On the heels of last week’s devastating hail storm that all-but wiped out this year’s grape crop for several of AZ’s top wineries, we look back on the court decision that should help get the local wine industry back on its feet. That’s because this spring a Federal Court ruled that there’s nothing wrong with our state’s law allowing boutique wineries to sell their wares directly to consumers. Awesome, right? Well, that’s where things get hazy.

The law was originally passed in 1982 to help the burgeoning AZ wine scene attract customers by bypassing our state’s three-tiered system. That is, alcohol producers must sell to wholesellers, who then sell to retailers, who then sell to us consumers. (Which is a pretty sweet deal if you’re a wholesaler such as beer barroness, Cindy McCain.)

Then some winery in Michigan sued, and blah, blah, blah … Long story short, we’re going to celebrate by ordering some award-winning reds by AZ’s wine-making maestro, Kent Callaghan.

[East Valley Tribune]

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