After years of fretting that Rhode Island laws put them at a disadvantage, liquor stores and wineries have a reason to raise a glass to the General Assembly.
Legislation passed by both chambers that would give an extra day of free samples and loosen restrictions on wineries’ on-site sales are poised to make a difference in the state’s retail alcohol sales, industry observers say.
Under current regulations, Rhode Island wineries can only sell their beverages on site if the grapes used were grown within the state. But one set of companion measures, co-sponsored by state Sen. Valarie J. Lawson and Rep. Katherine S. Kazarian, would allow wineries to sell up to three five-ounce glasses and three 750 milliliter bottles per customer in a single day, regardless of where the grapes originated.
A second bill, proposed by state Sen. Hanna M. Gallo and Rep. William W. O’Brien, would allow liquor stores to offer free, unlimited samples for one day in August. Currently, liquor stores can offer this service once during March and November.
Both bills were passed by the General Assembly but are awaiting Gov. Daniel J. McKee’s signature before going into effect.
On-site sale regulations have long placed wineries at a disadvantage in Rhode Island, compared with other businesses selling alcohol, says Nick Fede, executive director of the Rhode Island Liquor Operators Collaborative and co-owner of Kingstown Liquor Mart in North Kingstown.
“The Rhode Island wineries that do not farm their own grapes are extremely limited from a consumer experience and tourism perspective,” Fede said.
The measure “allows these manufacturer-wineries to operate on an even playing field as most breweries, who also buy their ingredients from a third party to create their alcohol-based products,” he said.
The action in the General Assembly comes as a federal lawsuit over Rhode Island's ban on out-of-state wine deliveries works its way through the courts.
State law prevents out-of-state retailers from delivering wines to Rhode Islanders. Wine enthusiasts who brought the lawsuit argue the law is unconstitutional. While U.S. District Chief Judge John J. McConnell Jr. rejected the lawsuit in 2022, the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled last year that the ban discriminates against retailers from other states and sent the case back to McConnell, where it remains.
In the meantime, Jessica Granatiero, founder of wine-focused liquor store The Savory Grape in East Greenwich, says that wineries and liquor store owners alike have reason to welcome the new state legislation.
The measure regarding on-site wine sales eases a restriction on about a dozen Rhode Island wineries that similar vineyards in other states don’t face. “They are usually making the wine here, even if the grapes are grown somewhere else,” Granatiero said.
And increased access to on-site winery sales can also drive higher traffic at liquor stores, she says.
“Later on, [winery customers] may want to procure that same wine they had before,” Granatiero said, “so they typically go to a liquor store to find that wine they first bought at a winery.”
Granatiero also expects a significant boost for her own business through a third day of free samples.
Though the change would increase sample days by just one day per year, that additional day can have a significant impact on sales, Granatiero says.
In March and November, “We see a really big [sales] bump in that month because of this ability to conduct unlimited samplings,” she said.
Though the state’s alcohol retailers will benefit from having another day of free samples, Fede says it's not necessarily a case of the more days the better. Restricting the number of days tastings can be offered at liquor stores remains essential to maximizing business benefits, he said.
“When the consumer knows when to expect these events, they mark their calendars and look forward to them,” Fede said. “If these samplings happened every single week out of the year, they would become normal and less impactful.”