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Bringing Homemade Wine on Board

Sneakie

By Sneakie,
in Princess Cruises

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Sneakie

Sneakie

Posted
Posted

I'm not a big drinker but I do have a wine that we bottle ourselves that I really enjoy with meals and in the evening. Are there any issues with bringing homemade wine with no labels onto the cruise ship? I understand the one free bottle per person then $15 corkage above that rule. If we bring 4 bottles and pay for the two extra do they go to our cabin with us or do they keep them until we ask for them? Just wondering if no labels will be an issue with us loosing our bottles??

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Shmoo here

Shmoo here

Posted
Posted
I'm not a big drinker but I do have a wine that we bottle ourselves that I really enjoy with meals and in the evening. Are there any issues with bringing homemade wine with no labels onto the cruise ship? I understand the one free bottle per person then $15 corkage above that rule. If we bring 4 bottles and pay for the two extra do they go to our cabin with us or do they keep them until we ask for them? Just wondering if no labels will be an issue with us loosing our bottles??

 

I know most cruise lines don't allow "homemade items" to be brought onboard. I'd guess that would include wine.

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VTX-AL

VTX-AL

Posted
Posted
I'm not a big drinker but I do have a wine that we bottle ourselves that I really enjoy with meals and in the evening. Are there any issues with bringing homemade wine with no labels onto the cruise ship? I understand the one free bottle per person then $15 corkage above that rule. If we bring 4 bottles and pay for the two extra do they go to our cabin with us or do they keep them until we ask for them? Just wondering if no labels will be an issue with us loosing our bottles??

 

If you go to your wine making supplies store and get a couple of adhesive wine labels and a couple of heat-shrink caps, no one will know the difference !

 

...VTX-Al

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Colo Cruiser

Colo Cruiser

Posted
Posted
I'm not a big drinker but I do have a wine that we bottle ourselves that I really enjoy with meals and in the evening. Are there any issues with bringing homemade wine with no labels onto the cruise ship? I understand the one free bottle per person then $15 corkage above that rule. If we bring 4 bottles and pay for the two extra do they go to our cabin with us or do they keep them until we ask for them? Just wondering if no labels will be an issue with us loosing our bottles??

 

They do not keep any wine bottles that you bring onboard, you will just pay the corkage fee on the required bottles.

 

As far as unmarked bottles, this is uncharted territory so be prepared for anything from nothing to the bottles being taken.

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taxmantoo

taxmantoo

Posted
Posted
If you go to your wine making supplies store and get a couple of adhesive wine labels and a couple of heat-shrink caps, no one will know the difference !

 

...VTX-Al

 

LOL ... The people at the table collecting the corkage fee are wine stewards and waiters. THEY will know the difference. You would have to be blind to miss it.

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pablo222

pablo222

Posted
Posted
I'm not a big drinker but I do have a wine that we bottle ourselves that I really enjoy with meals and in the evening. Are there any issues with bringing homemade wine with no labels onto the cruise ship? I understand the one free bottle per person then $15 corkage above that rule. If we bring 4 bottles and pay for the two extra do they go to our cabin with us or do they keep them until we ask for them? Just wondering if no labels will be an issue with us loosing our bottles??

 

You have a curious username to be posting this.

 

One would think that bring any wine in a 750ml bottle

would be fine. But, of course, other clever posters have

already thought of refilling a wine bottle with vodka, and

buying some shrink wrap seals.

 

So, when you present your home-made wine, what will

the judge's decision be?

 

Could go either way.

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skynight

skynight

Posted
Posted

I would leave the home made at home, it's just easier. It is likely that the ship's crew does not have a policy for home made wine and may have never experienced anyone bringing it on board. Also, corkage paid bottles are marked with a sticker, and can be used anywhere on the ship. Non corkage paid bottles are for cabin use. If you bring that bottle to the DR you will be charged the corkage fee.

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JimmyVWine Great Review Rare

JimmyVWine

Posted
Posted (edited)
LOL ... The people at the table collecting the corkage fee are wine stewards and waiters. THEY will know the difference. You would have to be blind to miss it.

 

The people you have to get the bottles past are the security folks at the time of boarding. This is a "boarding" issue, not a "dining room" issue. If the folks at the security table see unmarked, unlabeled bottles of liquid, they are going to assume that the liquid is prohibited alcohol, or perhaps worse...some form of contraband or even an explosive. No way would I pull out unmarked bottles at the security table. It can only lead to questions, delay, and perhaps confiscation. Are you sure that the people at the collection table are wine stewards and waiters as opposed to security folks? Princess did away with its sommeliers.

