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Bottled my Amarone di Beppe. This is a WE SI Amarone that I tweaked the hell out of a la Joeswine! It is pretty danged tasty. The attack and mid-palate are pleasant. However, it has a somewhat bitter finish, which I imagine is due to all the added tannins. Let you know in 18 mos.!
 
Bottled my Amarone di Beppe. This is a WE SI Amarone that I tweaked the hell out of a la Joeswine! It is pretty danged tasty. The attack and mid-palate are pleasant. However, it has a somewhat bitter finish, which I imagine is due to all the added tannins. Let you know in 18 mos.!

Joe has helped me with many tweaks! I'm sure will be great in time!!
 
Got shot down by the PLCB due to my wife working for a hotel which has a liquor license. Mind you, she has no dealing with the bar, she only pays the bills and hires/fires people. So since she works for the hotel, we can't do the winery on our property, nor can I use any of our money to find the winery, and since I can't have a winery, I can't have a satellite location.

To say that I am seething over this ridiculous PA code is an understatement. The state is telling me that in order to get a Limited Winery License, my wife has to quit her job. To say this is a stupid law for PA, but this is PA.
 
Last night, I bottled my WE Selection International Amarone -- AKA Amarone di Beppe tweakfest, because I tweaked the hell out of it a la Joeswine! Tonight, I am racking and vacuum degassing my WE Eclipse Stags Leap Merlot.
 
Got shot down by the PLCB due to my wife working for a hotel which has a liquor license. Mind you, she has no dealing with the bar, she only pays the bills and hires/fires people. So since she works for the hotel, we can't do the winery on our property, nor can I use any of our money to find the winery, and since I can't have a winery, I can't have a satellite location.

To say that I am seething over this ridiculous PA code is an understatement. The state is telling me that in order to get a Limited Winery License, my wife has to quit her job. To say this is a stupid law for PA, but this is PA.

Ho, that really sux. I am so sorry to hear all that.

I miss PA, but I do NOT miss their antiquated liquor laws. And that is only from a buyer's perspective, not a producer's. Thank goodness that when I grew up in that commonwealth, I lived only 5 miles from the nearest NJ liquor store!
 
Got shot down by the PLCB due to my wife working for a hotel which has a liquor license. Mind you, she has no dealing with the bar, she only pays the bills and hires/fires people. So since she works for the hotel, we can't do the winery on our property, nor can I use any of our money to find the winery, and since I can't have a winery, I can't have a satellite location.

To say that I am seething over this ridiculous PA code is an understatement. The state is telling me that in order to get a Limited Winery License, my wife has to quit her job. To say this is a stupid law for PA, but this is PA.

We need an 'un-like' button. That really stinks. What a ridiculous ruling.
 
Bill, have you thought of contacting your state rep? This is just wrong!!!!!!!!
 
I'm going to take a swing at reasoning with the government tomorrow. My wife has no dealings with the bar, except to hire and fire personnel. She has no other decision making authority. My point of contention will be that she is "employed" by the hotel from 8 to 5, then unemployed when she leaves (when she leaves work, there is no employer/employee arrangement). When she is working for the hotel, she is NOT working to further the winery (and vice versa). I feel that the PLCB has over reached it's boundries and I am of the opinion that this part of the code is ridiculous and borders on restraint of trade. This is akin to a part time bar tender not being able to work at another bar or beer distributor.

In addition, the problem is that since my wife works at the hotel, I can't finance my winery (because we jointly own the bank account) AND we jointly own the house (so the winery can't be in the house either). She has a financial interest (along with me) in the house and works at a licensed establishment. To which I also reply that anyone with an IRA or mutual fund probably owns a part of a alcohol manufacturer/distributor/importer (such as InBev, Budwieser, Coors, Hotel or Restaurant chain with a bar).

I hope to have their heads spinning tomorrow.....
 
Okay, here's what I sent to PLCB legal department, who then said they would get back to me in 6 weeks.... (mods, feel free to delete if I put info on the following that would get the site in trouble)....

My name is Bill ******* and I am writing on behalf of Bushy Run Winery (LID# *****). We are seeking to obtain a limited winery license from the PLCB. We recently received a correspondence from the PLCB informing us of issues concerning my wife”s (Karen *******) involvement in the winery as she is employed during the workday by All City Hospitality in the position of Human Resource/Accounting Manager. All City Hospitality has a pre-existing PLCB license for their bar at their hotel (the Ramada Inn and Conference Center located in Greensburg, PA). Please note that other than hiring and firing employees and writing checks for the hotel’s bills, she has no other dealings with the bar/liquor license. Her impact on the bar's operation is negligible at best.

