Law Allowing Imported Grapes, Grape 'Powder' Threatens Wineries

HARTFORD, CT — Grapes are the heart of wine. If they come in a powder form, or can be imported from somewhere else under the law, how is that fair to the 40 farm wine makers in the state who labor growing grapes so that wine made in Connecticut is made from grapes grown in the state?

That's what farmers, winemakers and some legislators are asking.

State Sen. Christine Cohen (D-Guilford) met with Connecticut farm wine makers and a bipartisan group of legislators Friday all of whom are calling for a "technical change to be made this session to a 2019 liquor control bill – a change they said is needed if Connecticut farm wineries are going to continue to thrive economically," according to a statement from Cohen.

Cohen said a section of the comprehensive and otherwise positive 2019 bill, “An Act Streamlining the Liquor Control Act,” allows certain wine makers in Connecticut to simply import grapes, grape powder or even pre-bottled wine from out of state to create their own “Connecticut-made” wine – and selling up to 100,000 gallons of wine a year directly to state retailers.

That provision drastically undercuts the millions of dollars in investments and the multi-generational farming tradition that Connecticut’s 40 farm wineries have put into their products, Cohen said adding, "at risk is Connecticut’s $154 million vineyard industry and its 1,400 employees."

“Growing grapes is the most expensive part of creating wine – the land costs, the infrastructure, the labor to nurture and harvest the grapes,” said Jamie Jones of Jones Family Farms and Winery, whose family has been farming in Connecticut for six generations. “Allowing manufacturers to import grapes from regions with a lower cost of production and sell directly to retailers will seriously threaten the future of Connecticut vineyards and the state’s farmland.”

The 2020 legislative session ends on May 6.

“This is a serious problem that we need to address,” Cohen said.

“We want to grow our heritage of agriculture here in Connecticut, we want to enable our tourism industry to thrive with programming such as our Connecticut Wine Trail. But time is of the essence in this short legislative session. My concern is finding the right vehicle for this legislative fix before this new law takes effect on July 1.”