Wholesalers
FOOD&WINE MAGAZINE BLOGS ABOUT WHOLESALERS -- May 20, 2008.

Ray Isle, Senior Wine Editor at Food&Wine magazine, writes an informative blog at http://www.foodandwine.com/blogs/tasting-room, and one post last week caught our attention:

“Next time you can't find an interesting but small production wine in your local wine store, you might want to consider these remarks by Jack Goldenberg, Chairman of the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America at their 65th Annual Convention:

"The American consumer who’s complaining that he can’t get some obscure frou-frou wine produced and bottled by Croatian virgins is missing the point. The reason he even WANTS that bottle of wine is because of the incredible variety that is already on the shelves! And how did it get there? WE put it there!"

Well! Helpful clarification, there. Perhaps when I get emails from readers wondering why they can't find a specific wine, and can't order it directly from the winery, either, I'll just forward those words along. Yikes.”

If you'd like to read the full transcript of Mr. Golenberg's remarks, visit

http://www.wswa.org/public/media/20080409.html - Free the Grapes!
Tuesday, May 20, 2008 @ 1:58 pm ET

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Maryland
UPDATE: MARYLAND BILLS KILLED AFTER GOOD FIGHT. Annapolis, Maryland.

Senate Bill 616 and House Bill 1260, based on the model direct shipping bill in effect in the majority of U.S. states, were heard in committee but died there during the 2008 legislative session. Both bills received widespread consumer support, while media coverage focused on wholesaler influence in the state. The bills would have significantly improved consumer choice in wine by allowing any winery or retailer licensed by Maryland to ship a limited amount of wine directly to consumers 21 years or older in the state.

Unfortunately, all direct-to-consumer wine shipments continue to be prohibited by Maryland law. The state is one of 15 that do not allow interstate, winery-to-consumer shipments. The shipping bills were endorsed by the Maryland Winery Association, which represents Maryland’s 31 wineries, as well as Marylanders for Better Beer & Wine Laws, a consumer advocacy group. Maryland is the 18th largest state for wine consumption (source: Adams Wine Handbook 2007), and has tried for years to break the wine wholesaler’s iron grip on distribution. - Free the Grapes!
Friday, May 9, 2008 @ 12:55 pm ET

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Florida
UPDATE: CONSUMERS WIN. FLORIDA SESSION ENDS WITHOUT "CAP" BILL -- May 8, 2008. Florida's 2008 legislative session concluded without passing one of the four discriminatory bills that were introduced. The "no action" is a victory for Florida's wine lovers, allowing them to continue purchasing and receiving wines directly from wineries. As previously reported, four Florida legislators introduced separate bills that included discriminatory caps, preventing wineries producing more than 100,000 cases from continuing to ship directly to consumers.

The bills included:

1) HB 693: Representative Bogdanoff amended her bill to remove the production capacity cap, however, it would have allowed only eight cases to be shipped per household, per year.

2) HB 1293: Representative Garcia’s bill.

3) SB 1736: Senator Geller’s bill.

4) SB 1096: Senator Margolis’ bill.

Thank you to all Floridians who sent letters and called their state legislators to voice their opinions about these bills. - Free the Grapes
Friday, May 9, 2008 @ 12:50 pm ET

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Wisconsin
WISCONSIN CONSUMERS WIN: FREE THE GRAPES TOASTS LEGISLATURE -- March 24, 2008. On March 13, Governor Doyle signed Senate Bill 485, which replaces the state's current reciprocal law on October 1, 2008. Prior to passing the new law, Wisconsin was one of only three remaining "reciprocal shipping states," a type of free trade network that had allowed only wineries in participating states to make shipments. As states like WA, OR and other key markets changed over to permits, WI consumers have found it harder to locate wineries under the old law. Now, all US wineries will be eligible to puchase a permit and ship a limited amount of wine directly to Wisconsin consumers, significantly improving consumer choice in wine. - Free the Grapes!
Monday, March 24, 2008 @ 12:53 pm ET

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New Mexico
FINAL UPDATE: SB59 STALLS IN HOUSE Feb 15, 2008 - Albuquerque, New Mexico. Senate Bill 59 passed the Senate Saturday but did not reach the House floor before the state's 4-week legislative session concluded February 14. The bill would have replaced the current reciprocal language with the model permit bill. As previously mentioned here, Senate Bill 59 was endorsed by the board of the New Mexico Wine Growers Association, and received favorable testimony from the New Mexico Restaurant Association and the New Mexico Retailers Association. - Free the Grapes!
Friday, February 15, 2008 @ 7:55 pm ET

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