Tennessee's Wine Quandary

If you're familiar with one state's alcohol laws, you're familiar with one state's alcohol laws.

They laws differ in every state. We have control states (state-owned liquor stores), commonwealth states (no alcohol at groceries, only at distributors), anything goes states, and "3.2 Beer" states. Those in Bible Belt include more restrictive and sometimes baffling measures.

The Tennessee Legislature has moved closer to approving wine sales in grocery stores. On its surface, this seems like a slam-drunk. You can buy wine in an Ohio grocery, as well as many other states.

Once untangled, Tennessee's web of state liquor laws don't make this issue as clearcut as the convenience seekers make it out to be.


In Tennessee, anything with 6.2 percent alcohol or more is considered spirituous. That covers all high-gravity beer. Why 6.2 percent? The state raised the limit so Dogfish Head could sell 60-Minute IPA in grocery stores. Incidentally, Dogfish Head exited the Tennessee market early this year.

What can you sell in a Tennessee liquor store that doesn't have alcohol? Nothing.

They cannot sell corkscrews, ice, non-alcoholic mixers, cigars, wine glasses or anything else. So far, there are indications a trade-off would be allowed. For most stores, selling bags of chips won't cover the loss of wine.
Plus, stores would have to add cooler space if they could now sell Budweiser (we probably wouldn't).

We cannot hold on-premise tastings, and the tastings must be free. When Grand Cru Wine & Spirits was founded, the owners wanted to install a table & chairs in one corner with some wine magazines. The Alcoholic Beverage Commission took a dim view of that proposal. Could a grocery hold tastings onsite? Unanswered questions lie everywhere.

Those restrictions led many stores to open adjacent to grocery stores, a retail version of symbiosis. That decision could be a deathblow if suddenly wine comes to groceries.
In fairness, the store where I work should be hit less hard than others. We lie in an middle class neighborhood and are 2-3 miles from the nearest grocery.

Wine in grocery stores is a lot like the Dogfish Head decision - a patchwork move made to please a single constituency. The question shouldn't be "Why isn't wine in grocery stores?" It should be "Why doesn't Tennessee overhaul its retail alcohol laws?"

Separate bureaucracies cover the grocer alcohol sales and the state liquor establishments. An individual can only own one liquor store - which leads to extended families getting into the business - but no restrictions apply to grocers.

I get tired of people touting the job creation abilities of wine in groceries when I might lose my second job. The "this is the people's will" argument also grows stale. Unfortunately, I have no interest in wearing a goofy Hawaiian shirt at Trader Joes.

That said, I do see a place for wine at Tennessee groceries. I also reject the evangelical argument that it will lead to more underage drinking. Fact: if kids want alcohol, they will find a way.

Grocers won't be stocking Anderson Valley Cabernet or Hermitage at the grocery, leaving the niche for wine stores to flourish.

But any change needs to be package with broader alcohol law reform.