Posted on: Friday, June 15, 2001

New law allows direct-to-consumer wine shipments

By Joan Namkoong
Advertiser Food Editor

The common but illegal practice of having wine shipped to Hawai'i for personal use will soon be legitimate. Senate Bill 630, allowing what are technically called "reciprocal shipments" of wine, has been signed into law by Gov. Ben Cayetano and will take effect July 1, 2001.

The new law allows manufacturers of wine to ship up to 18 liters — the equivalent of two cases — to Hawai'i residents 21 years of age or older for personal use and not for resale.

Out-of-state wineries must obtain a license from the Honolulu Liquor commission before shipping wine here.

The delivery of such a shipment does not constitute a sale in the state of Hawai'i and so is not taxed although the tax rate is negligible.

Until now, shipping wine into Hawai'i for personal use has not been legal, though many vinophiles do so anyway. Individuals who want to receive wine from out of state can already apply for a permit from the Honolulu Liquor Commission allowing a specific shipment.

For the consumer, direct wine shipments have been a way of getting wines not available within the state — many from smaller, boutique wineries that do not have distributors here. There are 13 other states that have enacted reciprocal legislation.

The new law was supported by Hawai'i wineries Tedeschi Vineyards Ltd. and Volcano Winery, who are seeking to export more of their products to consumers in other states.

"It will help local wineries to ship directly to consumers and help in the marketing of the islands," said Warren Shon, executive vice president of Southern Wine and Spirits, which represents Tedeschi. "On the other side, for smaller wineries who do not distribute in the state, they will be able to ship directly to consumers."

Scott Bothof, general manager of Volcano Winery, which produces honey and tropical fruit wines, said people who visit the winery on the Big Island want to have wine shipped home. "They're on vacation buying other things, and they don't want to carry it home. I'm hoping to average 50 cases a month," he said.

Wine retailers here don't seem to be threatened by the new regulation.

"It's a well-written law," said Lyle Fujioka of Fujioka's Wine and Spirits. "The wine has to come from a winery, not a retailer," so it doesn't place retailers here in competition with retailers on the Mainland. And Fujioka believes that, because of the cost of air-freight, consumers are unlikely to go to the expense of ordering any wine they can get here.

Jay Kam of Vintage Wine Cellar said there's already a lot of wine coming into Hawai'i illegally, so he's happy to see an enforceable law that should lessen illegal activity. Wine sellers can't stock everything, he said; the law allows consumers to acquire hard-to-find wines from small producers that a retailer here would be unlikely to carry.