Henschke Bottle Quality... thoughts?

[WineRick]

So are we to assume that the Henschke bottle quality is OK?

[phillisc]

Yes a bit of thread drift...the irony is though that their prices are just as shattering
Cheers Craig

[JamieAdelaide]

So are we to assume that the Henschke bottle quality is OK?

I think that was alluded to very early. I certainly made it clear that I felt insulation critical ( impact and temperature protecting ) having transported 100’s of Henschke’s safely.

[sjw_11]

Oh I forgot to come back to this thread... this was actually my bottle that my wife (the OP) was bringing back.... I have never had any bottle break either and on the same trip a 2002 Wynns BL and a 2002 Galah Shiraz (both under cork) survived fine literally either side of the Henschke.

Full disclosure I have a system for wrapping bottles which was not followed, but even so the complete dissolution of the Henschke was surprising and very sad when it arrived as I had bought it at CD more than 10 years ago.

[GraemeG]

I assume you are all paying significant amounts of duty/GST/WET bringing more than 3 bottles into Australia in your suitcases?

Bit of a farce isn't it?
If I've got 24 bottles, I should pay extortionate import rates on 21 of them.
Yet, if I can find seven other people on the same flight with no wine, and get them to carry three bottles each through customs; nothing payable.
Of course, being a convivial sort of chap, I'll cheerfully carry their excess fags/perfume/whatever as quid pro quo. And they benefit equally.
Speaks volumes that it's all calculated on some arbitrary, silly valuation. Without intelligent thought.
A fourth bottle of cheap burgundy at about $40 should cost me $10 in WET/GST.
But if I carried nothing but a single bottle of 1990 Ch Kurniawan at $800, that would be fine.
Go figure!

[WineRick]

I think you'll find that WET and GST are payable on all bottles if you're over the 3-bottle limit. Customs get their valuations from the web so too bad if they're in the upper echelons price-wise!

[JamieAdelaide]

Yes Graeme as Winerick mentions you will paying WET,GST & Import Tax on all 24 bottles. You don’t get a waiver on your first three! Roughly speaking you’ll be up for 51% of the purchase price of your wine if processed.

I find the international wine scene so damn grim in Australia I’ve resigned from my present job and am pursuing opportunities to fly jumbo freighters for US cargo operators. That way I’ll get at least a case a month of foreign wine back to Australia from Hong Kong legally and tax free.