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Marylanders Can Now Order Wine By Mail

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- It's a new day for wine in Maryland. Direct ship, ordering wine by mail, is now legal. Maryland vineyards are signing up.

And as political reporter, Pat Warren explains, customers are already buying.

Raise a glass to new revenue. Matt Parks Sr. and Jr. lived in Maryland before they moved to New Jersey. It's on rare visits like this one that they get to taste the wines at Boordy Vineyards, but once back in New Jersey, they've had to do without.

"It seemed silly not to be able to get wine shipped to our state from Maryland, you know," said Parks, Sr.

 And all this time a neighboring state has been getting all their money.

"I actually get some wine shipped from Virginia now. I go to a wine tasting there and get them delivered at least twice a year," said Parks, Jr.

That makes Friday an "ah-hah" moment for the champions of direct ship who spent years and years trying to get the General Assembly to let them put a bottle of wine in a box and mail it.

"It was a classic Annapolis standoff where the wine industry couldn't get their foot through that door," said comptroller, Peter Franchot.

Franchot championed the cause and became the first person to have wine shipped to his home.

Boordy Vineyards is one of 20 registered to ship.

"We have a lot of room for growth here. It's a way to reach new people," said Franchot.

It also will bring additional tax dollars into the state.

The state expects to gain 70,000 to 75,000 dollars the first year, with increasing revenue every year after that.

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