Episode #11 details the testimony I gave at a joint hearing of the California State Senate & Assembly on the Direct Shipping of wine to consumers in November of 1997, when I was President & CEO of Henry Wine Group in California.

Henry Wine Group was the only Wholesale Distributor of wine in the country at the time and to this day still, which spoke out and backed the right of the wine producers to ship directly throughout the country to  the consumer without going through the 3-tier system. 

I was also a member of the Board of the Coalition for Free Trade (CFT) and later served as Vice-Chair from 1999 to 2001. CFT is the advocacy group that would successfully have a lawsuit go all the way up to the Supreme Court. In May of 2005, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the entity that we backed in this action. A significant event that changed the world of wine shipment, albeit with limitations that are still being fought today. 

It was amusing to me in retrospect to be pitted against Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America, i.e., WSWA, in this battle. 

I believe you will enjoy this escapade. Take a listen or read the transcript below.

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