Last week, as reported by the Times Union, a decision by Acting Supreme Court Justice Debra Young ruled against the New York State Liquor Authority (“NYSLA”) with respect to an ongoing legal battle with Colonie-based retailer Empire Wine. See In Empire Wine Case, SLA Must Release Communications With Illinois Officials. Empire originally sought production…
Category: New York State Wine Laws
Proposed Establishment of the “Champlain Valley of New York” Viticultural Area
TTB is accepting comments through August 31, 2015 on a proposed American Viticultural Area (“AVA”) called “Champlain Valley of New York,” as per a proposed rule in the Federal Register on June 30, 2015. The proposed AVA is as follows: The petition proposing the new AVA was sent to TTB by Colin…
New York Legislature Amends Tax Law To Help Small Wineries
In recent news, the Assembly and Senate of New York both passed a bill to amend the state’s tax law. The bill proposed a change to the current law which would significantly help small wineries within the state. The summary of the bill provides that it “[e]xempts certain wineries from…
Empire Wine Bill Passes in New York State Senate
In case yesterday’s news wasn’t good enough for industry members, today we are here to repot something even better: the acclaimed Empire Wine bill passed today in New York’s Senate. That’s quite a successful move for a bill that was only introduced a day ago. The bill now awaits Governor…
Empire Wine Bill Passes in New York State Assembly
In promising news for industry members, the much talked-about “Empire wine bill” pending in both New York’s Assembly and Senate passed in the Assembly on Monday, June 15, 2015. See A05920 Summary. Its sister bill, S04446A, is currently still pending in the state’s Senate and, according to Capitol Confidential, “has advanced to the third…
Judge Grants Order Allowing Empire Wine to Subpoena NYSLA Employees
Last week, and as noted originally by Capitol Confidential, Honorable Gerald W. Connolly, Acting Supreme Court Justice for the State of New York Supreme Court for the County of Albany, issued a decision and order allowing Colonie-based retailer Empire Wine to subpoena NYSLA employees. See Empire Wine & Spirits LLC v. New York State…
New York Is Open for Business — Or Is It?
Last week, the Albany newspaper Times Union published my most recent op ed on the Empire Wine’s legal battle with the NYSLA. The article discusses the background between the two parties, as well as the catastrophic business environment that could develop in New York State from the Authority’s interpretation of its regulations. New…
Bill Introduced to New York State Assembly Supports Empire Wine
As reported by The Albany Times Union and Capitol Confidential, a bill was introduced this week to the New York State Assembly by Assemblyman Phil Steck that proposes to amend New York State’s alcohol beverage laws. See Bill Supports Empire Wine Sales; Bill Would Curb SLA’s Power Over Out-Of-State Wine Shipments. The bill will reportedly stop…
On Reserve Author Quoted in The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal recently published an article detailing the New York State Liquor Authority (“NYSLA”) and Empire Wine dispute on retailer direct shipment to consumers. The retailer originally filed suit against the NYSLA in September, shortly after the Authority issued a letter to Empire stating the retailer violated a state…
New York Winery Defeats NYSLA’s Bid to have Liquor License Revoked
Justice Doris Ling-Cohan, a Manhattan judge, reversed the New York State Liquor Authority’s (“NYSLA”) decision to revoke the license of a Long Island farm winery. The judge dismissed three charges brought on behalf of the NYSLA against Vineyard 48, a Southold, Long Island-based farm winery. Justice Ling-Cohan noted that the…