 

The previous poster is correct. A wine supply store (or an on line source) should have some very passable wine labels. The people at the security desk are not Master Sommeliers. They would likely be satisfied with the likes of this.

Edited by JimmyVWine
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dtb55

dtb55

Posted
Posted
If you go to your wine making supplies store and get a couple of adhesive wine labels and a couple of heat-shrink caps, no one will know the difference !

 

 

 

...VTX-Al

 

 

They will know. Re-corking of wine bottles has been tried before, and failed.

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taxmantoo

taxmantoo

Posted
Posted
Are you sure that the people at the collection table are wine stewards and waiters as opposed to security folks? Princess did away with its sommeliers.

 

Just off the Regal. When you are identified as having wine in your bags by the "security" people manning the scanner, you are sent to a table where two "waiter" type people examine your bag, count your bottles and apply the corkage fee. They are not sommeliers (p.s. I am... ) but waiters.

 

The previous poster is correct. A wine supply store (or an on line source) should have some very passable wine labels. The people at the security desk are not Master Sommeliers. They would likely be satisfied with the likes of this. This is a very poor excuse for a wine bottle label. There is no country of origin, no alcohol content, government warning, volume contents, etc ... AND there is no label on the back of bottle. Doesn't take a pro to see this is homemade.

 

And it is still beyond me why anyone would want to bring $2 a bottle homemade wine on a ship :confused:

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JimmyVWine Great Review Rare

JimmyVWine

Posted
Posted
This is a very poor excuse for a wine bottle label. There is no country of origin, no alcohol content, government warning, volume contents, etc ... AND there is no label on the back of bottle. Doesn't take a pro to see this is homemade.

 

And it is still beyond me why anyone would want to bring $2 a bottle homemade wine on a ship :confused:

 

I don't think the issue is "homemade". There is no prohibition against the wine being such, so even if they determine that it is homemade, so what? The issue is whether the "waiter" at the table will understand that the contents in the bottle is vitis vinifera as opposed to contraband. No one is suggesting that the labels sold for home use are a dead ringer for commercially produced wine. And as for what is on the label, the labels are completely customizable. You want country of origin? State? county? appellation? vineyard designation? It can all be done. Alcohol percentage? Not sure. Besides. The "waiter type people" are not sommeliers or anything close to it. They are not there to determine if your wine is good, bad, or indifferent. They are only there to determine if it is wine, and how many bottles you have. It's not like you are trying to pass off a homemade wine as Chateau Petrus under the watchful nose and eye of Kevin Zraly. You are simply trying to show some waiter from Who_knows_where_istan that you aren't smuggling on scotch.

 

As for the last question--beats me. Seems like more trouble than it's worth.

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BDRebel

BDRebel

Posted
Posted

Home made does not necessarily equal "two buck chuck".

Many homemade wines made for about $5.00 are better than the $50.00 commercial equivalents.

 

Unfortunately, I agree that it is uncertain you will get it past security.

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Lovetocruiseprincess

Lovetocruiseprincess

Posted
Posted
Because it tastes better than the $30 and up wines sold on the ship.

And it's $28 per bottle cheaper. :D

 

They will know. Re-corking of wine bottles has been tried before, and failed.

 

If it failed it's because you probably used an unlabeled bottle and didn't even try to reseal it with a new PVC shrink wrap seal. The waiters checking the bottles aren't going to scrutinize every detail of every bottle that come by the desk. Re-corking is done frequently- especially to fill with liquor. Next time save your old wine bottles at home instead of throwing them away & you'll get by every time.

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taxmantoo

taxmantoo

Posted
Posted (edited)
Home made does not necessarily equal "two buck chuck".

Many homemade wines made for about $5.00 are better than the $50.00 commercial equivalents.QUOTE]

 

Says who? I am quite willing to bet you a cruise for two people that I could tell the difference in less than 30 seconds. Give me five minutes and I will tell you the grape used in both wines and the country of origin. :p

Edited by taxmantoo
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sherryf

sherryf

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Posted

I have some wine made by my late uncle. He worked with a friend from a winery in Paso Robles to bottle it. It is properly bottled, corked and sealed, but the labels are very casual and partially hand-written. My aunt gave me a case for a wedding gift, and we drink a bottle on our anniversary each year. I have taken it aboard Princess without issue, but they have never looked very closely at it. They have just counted my bottles (I take a total of 6 bottles) and haven't even notice the sketchy label on one of them.

 

If the bottle does not look like a normal, sealed bottle of wine, they might question it more.

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