Why do Pennsylvania citizens put up with their alcohol laws!

[Ohiogirl81]

Originally Posted by go phillies

8 or 9 bucks for a 6 pack of Sam Adams, for example, at Wegmans doesn't seem like a rip-off to me.

Not everyone lives near Wegman's. I don't, and the other grocery stores around me don't have the same liquor sales privileges that Wegman's does. But hey, I guess you wouldn't mind paying $12 for a sixer of Sam Adams at my neighborhood pizza shop, then.

I don't see how PA prices for 6 packs are any different than anywhere else.

I can get a six-pack of Sam Adams at Kroger in Ohio for $6.99; probably cheaper at Meijer or Wal-Mart. Not monumental, but significant enough. Nevermind the yummy (and really really really inexpensive) varieties of beer (and wine) you can get at Trader Joe's.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by go phillies

I agree....I do drink on occasion, but if drinking is such a big part of someone's life that the PA alcohol laws get their panties in a bunch, I think they may have a drinking problem.

It seems way too many people in PA, specifically Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, have lives that revolve around alcohol...every social event has to be a drinking party, and grown adults, even those with kids, seem to spend way too much time on a barstool at happy hour. I don't get the attraction to drinking all the time.

On the contrary, it's the hobbyist drinker who is most impacted by the current state of the laws. The lushes who you imagine us anti-"stupid alcohol laws" folks to be actually don't care. The price of alcohol service at bars is not out of line with the rest of the country. The price of bulk beer for people who want to throw parties is not out of line with the rest of the country. Someone who wants to get hammered at home and isn't too concerned about what he drinks to get the job done has a wide selection available to him at your average state-run store or he can get a case of cheap crap at a distributor at a reasonable price.

What is out of line are the price of beer for those who are perfectly content to get a six-pack and don't need or want to buy a whole case of the stuff. Wine enthusiasts who want something other than what the state stores carry are SOL. You like kräuterlikör but think Jagermeister tastes like zombie feet? Good luck finding Kabanas or Killepitsch instead. (Maybe the state stores have started carrying them but I doubt it.) The sort of thing workaday drunks don't care about.

The irony then is that Pennsylvania's current liquor laws do virtually nothing to discourage very lushes you lament while encouraging a substantial segment of responsible, moderate imbibers to buy their stuff elsewhere whenever they get the chance. Or to just leave/avoid the state altogether.

[greg42]

Originally Posted by Drover

On the contrary, it's the hobbyist drinker who is most impacted by the current state of the laws. The lushes who you imagine us anti-"stupid alcohol laws" folks to be actually don't care. The price of alcohol service at bars is not out of line with the rest of the country. The price of bulk beer for people who want to throw parties is not out of line with the rest of the country. Someone who wants to get hammered at home and isn't too concerned about what he drinks to get the job done has a wide selection available to him at your average state-run store or he can get a case of cheap crap at a distributor at a reasonable price.

What is out of line are the price of beer for those who are perfectly content to get a six-pack and don't need or want to buy a whole case of the stuff. Wine enthusiasts who want something other than what the state stores carry are SOL. You like kräuterlikör but think Jagermeister tastes like zombie feet? Good luck finding Kabanas or Killepitsch instead. (Maybe the state stores have started carrying them but I doubt it.) The sort of thing workaday drunks don't care about.

The irony then is that Pennsylvania's current liquor laws do virtually nothing to discourage very lushes you lament while encouraging a substantial segment of responsible, moderate imbibers to buy their stuff elsewhere whenever they get the chance. Or to just leave/avoid the state altogether.

This. Thanks. Sums it up well I think.

For me I only care about the beer stuff in passing since I don't drink beer. I think the setup is stupid, but I can live with it on the rare occasion I would buy a six pack of beer in PA. It's made a little easier now with the quasi-grocery store beer sales.

I'm more interested in variety and service for wine and spirits. What the state stores happen to carry can be priced, eh, ok sometimes. My most recent comparison was NY, but I don't think that's a particularly good comparison. But who cares about that when you can't even get the good stuff you keep hearing about? You either can't get it at all, or you have to order 6 bottles or something ridiculous.

Been a while since I read the rest of this thread. It's hard to figure out why there would be an aversion to privatizing the state stores, whether you drink or not. I don't drink much at all, but when I want to try something I'd like to have the choice of going somewhere that has better variety, better service or both.

The state stores don't bring in a ton of money over and above the sales taxes and alcohol taxes. Selling off licenses will bring a usefully-timed windfall in this down economy. What's not to like here?

[Ohiogirl81]

What Drover said.

[Aqua Teen Carl]

Originally Posted by Drover

On the contrary, it's the hobbyist drinker who is most impacted by the current state of the laws. The lushes who you imagine us anti-"stupid alcohol laws" folks to be actually don't care. The price of alcohol service at bars is not out of line with the rest of the country. The price of bulk beer for people who want to throw parties is not out of line with the rest of the country. Someone who wants to get hammered at home and isn't too concerned about what he drinks to get the job done has a wide selection available to him at your average state-run store or he can get a case of cheap crap at a distributor at a reasonable price.

What is out of line are the price of beer for those who are perfectly content to get a six-pack and don't need or want to buy a whole case of the stuff. Wine enthusiasts who want something other than what the state stores carry are SOL. You like kräuterlikör but think Jagermeister tastes like zombie feet? Good luck finding Kabanas or Killepitsch instead. (Maybe the state stores have started carrying them but I doubt it.) The sort of thing workaday drunks don't care about.

The irony then is that Pennsylvania's current liquor laws do virtually nothing to discourage very lushes you lament while encouraging a substantial segment of responsible, moderate imbibers to buy their stuff elsewhere whenever they get the chance. Or to just leave/avoid the state altogether.

Co-sign. People have no idea how hard it is to be a craft beer drinker in PA due to price and availability.

Also, mmmmmm, zombie feet.