebrew competitions you have to mail in the entries. He said that they brew the beer, bottle it, and lable it "Yeast Culture." So I guess people do it all of the time. I wonder what the regulations on that are. I suppose I could google it...
Posted by erosomniac (Member # 6834) on :
quote:Oh Yeah! I remember a friend of mine was telling me about that. To participate in most national homebrew competitions you have to mail in the entries. He said that they brew the beer, bottle it, and lable it "Yeast Culture." So I guess people do it all of the time. I wonder what the regulations on that are. I suppose I could google it...
I think it might be one thing to send a homemade beer in an unmarked bottle labeled "Yeast Culture," and another entirely to send, say, a case of Heineken labeled "Yeast Culture."
Posted by ketchupqueen (Member # 6877) on :
quote:Nice clarifying link, ketchup queen, but the FederalReserve is not the InternalRevenueService. So Snopes failed to address whether the IRS must accept pennies.
The Snopes article says that if you are not going to accept a certain kind of legal tender and request that a debt be paid in U.S. dollars, you should specify what you will and will not accept beforehand. So unless the IRS had said, "to be paid in currency other than coins" or "to be paid in bills only" or something, I wouldn't think they'd have much of a case. Although, they are a government agency, and so can presumably get away with more than ordinary citizens. Posted by zgator (Member # 3833) on :
Why would you need to label it at all? Are you somehow circumventing the law by labeling it "Yeast Culture"?
If it does matter, homebrews are not filtered, so there is still yeast in the bottle. Most beer sold in stores has had it filtered out.
Posted by vonk (Member # 9027) on :
quote:Since is it illegal to ship beer via the United States Postal Service, you may use a different carrier. I have used FedEX Ground with decent results, but you may use UPS or other carrier of your choice. Get a box big enough to easily hold the entries plus packing material. Wrap each bottle in bubble wrap and line the box with it as well. Put the bottles in a plastic bag (garbage bags work well here) and place it in the box. Fill the box and the bag with packing styrofoam (aka peanuts). Seal the bag well. This is to keep any breakage contained as best as possible. I have had a broken shipment and one that never made it to the destination - some one had a party on me I guess. Be sure to enclose your check and any other documentation required. Seal the box, mark it fragile (not that it does anything, but it should make you feel better) and send it off. When you send it - the shipper may ask what the contents is. Samples for analysis works well, or use your judgment.
zgator - most good microbrewed beer isn't filtered. I thought that was what we were talking about.
Posted by Primal Curve (Member # 3587) on :
I've got the hookup on the BerryWeiss, yo.
Posted by MightyCow (Member # 9253) on :
quote:Originally posted by Primal Curve: I've got the hookup on the BerryWeiss, yo.
The powers of the Internet at work!
Posted by Lyrhawn (Member # 7039) on :
Is it just beer?
You can buy vodka and other drinks off the internet. Or are those international websites?
Posted by Carrie (Member # 394) on :
quote:Originally posted by vonk: Lets all start shipping beer to our local Senators and Representatives! But we'll ship them crap beer, like Natty Light and Pearl!
(like sex in a canoe)
I will send a case of the Beast to any Senator who requires further convincing.
PS - Honey Weiss trumps Berry Weiss any day of the week. Posted by MightyCow (Member # 9253) on :
quote:Originally posted by Carrie: I will send a case of the Beast to any Senator who requires further convincing.
That's only 100. Get to work!
Posted by Carrie (Member # 394) on :
I think postage will cost more than the beer itself. Hooray Beast!
Posted by Zeugma (Member # 6636) on :
I've FedEx'ed beer and wine several times before, and it really wasn't a big deal. Only once did the person behind the counter look skeptical, but it was in an amused sort of way. Posted by FlyingCow (Member # 2150) on :
When I was just in Colorado, the local wineries were lamenting the fact that they couldn't ship anything to me, because I live in New Jersey. Apparently it is a felony to ship wine into NJ!
Or New York, Pennsylvania, or Maryland for that matter. They said it was illegal to send to Florida until just recently, when they opened up restrictions.
Supposedly, they said, there is legislation being worked on to end the restrictions by next July - though it might require yearly licensing for each state. So a winery may have to pay $500 a year to ship to California, for instance, and various other rates for every other state.
Just crazy.
I'd imagine beer is similar, with regards to breweries shipping it to you.
Posted by Primal Curve (Member # 3587) on :
quote:Originally posted by Carrie: PS - Honey Weiss trumps Berry Weiss any day of the week.
Actually, I don't really like either. I vastly prefer Red and Northwoods Lager.
![[Wink]](wink.gif)
![[Mad]](mad.gif)
![[Wall Bash]](graemlins/wallbash.gif)
![[Frown]](frown.gif)
Dag, you ruin all my fun. ALL OF IT!![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)
![[Smile]](smile.gif)