Wine shipping bill is all bottled up(1)
Prospects for an end to state ban appear to be dim
As it turns out, 2010 probably won't be the vintage year for Marylanders who want to buy wine over the Internet or receive deliveries from Napa Valley.
The head of a key Annapolis committee said Friday that it "will be a challenge" for his panel to endorse an end to a ban on direct wine shipments. Wine-lovers and state wineries have been pushing to overturn the prohibition for years but have been blocked by the state's powerful liquor lobby and lawmakers sympathetic to the industry.
Del. Dereck E. Davis, a Prince George's County Democrat and head of the House Economic Matters Committee, sounded skeptical about the measure's prospects after hearing from both sides Friday. He becomes the second committee chairman to offer a bleak assessment of the proposal: Sen. Joan Carter Conway, a Baltimore Democrat whose health committee is considering the legislation, opposes lifting the ban.
