How to Pack and Move Wine

Packing your own things for a move may be the single most tedious job that a person can do. It seems like every single item in your home requires a specific way to pack it to ensure it arrives at the new location safely. This is especially true if you are a fan of wines and you have a large collection at home.

If you simply throw your wine into a box, you are likely to end up with a lot of broken glass and stained carpeting. Even if the bottles don’t break, you may damage the quality of the wine inside the bottle.

Let’s look at some things to consider when you are packing and moving wine:

Clear out before the move

First, consider cleaning out your wine and liquor bottles before your moving day. All these items can be really heavy. If you’re using a professional mover, some charge by the pound, so it may not be cost effective to pack all of your bottles. The cheaper ones or the ones you know you will never open again can just go into the trash.

Or, consider having one final blow-out in your old place with your friends and family. Make it a fancy dinner party or just a drop in with the intention of cleaning out as much as possible from the liquor cabinet, pantry and fridge so you don’t have to move these items.

Assemble your supplies

There are several different types of boxes you can use to pack your wine. Some stores make specially reinforced boxes meant to only ship wine bottles. If you can’t find any of these at your local moving store, then get several reinforced boxes that are meant to hold books.

Remember the old adage: it is easier to move twenty light boxes with one item in each than to move one really heavy box with twenty items in it. You will also need A LOT of packing tape. Once you put together the boxes, you need to reinforce the bottoms with extra tape. Finally, invest in reliable bubble wrap or similar packing material.

Properly position the bottles

Although it makes sense to pack bottles vertically (standing tall), many wine experts will tell you that this can damage the wines. Others will even suggest packing the bottles upside down for distribution of the sediment. We aren’t going to weigh in on these, but it does seem like the little time you are shipping your items will not cause long damage to the bottles.

In addition to packing them heavily, however, we do suggest using cardboard dividers to split the box into “cells.” This makes the packing that much easier. (One of the best places to get these is to go to your local liquor or package shop. They will probably have lots of empty wine boxes complete with the dividers that you will need.)

Hire professional Movers

Finally, if you’re really concerned about shipping expensive wines or other liqueurs, then it’s a good idea to hire professional movers. These are experts in moving and will know the best ways to ensure that your wine goes undamaged.

Moving may not be a fun experience, but it doesn’t have to be a major hassle. If you take the time to pack your items, including your wines, carefully, they’ll make it to your new home and you can celebrate the move in style.