Board votes to continue study of limited wine off-sale add-on for retailers and restaurants

Liquor control board members voted to continue consideration of a proposed limited wine off-sale add-on that would let certain retailers and restaurants sell a small selection of bottles for customers to take off-premise.

Staff and local business owners described current workarounds—opening and re-corking bottles, sealing them in bags and stapling receipts—and said the process is inconvenient for patrons and staff. Staff member Steve Sprigg and restaurant/retail representatives said the idea under discussion would be an add-on designation (described in the meeting as a “D” designation for beer off-sale in current codes) that could allow a modest selection of wine to be sold for off-premise consumption while preserving the integrity of full off-sale liquor licenses.

Speakers discussed possible guardrails, including maintaining food-sales percentage requirements for restaurants, on-sale pricing to avoid undercutting liquor stores, and a potential square-footage cap to prevent a licensed venue from effectively operating as a wine shop. Nicole Henson (Nicole’s Pastries) described using a small market space and said a limited selection of wine would complement prepared meals to-go.

Commissioners asked staff to compare the proposed add-on to existing wine-license options and report what statutory or ordinance changes would be necessary. After discussion, the board voted to continue the item so staff can develop options and proposed guardrails; the motion to continue passed and no ordinance change was adopted at this meeting.