Some Wine With That?

You can get everything you need to make dinner in a New York grocery store, but not the wine to go with it. This is not because grocers are puritanical. They sell beer, wine coolers (a misperceived brew made with malt) and a sugary low-alcohol “wine product.” You might think it’s wine, but drink it and you will not make that mistake again.

To buy wine in New York, you have to go to a liquor store. This has been a fact of life for generations — an annoying shopping inconvenience in New York City and the suburbs, but a major hassle in many parts of upstate, where almost 600 towns have no liquor stores.

The problem is an antiquated law that, in true Albany fashion, exists to protect the interests of one powerful industry. Gov. David Paterson is the latest politician to try to fix the situation, supporting a bill to legalize supermarket wine. Mr. Paterson’s main interest is budgetary. He is eager for the tens of millions of dollars that additional franchise fees and taxes would raise.

The distributors and liquor stores, and their lobbyists, are eager to hold on to their monopoly on the wine business. They have begun a public-relations blitz to defeat the bill, arguing that it would drive hundreds of mom-and-pop liquor shops out of business and subject New York State wineries to crippling competition from big-box outsiders. We have heard this before: an impassioned but utterly cynical defense of the little guy.

What the bill would do is provide consumers more choice and the state much-needed revenue. And while some liquor stores might be in trouble, the legislation seeks to mitigate that by allowing them to sell more things, including cheese, crackers, newspapers and gift baskets. With more places to sell their products, New York wineries would be better off. Let’s toast that.

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

NEW YORK WINE INDUSTRY APPLAUDS GOVERNOR PATERSON FOR HIS BUDGET PROPOSAL
“WINE INDUSTRY AND LIQUOR STORE REVITALIZATION ACT”

(Geneva, NY) -- The New York Wine Industry Association praised Governor David A. Paterson for his commitment to support the opening of the markets for New York wines in the FY2010-11 Budget’s “Wine Industry and Liquor Store Revitalization Act”.

"This will generate $147 million in new revenue for the state in less than two years without increased taxation. In addition to much needed job creation in upstate New York the proposal will generate $22 million a year, every year.” Said Scott Osborn, president of the New York Wine Industry Association (NYWIA),  Most importantly this provision also includes the much needed reform of the archaic liquor laws that make it difficult for our liquor store partners to grow and compete as well as increase in the number of outlets that can carry wine.”

"In a year of budget crisis this addresses immediate needs and will also result in significant job growth in New York," said Dave Mansfield, NYWIA member, grape grower and winery owner. "This is needed for consumers, agriculture, small business, tourism, liquor stores, small and large grocery stores to thrive," he added.

Consumers in 35 other states can purchase wine with their food and more than just liquor at liquor stores, something New Yorkers are quick to appreciate when traveling.  Since people place a premium on local goods increasing the number of outlets allowed to sell New York wines is a victory for those who want to buy local products.

"The wine industry has a huge multiplier effect," noted Bill Lutz, owner of Waterloo Container Company. "Each sale of a New York wine benefits all businesses that provide everything from agriculture to advertising, to packaging, to bottles, to tourism," he said, "and that employs people in rural and metropolitan areas.”

"The spin off of the Governor's proposal to local businesses will be worth millions of dollars to my neighbors and local and state economies," adds Joe Hennessy, President of Vance Metal Fabricators in  Geneva, New York.  "It goes beyond the liquor store versus food store debate.  We can meet the increased demand for our stainless steel wine tanks if this proposal goes through and the more tanks we sell the more people we employ and the more taxes we pay," he said.

Tina Hazlitt, a sixth generation grape grower in the Finger Lakes, knows this means a steady demand for her premium wine grapes. "We and all grape growers in the state hope that this budget provision succeeds. Then we know that our grapes will be sold and that will keep our family farm here providing employment for others. I always tell people that nothing makes the Finger Lakes more beautiful than the rolling vineyards," said Hazlitt.

"New York State’s wine industry produces award-winning wines and we directly or indirectly employ thousands of people," said NYWIA Vice President Suzy Hayes. "If the markets of who can sell wine opens up, wineries across the state are ready to meet the resulting demand. We make internationally acclaimed wines and are the third largest wine producing state in the nation but New York currently ranks 46th in the nation for number of wine-outlets per person. Fixing that imbalance, by allowing wine in food stores, is what our industry needs," she noted.

The New York Wine Industry Association represents grape growers, suppliers, wineries and allied businesses throughout New York. It promotes the health and advancement of the award-winning wine industry in New York through public education and advocacy. With positions on a wide range of issues confronting the wine industry, NYWIA seeks to create a strong, positive economic foundation for families, businesses, and communities.

STATEWIDE COALITION PRAISES NEW, COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH TO WINE
AND LIQUOR INDUSTRY INITIATIVES IN GOV’S FY2011 EXECUTIVE BUDGET

-- Wine in Grocery Stores Proposal Now Includes Significant Benefits and Changes
for NY’s Liquor Stores; Raises $147 Million in New Revenue --

(Albany, NY) – New Yorkers for Growth and Open Markets, a statewide coalition of advocates seeking changes to New York’s liquor laws, today praised Governor Paterson’s proposed FY2011 Executive Budget for including a new, comprehensive proposal to allow the sale of wine in grocery stores that now also features significant benefits and changes for the state’s liquor stores.  This updated, inclusive approach to the issue of wine in grocery stores will directly assist both New York’s wine industry and its liquor stores, while at the same time generating $147 million in desperately needed new state revenue with no new taxes (in addition to estimates from economists that it will net at least another $22 million in annual state revenue on an ongoing basis).  New Yorkers for Growth and Open Markets is comprised of New York State wineries, grape growers, liquor stores, business organizations, grocers and farmers advocating for smart, comprehensive changes to the state’s antiquated liquor laws that will result in increased consumer choice and opportunities for economic growth.

“We are grateful to the Governor for his continued leadership on an issue that is so critical to the sustainability and growth of the New York wine industry.” said Scott Osborn, President of the New York Wine Industry Association. “The inclusion of the much needed reforms for our partners, the liquor stores, makes this a comprehensive revitalization package we whole heartedly support.”??Bob Demeo, a liquor store owner in Troy, NY for nearly 30 years, said, “After last year’s wine in grocery store proposal included nothing to help liquor stores, we said to Albany: ‘Fix the liquor laws, make this work for our industry too, and give us a chance to compete on a level playing field.’  And you know what?  They listened.  The fact is that there are liquor store owners in New York who support sensible changes like these that can improve our businesses and enhance our bottom line.”

Statement For Immediate Release: January 20, 2010

LEGISLATOR TO LIQUOR LOBBY: WILLIE-HORTON STYLE SCARE TACTICS ABOUT BODEGAS HAVE NO PLACE IN DISCUSSION OVER WINE IN GROCERY STORES

BENEFITS OF THE PROPOSED “WINE INDUSTRY AND LIQUOR STORE REVITALIZATION ACT” IN THE FY 2011 EXECUTIVE BUDGET