There’s been a lot written about the U.S. Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision to deem the ban on direct wine shipping unconstitutional. So much has been written, in fact, that I decided not to write something in my Dan’s Papers column last week. But, because I did all the leg work for the story and interviewed/emailed with several Long Island winemakers and winery owners, I figured I’d not let that work go to waste.

So, I figured I’d share some of their thoughts with you. Keep a look out over the next few days…I’ll post them individually to break them up a bit (some are pretty long).

First, here’s what Trent Preszler of Bedell Cellars and Corey Creek Vineyards had to say:

"We’re still waiting for the NYS legislature to resolve its position,
however there’s no question this is a monumental week for wine consumers and
small farm wineries around the country.  At Bedell Cellars and Corey Creek
Vineyards, a positive resolution of the state and federal positions will no
doubt have an economic impact on our business.  Wherever possible, of
course, we work very closely with our wholesale distributors around the
country to satisfy customer requests. 

However, as a small farm winery it’s
not cost effective to maintain distributor relationships in every state, nor
would we have enough wine to do so.  As such, direct marketing programs are
increasingly important.  We host tens of thousands of visitors in our
tasting rooms each year — many of whom live far away or in states where our
wines are not distributed, so they join the Wine Club to receive regular
shipments.  Others simply want the convenient service of being able to send
their purchases back home.  The Supreme Court ruling puts us in a stronger
position to more adequately meet the needs of a rapidly changing and
geographically diverse customer base."


— Trent Preszler
Vice President, Operations
Bedell North Fork, LLC