The Virginia Senate Finance Committee approved a plan that would let distillers who operate on-site stores for ABC to keep the markup on the liquor they sell – but only if the state budget includes $4 million to replace revenue the state expects to lose in the next two years.
Virginia has 60 operating distilleries, and 38 of them operate on-site stores and tasting rooms.
The stores operate as mini-ABC stores, subject to the same pricing. But distillers want to run them independently and keep the price markup that generates more than $170 million in profit for the state treasury.
“We need to keep our bottle sales to survive,” said Christine Riggleman, owner of Silverback Distillery.
Needless to say, the Virginia Beer Wholesalers Association opposes the plan.