Alright, names and addresses have been sent, so check your inbox! Just a few things...
1. Plan to ship in order to get it to your person by the end of 2012... I don't want to have to be sending messages and tracking beer down in 2013.
2. If you ARE interested in receiving feedback, include a note to your recipient identifying yourself and asking for constructive feedback.
2.a. If you don't get a note from your Secret Santa, assume they don't want feedback.
3. Make certain to package your beer properly. Wrap the bottle in bubble wrap (go light on tape, or use rubber band) and a large ziptop bag to cushion and prevent spills. Pack the bottles in a box of sufficient size to keep them away from the walls in case of mishandling, but main thing is to keep the glass from hitting other glass or being close to the wall. If people desire, I can try taking some pics of packaging and include them in this thread.
3.a. Make sure the bottles are well labelled... either on the bottle as a regular label, or by cap code with a key sheet. We're all beer nerds, so feel free to include recipes, your tasting notes or your intention with the given beer. Especially if you are looking for feedback.
4. Again, minimum to ship should be at least 2 twelve oz bottles of homebrew, or a single 22. HOWEVER, I certainly recommend sending more if you are able, as your brewing/budget allows. If you don't have much on hand to send, or feel like your beer is like giving a lump of coal for Xmas, feel free to include your favorite local commercial beer. If you choose to send commercial beers, try to send something that they can't get where they live. I like this
site for beer exchanges, as you can do a comparison between two states to see what distribution looks like.
5. Shipping. DO NOT ship through USPS, go to a FedEX or UPS store and ship through them. I don't think it's necessary to label the box as fragile/perishable/or 'yeast samples'... I just ship in plain, unmarked boxes, and trust in my packaging to protect the beer. If you don't volunteer information, they often won't ask it. Just to be clear, FedEx and UPS don't necessarily WANT to ship your beer, but if they don't know, then it's no problem. Proper packaging really is important here, if it's done right, there should never be a problem.
If anyone has any further questions, just ask!