Give us free!

Some of you who read this space regularly (hi mom) will recall I am a bit of a wine buff ('snob'). Anyone who is similarly inclined and who lives in the Commonwealth of PA as I do is probably equally as frustrated as I am with the state-run wine monopoly and the state's archaic laws governing the distribution of wine and its sale to consumers within the state's borders.

Basically, to buy wine I have to deal with the state-run distributors who, as a monopoly, are not necessarily inclined to provide either competitive pricing or service or selection. Wineries located out of state cannot ship wine to me directly, though in-state wineries can - an incosistency that has recently been designated as unconstituational by the Supreme Court.

Of course, one way to eilminate this incosistency is to prevent in-state wineries from shipping to consumers - a tactic that essentially screws the small guy wineries and is actually being employed in those offending states that are not simply ignoring the ruling for the time being.

Why do this? Because large distributors have powerful lobbyists and lots of money. And lots to lose - not to me, purchaser of a few direct cases of Opus One or Far Niente for example, but from the big boys: WalMart, Target, CostCo... Those folks could quickly eat up their monopoly wine distribution businesses because they are probably vastly superior at distribution, having to contend competition which the state-run monopolies considered such a nuisance that they did away with it entirely.

I was interrested in where PA stood on all of this, so I wrote my PA state representatives (yes, I'm *that* kind of nerd). It's easy - you can do it yourself in less than 5 minutes with a pre-drafted letter via www.freethegrapes.com.

Anyway, one of my state reps., Curt Schroder, has actually replied, and I'm pleased to report it's in favor of getting wine distributed to the masses in a manner consitent with healthy capitalism. Check out his reply below:

"Dear Mr. Roberts:

Thank you for your recent correspondence concerning the current restrictive laws against the direct shipment of wine purchased from out-of-state wineries. One issue that has historically generated much interest among alcoholic beverage consumers around the state is the Commonwealth's prohibition against residents having wine shipped to their homes from out-of-state sources. Obviously, as it is with you, this restriction has long been a sore spot for many Pennsylvania residents. However, I assure you that I agree with frustrated consumers who have longed for the ability to purchase wines of their choice, in the manner of their own choosing. I believe consumers should be given the ability to decide which wines they want and from where they wish to make the purchase.

Furthermore, I agree with your assessment that interstate direct shipments of wine would encourage fair and open trade within the Commonwealth. It is both convenient and cost efficient for many consumers to purchase alcohol this way and it is difficult to enforce the law that prohibits these transactions. That being said. I would like to point out that i am a cosponsor of House Bill 624, the wine industry's model direct shipping bill, which was introduced by Representative Godshall. The bill currently awaits consideration in the House Liquor Control Committee.

Again, I thank you for taking the time to contact me regarding your concerns and I invite you to contact me again if I can provide you with any further information or updates on this issue.

Very truly yours,

CURT SCHRODER,
Member 155th Legislative District"

Solstice!

Yo - had an awesome time at Solstice 2005... possibly the best one to date, certainly one of the largest of all time. It was fun to see the jams from several great bands like Bender and Hake & Jarema, who have become musical friends of ours over the years. I'm sure I'll be jamming with H&J at the Four Dogs Tavern soon this Summer. Tons of Solstice pics are already up at www.waykool.com.

Speaking of pics - I've managed to finally get around to posting several... Gettysburg with the in-laws, the 5-Spot Philly show, our own Solstice pics, as well as pics taken at the recent North Star Bar performance. Especially cool are the professional shots taken at the North Star, these are amazing shots of excellent quality and it's tough not to feel like a Rawk Star when you have an artist of that caliber capturing the jams. Anyway - check them all out at photos.yahoo.com/sephage.

More show dates coming soon. Until then - rawk on and be well!

Planes, trains, automobiles

Just a quick post to say Happy early B-day and congratulations to my lovely wife, who just completed the advanced portion of her program with the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. Judging by the level of applause when she took the stage, I'd say that her student clients were pretty happy with her advice!

She celebrated in the only sane way possible - by jumping out of a plane. So I am also happy to report that she landed safely back on solid ground (physically if not metaphorically :-). Anyway - love ya babe!

Pics from the above and Bahamas will be posted soon.

And finally - Don't forget about Summer Solstice this weekend.

Peace!

Goombay-ed

Back from the Bahamas...
Overall, we had a really good time. The trip was really for Ker to catch up with her old friends, though I was happy to go along for the ride!

Speaking of rides... I made my way over to Green Turtle Cay on the Stampar's fishing boat (though I had to make a brief switch mid-ocean to another boat during an unexpected storm, but returned to the "Spanish Moon" once we hit Spanish Cay). The Stampars are the creators of our wedding bands - not sure if that means I owed them, or they owe me... ;-). Lots of fishing ensued on the journey to the islands from en route rom Jupiter, FL.

Speaking of fishing - we toured the Abacos quite a bit during the week, and many of the 20-or-so people in our group fished, which we then cooked (but only just a bit for the tuna!), when not swimming in the shallows with stingrays, or drinking (alot).

Speaking of drinking... special thanks to the Stampars for their beverages, hospitality and for generally pulling the trip together, and of course to the irrepressible Lincoln (a Green Turtle native) who helped us catch Yellowtail... then fried it up on Munjack Cay in his ancient frying pan, while feeding the scraps to the 4 ft. sharks in the shallows during our island partying.

Speaking of eating & partying - join me with the SL Band (if not sitting in with a few of the other awesome bands that will also be providing entertainment that afternoon) at the 2005 Summer Solstice on the 18th.

jahmon

Greetings from green turtle cay. arrived by fishing boat (and switched Boats mid ocean en route from FL). Pig roast 2nite....