Is Delaware DtC Wine Shipping Right Around the Corner?

Lizzy Connolly
December 5, 2022

Delaware State Rep. Mike Smith (R-Pike Creek Valley) plans to introduce legislation that will open up direct-to-consumer (DtC) wine shipping to Delawareans. Currently, state residents can legally purchase wine through the three-tier system but are not able to purchase directly from a winery and have the product shipped to their front door. Smith’s bill would change that.

“In the state of Delaware, you still cannot have wine shipped directly to your homes,” Smith said in a statement posted to the Delaware State House of Representatives – Republican Caucus Facebook page. “Around the holiday season, one of the things people like to do most is ship a bottle of wine to their friends. Whether that’s through a wine club, through a winery…they want to get their friend, their family that bottle of wine that they’ve been wanting all year round. And in Delaware, you still can’t do that.”

Smith added that the three-tier system is old, antiquated and dates back to Prohibition. It is the main reason people “don’t want to move the needle in Delaware” toward DtC wine shipping, he said.

State Rep. Jeff Spiegelman (R-Clayton) is expected to be a co-prime sponsor of the new bill, according to the statement. Spiegelman said state residents can have prescription drugs delivered to their front doors, and the state is dragging its feet on the issue of shipping wine DtC, as consumers deserve greater choice and the state could benefit from increased tax revenue.

House Bill 210, which would have granted limited DtC wine shipping permissions in the state, was previously introduced in 2021 but did not advance in the legislative session. Smith explained that his latest iteration of the bill would include some of the following elements:

  • Require carriers, like FedEx and UPS, to obtain special licenses to handle wine shipments.
  • Require drivers to receive training on how to responsibly make wine deliveries.
  • Mandate special labeling of the packages.
  • Require licensing of wineries shipping their products to Delaware.
  • Impose the same state alcohol taxes levied on retail sales.
  • Restrict deliveries to adults over the age of 21 that must identify themselves and sign for the package.
  • Set annual limits on the quantity of wine that wineries would be able to ship to individual households and to Delaware as a whole.

“In Delaware, we always pride ourselves on being first,” Smith said. “But in this case, let’s not be last. Happy holidays and let’s get this done for Delawareans.”

Take Action

Want to stay current on the latest DtC wine shipping legislation? Subscribe to our blog and never miss an update.

Sign up for Email Updates

Stay up to date with the latest tax and compliance updates that may impact your business.

Author

Lizzy Connolly

Share this post

North America Tax Information Reporting
March 22, 2024
Market Conduct Annual Statement Reminders and More

On the second Wednesday of each month, Sovos experts host a 30-minute webinar, Water Cooler Wednesday, to share the latest updates on statutory filings. In March, Sarah Stubbs shared information about the many filings due after March 1, from Market Conduct Annual Statements to health supplements for P&C and life insurers writing A&H businesses and […]

North America ShipCompliant
March 21, 2024
How Producers Can Build a DtC Shipping Market

Direct-to-consumer (DtC) shipping has become one of the leading sales models for businesses of all sizes and in all markets. The idea of connecting directly with consumers is notably attractive, as it helps brands develop a personal relationship and avoid costly distribution chains. Yet, for all its popularity, DtC is often a hard concept to […]

North America ShipCompliant
March 20, 2024
Key Findings from the 2024 DtC Beer Shipping Report

This March, Sovos ShipCompliant released the fourth annual Direct-to-Consumer Beer Shipping Report in partnership with the Brewers Association. The DtC beer shipping report features exclusive insights on the regulatory state of the direct-to-consumer (DtC) channel, Brewers Association’s perspective and key data from a consumer preferences survey. Let’s take a deeper dive into some of the […]

March 20, 2024
As the World Gets Smaller, Think Bigger About Global Tax Compliance

For the past few weeks back, my colleagues and I have been talking a lot about the importance of a global strategy when it comes to addressing today’s modern tax environments. On the heels of Sovos introducing the Sovos Compliance Cloud, many in our company’s leadership team have blogged about related topics and the critical […]

North America ShipCompliant
March 12, 2024
Florida HR 583 Set to Uncork Larger Format Wine Bottles

Florida wine lovers could soon enjoy a bigger selection of bottles based on a recent bill passed by the state’s legislature (HR 583) that would remove the existing cap on wine bottle sizes. What is Florida’s HR 583 bill? Currently, Florida law prohibits the sale of wine in bottles larger than one gallon (a little […]