Bottoms up: Pa. launch booze lottery
HARRISBURG - In a practice it says might become more routine, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board on Monday unveiled an online lottery system to sell hard-to-get wines and spirits.
HARRISBURG - In a practice it says might become more routine, the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board on Monday unveiled an online lottery system to sell hard-to-get wines and spirits.
Call it a booze lottery.
Under the system, when the LCB gets limited quantities of speciality bottles, individuals and businesses will have a window to register online for the right to buy them.
The first drawing will be for bourbon from the Buffalo Trace distillery's "experimental collection" - 12 bottles of 100-proof French oak barrel-aged bourbon, and 12 bottles of French oak barrel head-aged bourbon, the LCB said.
Pennsylvania residents and businesses can register until 11 p.m. Saturday at www.finewineandgoodspirits.com. Next Tuesday, 24 winners will be selected randomly by computer, and each winner will be permitted to purchase one bottle for $48.49.
Officials hope the new system can provide a fair and orderly way to distribute highly sought-after wines and spirits.
Last year, when the agency made limited quantities of Pappy Van Winkle bourbon - some that reportedly cost as much as $250 each - available online on a first-come, first-serve basis, the website crashed due to overwhelming demand, said Elizabeth Brassell, LCB spokeswoman.
"The interest was just more than our system could handle," she said.
Brassell said that if the lottery system proves successful, the board may offer more limited-quantity sales over the next few months, although she said there were no specific bottles waiting to be sold.
The system is not, however, designed to significantly expand the types of wines and spirits available in Pennsylvania. Brassell said the lottery will only handle special or limited offerings from sellers who already are approved to do business in the state.
Customers who are seeking specific types of wines or spirits that aren't already available in Pennsylvania can request a special order through a LCB store, Brassell said.
It is generally illegal to bring wines or liquors back to Pennsylvania from out of state.
The downside to special orders: They have to be shipped to a store and receive a shipping charge, handling fee, sales tax, and liquor tax.
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Correction: This story has been corrected from an earlier version that stated the deadline for Pennsylvania residents and businesses to register for the state Liquor Control Board's first online lottery for hard-to-get wines and spirits was 10 p.m. on Saturday