Court Lets Wine Lovers to Buy Out-Of-State
WASHINGTON May 16, 2005 — Wine lovers may buy directly from out-of-state vineyards, the Supreme Court ruled Monday, striking down laws banning a practice that has flourished because of the Internet and growing popularity of winery tours.
This is a Supreme Court case I've been watching for some time, and the ruling is a big win for Oregon's wine industry. While Oregon does not produce as much wine as California or a couple of other states, our wineries produce some very high quality wines. Unfortunately, many states require that out of state wineries sell only to in-state wine distributors. Because many of our wineries are small operations, they often don't have the volume or market clout to even appear on a distributor's radar.
The arguments in this case were the states' constitutional right to regulate alchohol production vs. the rights of Interstate Commerce. Commerce won, and so did many of the small Oregon wineries.
And so did you, if you like good, reasonably priced wines.
Cross-Posted at Head West, Turn Right.
Update:
Despite his usual impeccible taste and class, The Maximum Leader misses the boat by expressing plans to order wine that exlude Oregon wineries.
May I humbly suggest that our esteemed erzats emperor, and all other regarded readers consider the following excellent Oregon Wineries:
Girardet Winery -- Their Barrel Select and Petit Cuvee are my two favorite Pinot Noirs.
Abacella Vineyards -- They pride themselves on their Spanish-style Tempranillo, but I prefer their excellent Cabernet Franc.
King Estate Winery -- Producing good wine at a reasonable price, they also have one of the prettiest wineries in the state (and that's saying something)!
