Wine sales issue needs addressing

 In the upside down world of Albany politics, it figures that Gov. Paterson's proposal to finally allow the sale of wine in grocery stores would be in trouble.
  
The advantages of New York selling wine in grocery stores, particularly in these economically off-the-cliff times, are so obvious and overwhelming as to be self-evident. New York consumers would instantly encounter vastly more choice and convenience in terms of availability, which in turn translates into more wine sales, happier drinkers, more state sales tax and far more outlets for the state wine industry. Who could argue?

Well, as expected that would be the state's existing wine and liquor stores, which see their state-sponsored monopolies at risk. If fact, they are fighting the governor's proposal tooth and nail, with an intensive lobbying effort aimed at the Legislature and the state's wine industry. Winery owners are getting an angry and seemingly organized earful from liquor store owners who are telling them they better not support this, or they will risk losing shelf space for their wines. It's gotten very nasty across the state. Most operators of wineries I've spoken to are officially neutral on the proposal, and mostly don't want to be drawn into it. Because at the moment, those wineries rely on the existing system to distribute their wines to the public and this puts them in economic jeopardy. Personally, many of them look forward to the day New York joins 35 other states in opening wine sales to food outlets, where wines belong. I say all this as a reviewer of wines for this paper and having occasionally judged wines for the New York Wine and Grape Foundation.

There are plenty of examples from California, Washington, Florida and elsewhere on how wine in grocery stores has increased consumption, benefited the home state's wineries and enhanced state revenues, while not increasing illegal consumption by minors.

"I was told point blank by someone representing the liquor stores that neutral was not good enough. That I had to sign up against it," says Scott Osborn, owner of Fox Run Vineyards on Seneca Lake in the Finger Lakes. Scott's reponse was to get angry, go public about the intimidation and speak in favor of the legislation. He's since gotten even more angry calls from liquor store owners who have told him his wines are going to disappear from the shelves and wind up in the discount bin.

This is ludicrous. Fox Run is a superb winery, chosen last year by Wine & Spirits Magazine as one of the 100 best in the world.

Similarly, the liquor lobby has done a far better job than the proponents of wine in grocery stores in working the Legislature, especially the Assembly majority. Their lobbying has contended vigorously, although with little substance, that New York is better off the way it is. Plus, they've claimed hundreds if not thousands of liquor stores would go under if this legislation passes. Who knows if there's any merit to that argument? But these hardball scare tactics have worked so far