Last call for alcohol: Taxes go up tomorrow

Friday, July 31, 2009

Today is the last day to buy alcohol in Massachusetts before taxes go from 0% to 6.25%. As I wrote earlier this week, several retailers are offering enticing deals leading up to the increase so it's obviously a good time to stock up. I think it's safe to expect retailers to offer 6.25% off deals after the hike but that of course will only get us back to where we were before the increase.

Once the change goes into effect, I expect to be personally conflicted over whether to support MA retailers or go to nearby New Hampshire where the state runs the liquor stores and there are no additional taxes at the point of purchase. The thing I like about the state-run liquor stores in New Hampshire is that they list the wines they carry on their website including the inventory of each wine at each of their locations. What I don't like about these state-run stores is that they don't list the vintage of their wines on their website, they have limited selection, and they're not nearby. Oh, and the fact that they're run by the government is strange to me. I know they're not the only state in the union that does things this way, but why on earth is the state government in the business of running liquor stores? Bizarre.

A glimmer of hope?

This just in from The Boston Globe: The Massachusetts Package Stores Association is seeking to get the question of whether alcohol should be taxed at the point of purchase on an upcoming ballot. According to the article, MassPack will be doing some research to see whether consumers would support un-taxing alcohol at the point of purchase with an eye towards a ballot question in November, 2010.

Odds and Ends

I was in San Francisco for the Design Automation Conference this past week. I had a pretty busy schedule, but I did manage to meet up with 2 guys who write wine blogs that are the most similar to The Wellesley Wine Press that I've found. The first is Jason's Wine Blog, and the second is RJ's Wine Blog. It was absolutely awesome for me to sit down with people who I have so much in common with (thanks to blogging and Twitter). I'd highly encourage you to check them out and add them to your feed reader if you haven't already.

A quick update on traffic here on the site... July was another record breaking month with more than 7,000 page views. I continue to be humbled and appreciative of your interest and support. Thanks to all of you who have visited, subscribed to the site, or told a friend about The Wellesley Wine Press. It really means a lot to me.

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