Question for Massachusetts Berserkers

I’m engaged in a discussion in which a Mass resident is saying that retailers are limited to selling wines that are on a state ‘approved’ list. That was the reply they’ve received when asking about the availability of certain wines. This came up during a debate about whether stores there had sufficient variety of labels and, if not, why not.

I know that state laws vary widely, and that state-controlled shops could have such restrictions, but I questioned that person’s statement. What could they be referring to?

What they are referring to is the limitation of only being able to purchase from state approved wholesalers. In some or maybe most states, retailers can not purchase directly from wineries. Because of this limitation, if no wholesaler carries a particular winery, then they are are not available from any retailer in that state. That is probably what the “approved” list the resident is referring to.

I am not sure what the restrictions are for the state of Massachusetts, so this may be true there or not. Unfortunately, there are no uniform rules from state to state.

It sounds like they don’t understand what they’ve been told. As in most/all other states (it kind of depends on how you look at this), we can’t buy from anyone outside of Massachusetts. We’re limited to MA wineries that self distribute and what MA wholesalers offer. There isn’t some state approved list, though. Selection here is better than a lot of states, not as good as a few others. It’s pretty straightforward, and the way they’re saying “state approved”, if that is what they’re saying, makes no sense.

I agree. When you say “we can’t buy from anyone outside of Massachusetts” I assume you mean as a consumer. This was a consumer walking into a retailer and being told that they couldn’t offer a specific wine for sale because it wasn’t on the state “approved” list. I’d think it would be obvious to anyone that not all wineries have distribution in every state, but maybe not. That’s what makes the world go 'round, and 'round, and ‘round’, and 'round.

is wine still exempt from sales tax in Mass?

Doug means as a retailer. They have to work with MA licensed distributors.

And yes, wine is still sales tax free in MA.

OK. Here, in CA, a retailer can buy direct from the winery, so that difference could easily be the source of this.

Weren’t they charging sales tax for a few years, though?

Wow, my phrasing was really poor there. I mean that in most states, as in Massachusetts, retailers can’t buy from sources outside of state, whether they’re distributors or wineries.

Peter, can you buy directly from wineries in other states? I thought it was only in-state.

There is no sales tax on alcohol in MA, but that was not always the case.

Hmmm. I’m pretty positive we can buy from wineries at least in states that allow our wineries to ship there. It’s a reciprocity thing if I’m remembering correctly. I know we can buy from wineries in Oregon and Washington.

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It lasted less than a year. The revolt was furious,

I believe this was changed last year so that Mass residents could buy directly from out of State wineries (but not retailers) and have an amount (subject to a limitation?) shipped each year. I don’t recall what sort of commercial reciprocity was required, though I suspect there was something.

Sorry, my previous posts were confusing and confused. They also weren’t about this, but yes, wineries can now legally ship directly to Massachusetts residents if they pay for a license to do so. I do not believe there is any reciprocity requirement, but there are several states that have that for retailers. I do not know if it exists anywhere for wineries, but it isn’t significantly relevant for those in most cases.

Whoops! Looks like I read through too quickly and misinterpreted what you were saying

LOL Peter, I saw this discussion on Chowhound.

Little bit of a thread drift but . . . domestic wineries can ship direct to retailers in Maryland if they have a fairly small production (I would have to look up the limit). Meanwhile, any domestic winery, regardless of its size, can ship direct to consumers in Maryland. It is illegal for out of state retailers to ship directly to Maryland, no matter where the wine is from. Some retailers ignore this law. I don’t know about shipping to Virginia, but I do know that every wine that’s sold in Virginia has to be registered with the state and, if I am not mistaken, the process is a bit of a headache as they also require label approval similar to what the TTB does.

Update - There is a proposal up for hearing Tuesday the 12th in Boston that would permit out-of-state (err… out-of-commonwealth) retailers to ship wine into Massachusetts. A link to the proposal is here: Bill Text: MA H3891 | 2017-2018 | 190th General Court | Introduced | LegiScan

For the Baystaters and interested parties out there - I received this online petition yesterday: https://account.votility.com/enterprise/NAWR/ec/358

This is Massachusetts. If I hold my breath, I’m pretty sure I’ll die waiting.

I’ll post the links on my FB account.

Massachusetts rules sound a lot like Texas. Goes to show that whether progressive or conservative, state gov will submit to a well-funded lobbyist. A real shame.