Posted on 05/04/2010 3:14:08 PM PDT by fightinJAG
The battle over direct shipping of wine from producer to consumer has returned to Congress. Last month, Rep. Bill Delahunt (D-Mass.) introduced legislation pushed by beer and wine wholesalers that could make it nearly impossible for consumers to have wine shipped to their door.
Delahunt's bill would effectively overturn a U.S. Supreme Court ruling issued five years ago this month in Granholm v. Heald, a case brought by the late Virginia vintner Juanita Swedenburg. The ruling held that states had primary responsibility for regulating the distribution of alcoholic beverages, but that they could not discriminate against out-of-state producers by allowing only their own wineries to ship to consumers.
[snip]
News reports give the bill little chance of becoming law, partly because House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) owns a vineyard and is said to be against any measure that would hurt small wineries. But that hasn't stopped a swift groundswell of outrage. Free the Grapes
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
I just don’t get the logic behind people who try to ban wine shipments.
Actually, the logic is pretty simple — it hurts tax collections and the profits of politically connected liquor wholesalers.
Why would they do this? It makes no sense to hurt small vineyards that might have an out of state clientelle. Is this to protect the larger wine makers so we are forced to buy their cr@p?
I love having wine shipped to my door! We’ve tried many varietals and wineries that we would have never had access to locally.
Simple. It is ALL about tax dollars, because state revenues are way down. And after all, it worked for tobacco didn’t it? Before they are done, expect to have 200% increase on wine, in fact count on it.
That is true of a lot of products, Marie. The free market offers choices, but these people do not believe in choices, in any way shape or form!
Actually, California is trying to raise the tax on a bottle of wine from 5 Cents, to $5.00 a 2,000% increase.
And that will not be the end of it! Guaranteed.
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