Archive for October, 2007
Wednesday, October 31st, 2007
Direct-to-consumer shipment of wine is good for America's pocketbook. That's the finding that has come out of a new study that shows when a state allows retailer-to-consumer shipment, local prices for wine come down in response to the competition.
The study was conducted by Alan Wiseman of Ohio State University and ...
Posted in SWRA Issues | 1 Comment »
Monday, October 29th, 2007
Late last week the Governor of Wisconsin vetoed amendments to the state's budget bill that would have, if signed and had become law, revoked Wisconsin wineries' ability to sell directly to wine retailers, bypassing the wholesaler and allowing the winery to make a little bit more on each sale of ...
Posted in Three Tier System, Shipping Legislation | 2 Comments »
Thursday, October 25th, 2007
Inevitably, the term "Dormant Commerce Clause" arises with any substantive discussion of direct wine shipping laws and discrimination against out of state wine shippers. The important 2005 Supreme Court decision Granholm v. Heald was in fact a case that turned on the scope of the Dormant Commerce Clause when apparently ...
Posted in SWRA Issues | No Comments »
Thursday, October 25th, 2007
Let's try to dispel a myth. This myth is about efficiency.
Thanks to the new website created by the North Carolina Beer & Wine Wholesalers Association, the myth in question is spelled out nicely:
"The three tier distribution system also makes the most economic sense. It provides the best method for smaller ...
Posted in Three Tier System, Shipping Legislation | 2 Comments »
Wednesday, October 24th, 2007
Is the three tier system bad? Does it need to go away? Is it the position of SWRA that it should be dismantled?
These are the questions that tend to arise in the course of a legislative battle over a direct shipping law in different states. They are questions that deserve ...
Posted in Three Tier System, Shipping Legislation | 4 Comments »
Tuesday, October 23rd, 2007
Both Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, philosophers inspired by England's Glorious Revolution and both central to the liberal philosophical foundation of the American political mind since the mid 18th century, observed that at the heart of man's political motivation lies self interest. Virtue can be found in our hearts, but ...
Posted in SWRA Issues | 1 Comment »
Monday, October 22nd, 2007
Regarding the Michigan Judge's ruling that Granholm v. Heald and the principle of non-discrimination applies to retailers as well as wineries, a white paper to this point was written by Judge Ken Starr, Dean of the Pepperdine School of Law, and Kathleen Sullivan of Stanford Law School.
For those of you ...
Posted in SWRA Issues, Legal Issues | No Comments »
Monday, October 22nd, 2007
A District Judge in Michigan last week Michigan Ruling in a case there that exactly mirrors SWRA's position on the issue of Retailer-To-Consumer shipping and the Granholm V. Heald 2005 Supreme Court decision.
Since that groundbreaking Supreme Court ruling, distributors across the country, as well as some State officials, have been ...
Posted in Legal Issues | 1 Comment »
Monday, October 22nd, 2007
After searching high and low for that bottle of Australian Chardonnay you tasted when last in Australia, you find it. A wine merchant located outside your state who has an eclectic taste in Chards lists it on their website. Hallelujah! Upon clicking a few times you are ready to order ...
Posted in Wine Blogging, SWRA Issues, Shipping Legislation, Legal Issues | 7 Comments »