Archive for the ‘Wine Legal Battles’ Category
Washington State wine consumers have it bad. Not only does the state make it illegal for in-state and out-of-state retailers to ship to Washingtonians, but the Washington wineries, in the form of their own trade organization the Washington Wine Institute, did all it could this year to kill a proposed law that would have allowed residents of Washington State to legally have wines shipped to them from wine retailers inside and outside the state. Bottom Line: The Washington Wine Institute…
A new association of vintners has sprouted up and I think it is an important one because it has the opportunity to right a wrong. The West Sonoma Coast Vintners are comprised of those wineries that profit form the remarkable terroir that is found in the western part of Sonoma County in what is an gorgeous and rugged area. It's the region of Sonoma County beyond Sebastapol that includes Annapolis, Fort Ross/Seaview, Occidental, Freestone, Green Valley and the Sebastopol Hills….
Today the Wall Street Journal took a strong stand against H.R. 1161, calling it a "Bad Bill" and taking notice that if passed it would "reduce choices and raise prices for consumers." What I like most about this important editorial from a newspaper that is carefully watched on Capitol Hill is the editorial board's keen awareness of the the truly anti-American nature of the bill seen in the way it would strip wine retailers of their commerce clause protections by…
I'm in public relations. One of the things that means is that I know the value of being vague. However, there's a big difference in be vague about the pH levels in a wine and being vague when you are speaking of issues of momentous import. Vague claims about a wine's pH level are likely never to matter or get resolved because, frankly, they are not all that important to many people. But when you make a vague claim about…
HR 1161, commonly referred to as the CARE ACT, has divided the alcohol industry, pitting wholesalers (who wrote the bill) against producers and retailers who see the bill as a power grab by wholesalers that will lead to discriminatory state laws aimed at excluding producer and retailers from accessing out-of-state markets and will protect wholesalers from competition. Wholesalers complain that this is an unfair assessment of HR 1161. They complain that the bill does nothing except preserve the state's right…
