In most countries, alcohol importation is tightly regulated, with duties and taxes payable on any amount of import (see [1], [2]). It isn't the duty itself which is expensive--it's the paperwork processing fees and the time and effort taken to fill out forms.

There could also be problems if you are expected to verify that the importer (recipient of the package) is at least 18/21 years old (see [2]).

If purchasing online in the country of destination, I calculated that in Australia, the average cost of a single 330mL bottle of craft beer shipped would be AUD$15-25 (approx. USD$12-20, €10-16) depending on the cost of the beer and delivery address. Most online sellers at least in Australia do not ship single bottles due to the high overheads of shipping. The minimum order size is typically 6 bottles (and quite often 24).

Also worth considering is packaging restrictions if you plan to do your own shipping. As an example, the postal service in Australia accepts liquids only if certain packaging conditions are met (see [3] D10.10). For a single bottle of beer, this would likely equate to a strong cardboard box filled with enough absorbent material to absorb all the liquid in the bottle.

The best case scenario I can see is that you find a niche market of beer connoisseurs interested in sending rare or hard-to-source bottles of beer to each other, and don't mind paying at least AUD$30 per bottle for that experience. For everyone else, they'll just continue to make a 5 minute drive to a nearby liquor shop to purchase 6 bottles of comparable beer for a total of AUD$15.

[1] https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/Factsheets/Documents/alcohola...

[2] https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/212/kw/mailing alcohol

[3] https://auspost.com.au/content/dam/auspost_corp/media/docume...

Matt