Many in Austin County enjoy a good glass of wine.  Quite a few residents have even been to Buffalo Creek with friends to enjoy a relaxing glass.  Others go to their preferred retail outlet or store to pick up their favorite but, have you ever tried to order wine directly from the distributor?  If you haven’t, don’t worry because you can’t.  Laws are in place that restrict the ability of the consumer to purchase wine directly from the producer.  Reason Magazine recently covered this topic.

Jobs Board“Given the intertia of wine regulations and wine laws, the only way to begin to get them repealed or reformed is to bring them to light,” says Tom Wark, a wine marketer in Napa Valley and founder of the American Wine Consumer Coalition.

Wark says that wine regulations are outdated and cater to special interest “middle men” who use the law to insert themselves between wine producers and retailers and consumers. He points to the fact that while 40 states allow consumers to ship wine straight from their favorite winery to their home address, only 14 states allow consumers to order wine online directly from out-of-state retailers. Wark argues that these regulations clearly benefit local retailers and big wholesalers at the expense of consumers.

“It’s rent-seeking at its worst,” says Wark.

 

 

The video above is approximately 3 minutes. Shot and Produced by Zach Weissmueller, a producer at Reason TV. Music by Ion Romania and Yukon.