Michigan

Food & Drink Weekly, Dec 12, 2005

The state legislature of Michigan has approved a law that boosts the amount of wine that can be shipped to consumers from out-of-state wineries. Michigan's state legislature passed legislation to allow in-state and out-of-state wineries to ship up to 1,500 cases of wine per winery per year directly to consumers.

The move represents a significant change from earlier legislation approved by the state. Michigan politicians voted this summer to allow wineries to ship about 500 cases a year directly to consumers but would have banned retailers and restaurants from buying directly from Michigan wineries. The new bill would allow Michigan wineries to distribute their wines on their own to restaurants and retailers, while out-of-state vintners would have to continue to use a wholesaler. However, Michigan wholesalers fear that California wineries could undercut them and give volume discounts to larger wholesalers. The in-state distributors say they cannot give price breaks to compete with those discounts. The bill is set to go to Governor Jennifer Granholm (D), who is expected to sign it.