The wine war in Massachusetts
By Wine Atlas, Saturday 2 July 2005 :: Wine - United-States :: #29 :: rss
IF YOU HAVE ever visited a winery in another state and tried to ship wine back to Massachusetts, you know what it's like: Sorry, we can't ship to Massachusetts. It's illegal." Now, you say, yes, but that is the past. The Supreme Court just ruled in favor of direct shipping, and the grape has been freed." Not so fast.
The Supreme Court ruled that states that permit direct shipping by wineries (farm wineries) within the state may not discriminate against wineries from outside that state.
Massachusetts is violating the Supreme Court's order. It may seem logical that the remedy is to permit direct shipping. However, there is a movement afoot by the Wine Wholesalers to have the Legislature repeal the central aspect of farm winery legislation, which permits farm wineries to deliver directly to retail outlets. Technically, this would make the law uniform, but it is a degenerate solution and places the burden on Massachusetts farm wineries...
By Kipton Kumler
Source : boston.com
