AUGUSTA — Banning small liquor bottles known as nips will reduce littering, make it harder to drive while drinking and cause “no significant loss of revenues” for the state, according to state alcohol regulators. In a formal recommendation to commissioners, the Bureau of Alcoholic Beverages and Lottery Operations recently offered a full-throated defense of Gov. […]
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Posted inMaine, sj-web
Regulators tie popularity of nips to spike in drunk driving
AUGUSTA — Tiny liquor bottles known as “nips” may be causing a spike in drinking and driving in Maine because they’re so easy to chug and chuck, a state official said. State liquor regulators eyeing a possible ban on the 50-milliliter bottles said there’s been a spike in convictions for operating under the influence that […]
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Next up for ‘nips’ bill: a near-certain veto
AUGUSTA — A measure to require a 5-cent deposit on tiny liquor bottles known as nips is heading for a near certain veto from Gov. Paul LePage — and possibly a move by him to ban nips entirely, which could hurt a major bottler based in Lewiston. With the Senate’s unanimous agreement Tuesday , the […]
Posted inMaine
Lewiston bottler drops support for recycling bill after LePage threat
AUGUSTA — Following a threat by Gov. Paul LePage to end the sales of tiny bottles of liquor in Maine rather than allow lawmakers to require a nickel deposit on them, a bottler that employs 130 people in Lewiston withdrew its support for the compromise measure. Mark Brown, the chief executive officer of Sazerac Co., […]
Posted inMaine
Booze battle
Competitive pricing, liquor contracts target revenue lost to New Hampshire. But, is it enough? LEWISTON — A state effort to recapture revenue Maine loses in alcohol sales to New Hampshire by lowering prices is underway, but some state officials and others worry the effort isn’t being implemented as aggressively as first intended. And that Maine […]
Posted inBusiness, sj-web
Pine State becomes sole bidder in effort to market Maine liquor
AUGUSTA — After spending years preparing to bid on the state’s wholesale liquor contract and successfully appealing this spring when part of it was awarded to someone else, Ford Reiche has decided to walk away. The president of Dirigo Spirits and former Auburn businessman said Friday that his company decided not to bid again on […]
Posted inBusiness
State liquor agency overturns marketing contract
AUGUSTA — The state’s liquor and lottery agency has notified Pine State Trading Co. that a contract awarded in February for marketing operations has been rescinded and that a new request for proposals will be issued to restart the bid process. The Bureau of Alcoholic Beverages and Lottery Operations notified Pine State of the decision […]
Posted inMaine
Review panel considers dispute over Maine liquor marketing contract
AUGUSTA — The question of whether a contract to market Maine’s wholesale liquor business was awarded fairly and within the bounds of a new state law that was passed in part to recapture alcohol sales lost to New Hampshire is now in the hands of a three-person administrative review panel. The contract, one of two […]
Posted inMaine, sj-web
Maine’s liquor chief to step down
AUGUSTA (AP) — The chief of the Maine Bureau of Alcoholic Beverages and Lottery Operations who just helped negotiate a new 10-year liquor distribution contract for the state says he is stepping down. Gerry Reid confirmed to the Portland Press Herald (http://bit.ly/K1Fhbk ) on Tuesday that he is resigning, but he did not elaborate other […]
Posted inNation / World, New England, sj-web
Old Man of the Mountain is on liquor bottle
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The Old Man of the Mountain, New Hampshire’s granite profile that tumbled to the ground 10 years ago, is showing up on a limited edition commemorative liquor bottle. Gov. Maggie Hassan and the New Hampshire Liquor Commission introduced the circular bottle with a picture of the Old Man and the state […]