The Underage Predicament and liquor shipping, is this the real issue?
First, Happy Thanksgiving to every one out there. I hope you and your family enjoy your Thanksgiving. I am extremely grateful to live in the best country on this planet. I will eat well, reflect on this great country and its […]
Fred Biletnikoff shows the limits to Spirits’ growth
I remember Fred Biletnikoff as the tough looking Raiders receiver, that you wouldn’t want to meet in a dark alley. For any football fan, Fred’s toughness left an indelible mark on you.
Today, Fred is retired, still looking tough, but instead of making his living […]
Does the three-tier system hinder diversity?
Last month I had the pleasure of listening to the Honorable Douglas Ginsburg speak. Judge Ginsburg, sits on the D.C. Court of Appeals and was nominated by President Reagan to the U.S. Supreme Court. Unfortunately, youthful indiscretion did him in as he admitted to smoking pot […]
Michigan do you hear your consumers calling: What Peter Criss can teach the State of Michigan!
Peter Criss of Kiss wrote a song called Beth, which acknowledged that he heard his wife’s despair and was dismayed by it. The State of Michigan by contrast is hearing the despair from its consumers and […]
Right Cuomo’s wrong and clean up his mess
Andrew Cuomo left a mess for new Governor Kathy Hochul. In many areas the cleanup will become very difficult. However, there is one area where a quick fix is readily available, that area is helping the struggling hospitality industry.
In Cuomo’s last days, he let […]
The fulfillment house folly, what exactly are we accomplishing?
Recently, several states including Alabama, Kansas, and Tennessee passed bills requiring that fulfillment houses shipping wine become licensed. Under these laws, a winery can only ship wine via its own premises or a licensed fulfillment house.
If a winery ships from an unlicensed fulfillment house, it […]
Fulfillment House Licensing: The new way to undermine direct to consumer shipping
How Licensing fulfillment houses will create an administrative octopus and threaten to kill off avenues for direct-to-consumer shipping.
Direct-to-consumer (DTC) shipping of wine greatly increased during COVID. Conventional wisdom indicates the growth of DTC shipping will ride the wave of momentum […]
Governor Cuomo and the Cocktail Calamity: The Follow-up Sequel to Cuomo Chips
Sometimes it is really hard to follow Governor Andrew Cuomo’s reasoning. Does he desire to make policy choices that hurt the hospitality industry or does it occur on accident?
We all remember back to last summer when his feelings got hurt […]
I was once a radical and then the world changed
During March 2020, I got a call from Julia Momose, one of the preeminent mixologists in America and the owner of Kumiko, a place famous for world renowned cocktails. Like many restaurants she was hit out of the blue by COVID. She wanted to […]
WILL THE BULLY STATE PREVAIL OVER THE CONSTITUTION?
Recently, several states introduced legislation requiring out-of-state fulfillment houses to obtain a license in their state, even though a fulfillment house does not generally perform business activity in the state. In Alabama and Kansas, bills requiring out-of-state fulfillment house become licensed passed both houses, […]