Customs & Duties for ordering Port from Portugal to the U.S.

[Mike J. W.]

I'm thinking about ordering a case of various Ports (TWAIOA) from Portugal Vineyards. Is there a rule of thumb percentage that I can use to estimate what I'll have to pay for customs and duties when it lands in the U.S.?

[Glenn E.]

I don't recall ever having to pay customs or duty when I've had Port shipped in from overseas. Which means it was probably included in what I paid the shipper?

When you carry Port through customs at an airport, the duty is so ridiculously low that the Customs Agent is almost guaranteed to wave you through rather than having to fill out a separate form for each different Port. I carried 16 bottles through Chicago O'Hare on one trip back, and the agent actually rolled their eyes at me when I said I had a) too many bottles, and b) too much value and so needed to declare my wine. IIRC the duty at the time was something like $0.83 per bottle, and like I said they have to fill out a separate form for each different wine you bring in.

So sure... bringing in 5 cases of the same wine? They'll fill out a form to collect their 50 bucks.

[Mike J. W.]

Thanks Glenn. I've never bought wine from overseas so I wasn't sure what to expect.

[Eric Menchen]

My experience is like Glenn's coming through customs. I've always declared what I had, and they didn't really care to do the paperwork. When I looked it up then, yes, about $8 was going to be the duty for what I had.

Right now, I believe the Trump tariffs are still in effect. When I've looked at buying some wines, the web sites mention that the prices don't include tariffs. And one company was specifically holding wine for customers in Europe so they could wait until the tariffs go away. I'm not sure where this falls on Biden's priority list. Point is, tariffs may be higher now than people are historically used to.

[Eric Menchen]

I don't see mention of Portugal in these:
https://www.foodandwine.com/news/trump- ... main-biden
https://www.winespectator.com/articles/ ... businesses

Apparently it is tied to the Boeing-Airbus dispute, and there probably aren't too many Airbus related jobs in Portugal. That's just my guess.

[Glenn E.]

Just make sure you enunciate clearly so that the FDA Agent doesn't think you're trying to import Pork Wine. (Yes, I've had that happen too. Also at Chicago O'Hare.)

[Mike J. W.]

Eric, I believe I read somewhere that Portugal (and possibly Italy) are exempt from the Trump wine tariffs.

Glenn, I'm not bringing them in myself. I intend to buy a case of various tawnies from Portugal Vineyards and have them ship it to me.
Lmao at "Pork Wine".

[Eric Ifune]

I was lead to understand they prefer 6 bottle lots. Maybe it gets past customs easier. I believe they don't guarantee it making it to the states. It also takes a couple of months to get here.

[Frederick Blais]

I know many Portuguese wineries have stopped shipping wines to USA because customers are not receiving them reliably. From what I hear, the problem is customs process/agents. Basically, when you ship from Portugal to USA, you need to make sure your carrier is paying a agent to pays or process the box through customs. This costs a lot! I know only one company that garantees winery to door shipping anywhere in USA and they charge 105 euros for a box of 6...

[Glenn E.]

I have used Seabrook Exports a couple of times from London to the US, and while they are expensive they are very fast (air freight only) and extremely reliable. I don't know the mechanics behind it, but they're probably employing an agent to process the shipments through customs like Frederick says.

[John M.]

"Pork Wine"...just had one:

Taylor Quinta da Piggie HWAIOA (Ham with an indication of age): Cured for 6 months in an oak room. A deep pink with dark red on the rim. Lofty honey glaze aroma, just a hint of clove. Well cured, a little smokey, good mouthfeel and awesome with a dab of horseradish. Nice finish with the salt in balance--lingers. 93 Oinks.

[Andy Velebil]

Portuguese wines/Ports were never on the Tariff list. French, German, Spain, and UK wines had the 25% tariff.

[David Spriggs]

"Pork Wine"...just had one:

Taylor Quinta da Piggie HWAIOA (Ham with an indication of age): Cured for 6 months in an oak room. A deep pink with dark red on the rim. Lofty honey glaze aroma, just a hint of clove. Well cured, a little smokey, good mouthfeel and awesome with a dab of horseradish. Nice finish with the salt in balance--lingers. 93 Oinks.

LOL!!