So I'm new to this and shipped out my first trade this morning through the post office. My only concern is the expected delivery date isn't until the 27th. Obviously the beer is going to get warm. How concerned should I be about the beer tasting different upon arrival? I want to give a solid product for the guys on the other end. what's the best way to do that?
Unless its needed for a special reason or something, I avoid shipping over the weekend, especially in summer, to avoid a box sitting in a warehouse or on a truck in the heat for several days. Most of the time, people are pretty agreeable to wait until the next Monday to ship, since most boxes dont take more than 4 or 5 days to get where they are going, they will usually arrive the same week and you won't have anything to worry about.
If you use Fedex you can see from their website how long a package will take to deliver via ground delivery. If you are going cross country, then dropping off a box prior to the cutoff time on a Monday (6pm here for ground delivery) will ensure it gets delivered that week. Somewhere closer you can maybe get away with dropping off on a Tues or Wed. Here Fedex delivers on Saturdays on residential deliveries so this can sometimes be an available day for you. As mentioned unless the other trader specifically requests it, best to avoid shipping over a weekend (especially during extreme temperature periods - cold or warm). Just run it by your trader and if they are reasonable I'm sure they will be fine with this approach. Good luck.
I'm not entirely on-board with the whole ship Monday thing. I live in Northern California, not unusual to have 100+ or even 115+F days during the summer. I've seen far more idle on a truck days on the delivery end of a shipment (up to 3 days at the local depo before delivery attempt). If I ship on a Friday the package doesn't seem to sit in a warehouse on a weekend but stays in motion. Also had a bunch of trades (NY, CT, NC) take 8 calendar days ground. YMMV.
FedEx normally doesn't pick up ground shipments on the weekend. It'll stay in an air conditioned office if it's one of the strip mall drop offs. Not sure about UPS. I don't think it's an issue either way. I've not experienced a trader that won't wait a couple of extra days unless they specifically say they're looking for it by a certain date. As Jaycase says, just ask and most traders are pretty reasonable.
If you used a bunch of bubble wrap etc... it is incredibly insulating. A box I sent on Tuesday arrived Friday and the beers still had condensation on them. I wouldn't worry about it at all - the beer will be fine! As long as the receiver doesn't let the box sit out all day in the hot sun (and happen to live in Arizona) after it is delivered it is not a problem (and that is their fault anyway). There is so much thermal mass in a big truck full of packages, and the padding and bubble wrap insulates so it would take forever to heat up, and would't get much above 85 anyway. I have exchanged a dozen packages this summer, and none of the ones I have received have ever had bottles that were warm to the touch. Winter I find much more of a concern with frozen bottles...
I see you shipped with the post office. For the record (and for the time being), this is illegal. FedEx is cheaper, quicker, and it is only (allegedly) against company policy. I have had bottles break with FedEx and they obviously found it was beer, yet still let the package continue or let the recipient pick it up. Don't take the risk of getting a fine or worse, ship with FedEx or UPS.
This. I wouldn't use the Post Office for beer shipping with it being a federal institution and all. I don't know what kind of trouble you can get in, but I know it is more than if you used an independant shipping company (UPS, FEDEX, etc...). I have received packages with broken beer that UPS repackaged in plastic and then a bigger box and continued delivery. Pretty sure the Post Office isn't going to do that.
Illegal, I guess, but much of this is false. There are many times when USPS is just as cheap or cheaper than the other options, and just as fast. And the flat rate 2-day box is an excellent option for getting fresh growlers across the country. I have never had an outgoing break with USPS but did have a box delivered to me by USPS that had two 12oz cans broken open and leaking and they still delivered the box. Personally, I am not real worried about them discovering there is beer inside.
Don't worry about it. A few extra days won't do anything to harm the beer. As other posters stated, aim to ship on Monday so it keeps moving and arrives that week. Cheers!
