Do all wines come from a distributor?

Another question for retailers. Do all wines come from a distributor or do the wineries sometimes solicit business themselves? I’ve sold my own allocations of X winery to a wine store before, but I wonder if the winery has direct contact (smaller/non allocation wineries) with the store to do some sales. I figure the stores would be receptive to this? cut out the middle man and make a few more bucks (or discount their wines more?)

If there is an obvious answer or this is a stupid question, sorry =P

Max and I need someone to make fun of. Make Charlie the moderator!

Seriously, just kidding.

Charlie

In California, a winery can sell their wine directly, LEGALLY. That is illegal in any other state. Same goes for NY. We can buy N wines directly if the winery so chooses.

I’d be willing to chat in a retailer forum.
Sure, I have my share of war stories from the past 16+ years of being in the trade. However, I don’t think swapping tales of misery really “helps” anything (although commiseration can be fun!).

Charlie, in MA we can also purchase directly from wineries, but most have contracts with distributors.

That answer, in most states and in Indiana would be “No”. A few of the smaller wholesalers have air conditioned panel vans.

Why not? Ask the wholesalers. In my situation I can only buy wine “x” from wholesaler “y”; two wholesalers don’t carry the same wines or if they do it is very, very infrequently and not for very long. They know their cooking wine shipping in the summer months but they don’t care. Neither to the wineries who don’t demand refers. I can’t “demand” refers. I avoid ordering any expensive or limited wines in the summer. I try to patronize the smaller companies that do temp control deliveries. And, I have good relationships with my reps who will pick up and deliver the wines to me. And, I have picked wines up at the wholesaler’s, too.

I have no idea why the wine press isn’t just screaming about this situation.

John

For those states where it’s not allowed, would you be fined/ in legal difficulties if you got a personal allocation from the winery list (as the owner of the store) and then sold it in your store?

It depends on the state, Charlie. In New York State, you can purchase private collections, so it is legal to buy wine from an individual on a mailing list and resell it. Any states that have wine auctions should have this same law as legal, which is when NY adopted it, in 1994.

In Indiana you have to buy any wine that you sell through a licensed wholesaler. The only exception is Indiana wineries. They can sell directly to a retailer. Yes, a retailer would be fined. Now, the chances of being caught are slim. The excise cop would have to know what happened or they would have been alerted by the wholesale rep. Wholesale reps are unlikely to call out a retailer as there would be reprecussions(sp?).

I don’t know what the fine would. Most retailers would simply make a personal transaction like those that occur one these boards all the time. And if a retailer has a good relationship with a wholesaler they can have wines shipped through a wholesaler and the wholesaler can “clear” the wines. That, to my knowledge, doesn’t happen very often.

John

Here in Oregon I can buy directly from any Oregon winery that is willing to sell to me. Many choose to use a distributor for convenience. The smaller wineries tend to go direct. Even the wineries that use a distributor may keep a wine shop like mine as a “house account.” And in what has to be a surprising and stunning moment of lucidity on the part of the OLCC, by paying a small fee each year a restaurant or wine store in Oregon may buy directly from out of state wineries. I really like living in Oregon!

I haven’t heard about this. Can you elaborate? TIA.

Yes but you will pay retail prices, so there is no reason to buy like that.

Wine Self Distribution Permit. Went into effect Jan. 1 2008 I do believe. 100.00 a year.

Is this in response to the Oregon law?

Yes, unless, the winery is going to give the retailer the special FOB price that they give to wholesalers, which would seem unlikely to me.

I don’t see why the winery wouldn’t sell wholesale. We have three tiers of pricing … FOB, wholesale, and retail. There’s a slew of wine brokers around here who handle the local trade, so many of the smaller brands are represented by brokers who sell the wine wholesale (the winery ships the wine and bills the account directly) and the broker takes a 15% commission on the sale. Nationally distributed wineries frequently have a roster that includes distributors and brokers–two different setups for warehousing/shipping/samples/billing which can be a real PITA, but frequently the focus is more on the personalities and service offered in each region, so the winery chooses to accept the complexities in exchange for better representation and positioning. And if/when a winery can sell direct to out-of-state accounts, that would be really sweet. I have been casually looking at the Inertia Beverage program for doing that, but I haven’t yet found out what the fees are (or if I did I forgot already).

I haven’t talked to a whole lot of wineries about this but I have come across several that do. But then again, I have a sparkling personality.

In is an interesting way to get rid of the 3 tiered system. I am all for it. Is Southern W&S in Oregon? I would bet not.

You are 0-2 in this thread.

Sadly, SWS arrived here through the backdoor via a Seattle company they purchased called Odom. So yes, SWS is now entrenched here. Oregon is currently cash on demand for deliveries and everybody theoretically pays the same price for everything. No discounts or free cases, unless it is an end of bin. The OLCC controls hard liquor sales through state stores. Something tells me, thanks to SWS, some or all of these conditions may not exist two years from now.

How do you pay the wineries COD?

By check.

Well stated Mary.

If ordering from a winery in OR, CA or WA I would only purchase based on wholesale price including delivery. Delivery in OR from our distributors is free so I wouldn’t expect to pay a premium from otherwise. While this might sound harsh to the winery, it is still more cost effective than selling FOB and allows for direct account contact.