Now, he is on the winery's mailing list and has purchased 41 bottles of Peter Michael's fall release. It's about time, Martin says.

Texas is one of a growing number of states that are lifting longtime bans on out-of-state shipments of wine to residents' homes. Big wine-drinking states New York, Connecticut, Ohio and Texas have all removed their bans in recent months, bringing the number of states that no longer prohibit direct wine shipments to consumers to 30. More states may soon follow, thanks to a May Supreme Court ruling that struck down two states' laws that allowed in-state vintners to ship directly to consumers while denying that right to out-of-state wineries. The ruling focused on laws on Michigan (where the ban is still caught up in legislative wrangling) and New York, but at least four more states currently have prohibitions that wine attorneys feel are legally questionable: Florida, Massachusetts, Vermont and Indiana. The ruling is likely to prompt lawmakers in those states and others to re-examine their laws.

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