Fast forward to November 5, 2002. If you want to go buy some bourbon for that mint julep, you have to go to a state-run liquor store... and it will be closed. That's Election Day, when registered voters choose 11 different representatives to the US Congress and one U.S. Senator. The state has decided that boze and elections don't mix - and the state controls the sale of hard liquor.
The state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) has a monopoly on the sale of hard liquor in Virginia. The hours of operation, the products carried, the price, and the locations of ABC stores are government decisions. To reduce the chance that voters might be swayed by liquor, the ABC stores are closed on election days.
All liquor in Virginia is sold in "ABC" stores, managed by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. Virginia started control of alcohol sales after Prohibition ended. State law has permitted sale of liquor by the drink only since 1968. The restaurants and entertainment industry lobbied for that change in the 1960's, eliminating the "brown bag" requirement that customers join a "private club" and bring their own bottle to the restaurant in order to enjoy a drink before a meal. The Virginia Administrative Code (3VAC5-20-30) still limits advertising that uses the words Bar Room/Saloon/Speakeasy/Happy Hour, hoping to minimize the potential for excessive drinking - and wholesalers are not allowed to deliver on Sundays "except to boats sailing for a port of call outside of the Commonwealth, or to banquet licensees" (3VAC5-60-90).
If you look at the sales report for 2001, you'll see that Virginians... and visitors... bought 136,211,980 gallons of alcohol, mostly beer, at 255 store locations. (The location of the main ABC warehouse in Richmond, now at 2901 Hermitage Road, has been described as "Alcohol and Broad.") Total sales were $355 million, and half of that was either profit or state taxes. Hey, there's no competition allowed... The state and its localities make a bundle of money through this monopoly, as described in Annual Report 2000:
| FY 2000 Financial Results | |
| ABC PROFITS1 | 41,435,780 |
| STATE TAXES2 | 58,316,888 |
| GENERAL SALES TAX3 | 12,962,232 |
| WINE LITER TAX4 | 19,058,900 |
| MALT BEVERAGE TAX | 40,746,268 |
| Total | 172,520,068 |
|
(1) Profits are reported in accordance with GAAP. Profits include licensing fees and
ABC's portion (12%) of the Wine Liter Tax (2) State Taxes (20%) on distilled spirits and (4%) on wine sold in ABC stores (3) General Sales Tax (4.5%) (4) The non-ABC portion (88%) of the Wine Liter Tax (rate=40¢ per liter) and beer licensees | |
Where the money went:
| General Fund | Localities | |
| ABC PROFITS | 22,819,890 | 18,615,890 |
| STATE TAXES | 58,316,888 | |
| GENERAL SALES TAX | 12,962,232 | |
| WINE LITER TAX | 9,529,450 | 9,529,450 |
| MALT BEVERAGE TAX | 40,746,268 | |
| TOTAL: $172,520,068 | 144,374,728 | 28,145,340 |
Distribution of Profits and Wine Taxes to Cities
| Cities | Total Profits FY 2000 | Total Profits FY 1999 | Wine Tax FY 2000 | Wine Tax FY 1999 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexandria | $334,413.62 | $297,261.20 | $171,185.91 | $159,639.10 |
| Bedford | 18,579.20 | 16,515.11 | 9,510.66 | 8,869.15 |
| Bristol | 55,466.90 | 49,277.56 | 28,393.44 | 26,466.79 |
| Buena Vista | 19,267.99 | 17,127.38 | 9,863.27 | 9,197.96 |
| Charlottesville | 121,740.85 | 108,215.77 | 62,318.99 | 58,115.46 |
