Yes, Virginia. There is a Wino Santa Claus

[wondersofwine]

There HAS been a lawsuit filed in North Carolina in reference to direct shipping of wines to customers. Ruling was that NC law is unconstitutional in light of interstate commerce laws but an appeal is expected. Crossing my fingers! Saw the article on daily wires on WS Internet site but it also appears on this site under Wine Headlines.

I've been wanting to secure some Ockfener Bockstein wine (from the Saar tributary of the Mosel River, Germany), preferably a spatlese. Haven't been able to find it in NC or order it through local wine shops. Leaving Maryland Monday I stopped at MacArthur's Beverages in DC and bought 15 bottles of wine, including two Ockfener Bockstein Kabinett (they didn't have the spatlese). It is available from sources in NYC or Chicago but would be illegal for them to ship to me under present laws. (I checked before going to DC and I'm allowed to bring into NC 20 liters of unfortified wines which at 750ml a bottle would be 26+ bottles).
Another find at MacArthur's was a 1990 Rene Leclerc Gevrey-Chambertin. I have several bottles of the 1999 which I like but feel is not fully integrated yet. I want to try it over a five-year span. It will be interesting to compare it to the 1990 vintage.