A group seeking to stop Delaware’s ban on direct wine shipments is claiming a partial victory.
Sarah Jones, a spokesperson for Free the Grapes, took note that House Bill 165 was endorsed by a 5 to 0 margin by the House Administration Committee.
The bill is now headed to the House floor.
“We will now turn consumers’ attention to supporting the bill but only if the wholesaler exclusion is removed from the current language. The current language bans shipments from wines that are already for sale in Delaware retailers and restaurants, a rare provision only in use in Indiana,” Jones stated.
She added, “We’re in the 2nd inning of a nine-inning game.”
Efforts to change the shipment system have to date been futile, due to opposition from the industry, including liquor stores. This comes despite the fact that Delaware is one of only a handful of states that ban direct shipments to residents
Supporters have argued that the change would only affect a tiny percentage of sales by liquor stores.
The group took note that the following link is available for Delawareans who want to express their views to legislators. http://capwiz.com/freegrapes/issues/alert/?alertid=80055626
Delaware has an antiquated system that in addition to banning direct shipments bars sales by grocery and convenience stores. The number of liquor stores that can be owned by one company is also limited.
Neighboring Pennsylvania’s state-owned system has been expanding into supermarkets and convenience stores.
Pennsylvania liquor stores, while still handicapped by high liquor taxes, have been offering discounts that make some of their offerings more competitive with Delaware pricing. The Pennsylvania system is the nation’s largest buyer of wine.
The commonwealth’s once cumbersome beer sales system has also seen changes that include convenience store sales and allowing the sale of six packs at beer retailers that are known as distributors.
Delaware’s alcoholic beverage distribution system now has also been changing, while laws have remained more rigid.
Breakthru and Southern Glazier on the approved list of distributors. Southern and Breakthru are among the nation’s distributors and represent a large number of wineries that would be barred from making direct shipments. In the past, distribution companies had been largely locally owned.
