Springfield and Philly. What a difference not having the PLCB makes!

Springfield Mo., "the queen city of the Ozarks." Population 167,000 with an MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area) of a whopping 450,000. 
Philadelphia, "the city of brotherly love" (and those who buy their booze across borders). Population 1,526,000 with an MSA of 6 million.

Why am I comparing these two places? They both have a whiskey festival, although technically the one in PA is called the Whiskey and Fine Spirits Festival. "Fine Spirits" apparently includes things like Smirnoff Sorbet Light Peach and Ole Smoky Moonshine Hunch Punch, according to the masters of the mundane in Harrisburg.

So what do you get for your VIP dollars in PA? A chance to taste 304 spirits (really only 292, because some are listed twice!) of which about half (151) are something I would call whiskey or whisky. In Springfield you get  at least 200 whiskies and none are called Hunch Punch. You can look for yourself. Here is Philly, and here is Springfield. Not even close, which just shows the sad state that the PLCB is in. If a magazine can sponsor and put together a pretty good whiskey festival in a town the size of Springfield, but the 3rd largest retailer of spirits has to scrape the bottom of the barrel and still falls short, that speaks volumes about how well the PLCB serves the citizens, and what the industry thinks of our backwards system. Yes, I know the Philly Festival is sponsored by a magazine too but they can't do it without the expressed approval and participation of the PLCB.

Look at all the spirits PA doesn't carry. Must be 100 of them -- but they all are available in the free market. Of course, a number of things at the Philly Festival aren't available in PA either, which means if you really want some, you'll have to break the law to get it. All courtesy of the PLCB, who approved all of this. Even the highlights mentioned by the PLCB are laughable. There are only three, and two are for items you can't get. 

I especially like that Stranahan's Colorado Whiskey will be offered for tasting. It isn't carried at all by the PLCB, so the entire state is missing out on some pretty good whiskey. You can't get it if you did like it anyway. I guess they think the drive to State Line Liquors in MD is close enough. Which brings up the question: why even have this at the festival if the PLCB doesn't carry it? If you have no chance of buying some of the things they are offering, what's the point? It really does show how limiting and ignorant the people in Harrisburg are.

Face it, the PLCB is the reason why we can't even have a half-assed whiskey festival. People that do real festivals laugh at the PLCB and us the same way we laugh at somebody trying to buy a six pack at a distributor. You know that is the way it should be done, but somehow in PA it is never done right.

If you want to go to one of these things, plan a trip.  There are numerous festivals in the US, far better than the PLCB ones in Philly and Pittsburgh, plus you have a chance to actually buy the products you taste and give your money to somebody that cares about the consumer.  DC, New York, Boston Vegas, Nashville, LA, Bardstown, Atlanta, and more  As a consumer you deserve the best, so why support the worst?  The Free Market is the only real Modernization.

Once Again: Sauce for the PLCB Goose Ain't Sauce For the Beer Gander

I've told you how the PLCB interprets The Almighty Liquor Code to their own benefit. Well, they're at it again. The upcoming Pittsburgh Whiskey and Fine Spirits Festival (Nov. 14, 6-9, a benefit for the Nat'l MS Society, details here) is sponsored by the PLCB. Now, when there's a licensed wine festival in Pennsylvania, PA wineries can sell bottles of their wines. At this festival in Pittsburgh, the PLCB is going to have an "On-Site Store," from which you can "Take home a bottle of your new favorite spirit, many not available anywhere else in Pennsylvania".

I'll remind you that you are absolutely not allowed to purchase beer at a beer festival; not from Pennsylvania breweries, not from any brewery, wholesaler, or importer. Not allowed. Does this make sense? Why do you ask? It's a State-mandated and supported monopoly, silly, it doesn't have to make sense.

Abolish the PLCB. Re-write the Code. Treat us like adults. Treat us fairly. Is that so much to ask?

PLCB flexes its dumb muscles again

Go read this post on my friend Jack Curtin's blog, Liquid Diet Online, and catch my response in the comments field. The PLCB just cannot keep its paws off booze and booze venues in State College. They get crazy and over-active. Now, partly, that's because the Legislature leans heavily over their shoulder in State College, because of all the constituents who have kids at Penn State. But you know what? If you, The Legislature, want to have this horrible two-headed abortion of an agency doing the job of "alcohol control" for you, step back and let them do it.

I'll have something to say about the wine direct-shipping mess soon. Honestly...sometimes I think the name of the blog should be Why the PA Legislature Should be Abolished.