WHAT'S HAPPENING!
ANOTHER TAKE ON WINE AND HEALTH The Americans, for all their talk of Liberty and Freedom, often make it difficult to buy alcohol – in some states of the US and in most Canadian provinces, the local government monopoly is the main or only retailer of wine and spirits. In Philadelphia, this state monopoly, which seems to have been a reluctant response to the abolition of prohibition 70 years ago, has just been eased slightly. The BBC reported last Sunday that they have introduced vending machines to be installed in supermarkets. No advice on wine is allowed, and the maximum price is $23. To use the machine you have to swipe an identity card and a payment card and then take a breath test to prove that you are not drunk. And the whole set-up is monitored by CCTV. As many as 100 machines will be allowed in the state of Pennsylvania, which is only 46,000 square miles in area with a population of under 13 million. In this country, wine is sometimes sold from vending machines. The wines are usually samples of the stock in up-market wine shops, delivered using a card sold by the shop. I have never seen one with a breathalyser attached.
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Trade Tasting Reports London Wine Show 22/10/09 Don't Forget Full Tasting Notes are in CLUBS NEWS Are all your details up to date - future events listed - any club news? Send your information to the editor.
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