At issue is the PLCB code 443 (d) of the Pennsylvania Code which states that no employee of a licensed hotel or restaurant shall in any wise be interested either directly or indirectly in the ownership or leasehold of any property or the equipment of any property or any mortgage lien against the same used by a manufacturer to manufacture liquor or malt or brewed beverage, nor shall any hotel, restaurant or club licensee, or any officer, director, stockholder or agent or employee of such licensee, either directly or indirectly lends any monies, credit or anything of value or the equivalent thereof to any manufacturer for equipping, fitting out, and maintaining and conducting, either in whole or in part, an establishment used for the manufacture of liquor or malt or brewed beverage.

Please note that the specific fermentation of grapes (wine) is excluded from this detailed code.

We feel that this section of the code is over-reaching and limiting.

We do not contest that Karen ******** works for All City Hospitality (Hotel Liquor license H-****/LID ***** from the hours of 8am to 5 pm. When working at the hotel, she devotes 100% of her effort to the hotel. She is not a decision maker on any part of the part of the liquor licensed area, with the exception of offering or terminating employment and benefits for the hotel’s employees and processing checks for the hotel’s bills. However, at the end of the work day, the employer/employee relationship between her and the hotel ends. She receives no compensation for her time not at the hotel, nor is she bound by any restrictions from the hotel during her time not at the hotel.

After her arrival at our home where the winery is seeking to be established, she can then be in the employ as Manager of Bushy Run Winery, where she can devote 100% of her time to the winery during the hours established with the PLCB application. During this time, an employer/employee relationship will exist between her (as manager of the winery) and the winery. She will not be working on any of All City’s causes or requirements. In this way, there will be a distinct separation of the employments.

In addition, we also seek the question the enforceability of this clause on hotel employees, officers, directors, stockholders, or agents. We believe that the PLCB will agree that a benefit for hotel and restaurant employees at various locations will include the provision of a 401K/IRA. As these retirement vehicles include mutual funds, the mutual funds may include investing in businesses which include other PLCB licensees (such as hotels and restaurant chains, InBev, Budweiser, Coors, etc). This would put a large majority of existing hotel and restaurant employees in violation of this PLCB code. We feel certain that the PLCB would not look to un-employ vast numbers of hard working PA business employees which are saving for retirement or to have their retirement funds restricted just to comply with an overly restrictive state code.

It is with these two reasonable issues that we seek to appeal the issues raised by the PLCB with Bushy Run Winery’s Limited Winery License.
 
Bill,

Is George Dunbar your State House Rep? If he is, get him involved, that's what he's there for, to help his constituents navigate our vast and complicated state government. A call from him to the PLCB will at least have them look at your complaint a little quicker, especially since he's the Deputy Whip for the majority party. Just a thought.
 
ce-

Spoke with George on Tuesday night and he told me to visit his office, which I will do either today or tomorrow. I also chatted with a friend who operates the Laurel Highlands Meadery and he was working for a brewery at the time he got licensed. So I'm hoping that PLCB is a reasonable agency to deal with....
 
I hope all works out well. My brother is the head of IT for the House Republicans and I know he could give us clues of how to proceed in the best manner if your representative didn't give the type of effort you expected. He has lot's o'contacts from his time there and knows heads of the different departments.

Communicating with the person who can actually produce a change is half of the battle.
 
Got up early and did some packing in the kitchen. Of course, found more stuff to give away. :D Started tidying a bit for tomorrow: out buyer asked to come by to measure some windows and ask some questions about the yard, routine maintenance we've done and what all the wires coming out of the family room wall go to (I have four sets of speakers, along with ethernet, HDMI, etc all coming into a hub there) :D Then took the kids to my parents place for the night. Mowed the lawn in the new house, then came home and mowed the lawn in the 'old' house. Now headed out to dinner with wifey's family.
 
Attend the Hall & Oates concert with ffemt and our wives to blow off some steam. Concert was great, we hazed the bartender into giving Doug some "special" drinks and won tickets to the Styx concert on Friday night. All in all, a very fun night with good music and great friends.

Finally had our house painted and got the tractor back to cut the grass (twice). Today, did some bench testing on the Vidal, with a backsweetening to 1.004 winning out. Will have to bottle that this week.
 
Attend the Hall & Oates concert with ffemt and our wives to blow off some steam. Concert was great, we hazed the bartender into giving Doug some "special" drinks and won tickets to the Styx concert on Friday night. All in all, a very fun night with good music and great friends.

Finally had our house painted and got the tractor back to cut the grass (twice). Today, did some bench testing on the Vidal, with a backsweetening to 1.004 winning out. Will have to bottle that this week.

I seen those pics of you guys at the concert, I'm not thinking you got anything done today, :)
 
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Qin seen those pics of you guys at the concert, I'm not thinking you got anything done today, :)


I on the other hand Julie was quite productive. I got the garden planted and a new firepit put together then went and had Margaritas and grilled fajita's at the neighbors...
 

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