| Chesapeake | 457,132.03 | 406,345.92 | 234,005.31 | 218,221.22 |
| Clifton Forge | 14,073.51 | 12,509.98 | 7,204.21 | 6,718.28 |
| Colonial Heights | 48,317.36 | 42,949.43 | 24,733.60 | 23,065.27 |
| Covington | 21,650.17 | 19,244.90 | 11,082.69 | 10,335.15 |
| Danville | 159,582.04 | 141,852.91 | 81,689.84 | 76,179.72 |
| Emporia | 16,479.76 | 14,648.91 | 8,435.97 | 7,866.95 |
| Fairfax | 59,837.24 | 53,189.48 | 30,630.60 | 28,564.52 |
| Falls Church | 28,640.31 | 25,458.44 | 14,660.95 | 13,672.04 |
| Franklin | 25,048.98 | 22,266.11 | 12,822.55 | 11,957.64 |
| Fredericksburg | 57,229.47 | 50,871.44 | 29,295.69 | 27,319.65 |
| Galax | 20,149.28 | 17,910.74 | 10,314.40 | 9,618.66 |
| Hampton | 402,477.22 | 357,763.11 | 206,027.58 | 192,130.64 |
| Harrisonburg | 92,360.63 | 82,099.62 | 47,279.29 | 44,090.22 |
| Hopewell | 69,483.28 | 61,763.87 | 35,568.40 | 33,169.25 |
| Lexington | 20,931.31 | 18,605.90 | 10,714.71 | 9,991.98 |
| Lynchburg | 198,662.43 | 176,591.59 | 101,695.04 | 94,835.52 |
| Manassas | 82,630.39 | 73,450.39 | 42,298.38 | 39,445.29 |
| Manassas Park | 20,254.55 | 18,004.33 | 10,368.27 | 9,668.92 |
| Martinsville | 48,612.12 | 43,211.45 | 24,884.48 | 23,205.99 |
| Newport News | 515,654.86 | 458,367.03 | 263,963.07 | 246,158.27 |
| Norfolk | 785,788.72 | 698,489.76 | 402,244.25 | 375,112.13 |
| Norton | 12,774.14 | 11,354.96 | 6,539.07 | 6,097.99 |
| Petersburg | 111,369.95 | 98,997.05 | 57,010.13 | 53,164.70 |
| Poquoson | 33,100.88 | 29,423.46 | 16,944.30 | 15,801.37 |
| Portsmouth | 312,540.89 | 277,818.45 | 159,989.28 | 149,197.71 |
| Radford | 47,944.40 | 42,617.89 | 24,542.67 | 22,887.22 |
| Richmond | 609,976.57 | 542,209.86 | 312,246.23 | 291,184.66 |
| Roanoke | 290,280.13 | 258,030.80 | 148,594.02 | 138,571.09 |
| Salem | 71,576.70 | 63,624.73 | 36,640.04 | 34,168.58 |
| Staunton | 73,573.89 | 65,400.03 | 37,662.38 | 35,121.98 |
| Suffolk | 156,835.91 | 139,411.87 | 80,284.11 | 74,868.79 |
| Virginia Beach | 1,182,334.55 | 1,050,980.44 | 605,235.55 | 564,411.31 |
| Waynesboro | 55,791.74 | 49,593.44 | 28,559.73 | 26,633.32 |
| Williamsburg | 34,316.03 | 30,503.62 | 17,566.33 | 16,381.45 |
| Winchester | 66,012.27 | 58,678.50 | 33,791.59 | 31,512.30 |
| TOTAL | $6,752,892.27 | $6,002,637.43 | $3,456,796.98 | $3,223,618.24 |
Not every community in Virginia allows alcohol sales. (The location where bourbon originated is also "dry.") The annual report indicates if a county allows liquor-by-the-drink or if it is dry. In Virginia, 100% of the cities are "wet," reflecting the influence of the hospitality industry whre people are concentrted. Dry counties in 2001 were Appomattox, Bland, Botetourt, Buchanan, Campbell, Carroll, Charlotte, Craig, Dickenson, Floyd, Franklin, Giles, Grayson, Green, Halifax, Henry, Highland, King William, Lee, Louisa, Lunenburg, Mecklenburg, Montgomery, Patrick, Pittsylvania, Pulaski, Russell, Scott, Smyth, Surry, Tazewell, Warren, Washington, Wise, and Wythe.
Virginia's four legal distilleries are located in Albemarle, Culpeper, James City, and Spottsylvania counties. The Bowmans distillery, which claims to be the "oldest family-owned bourbon distillery in the United States" and produces Virginia Gentleman bourbon as well as other liquor, is located downstream of Fredericksburg now. It moved in 1988 from the family's Sunset Hills Farm in Reston and refurbished the old FMC Cellophane plant that once produced the inner linings for men's suits.