Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverage Licensing Blog

Two new studies find a drink or two a day may cut disease risk and boost 'good' cholesterol.

Moderate alcohol consumption may help protect against heart disease, according to two new papers by Canadian researchers.

One team at the University of Calgary reviewed 84 studies that examined alcohol consumption and heart disease, and concluded that people who drink alcohol in moderation (one drink or less per day) are 14 percent to 25 percent less likely to develop heart disease as those who don't drink alcohol.

Another team reviewed 63 studies and found that moderate consumption of alcohol (which the researchers defined as up to one drink a day for women, and one to two drinks a day for men) significantly increases levels of "good" cholesterol, which has a protective effect against heart disease.

The findings, published online Feb. 22 in the BMJ, add to evidence from prior studies that found moderate alcohol consumption may be associated with a decreased risk of heart disease.

One expert said the research does seem to support the intake of a little alcohol to help the heart.

"In addressing lifestyle issues, alcohol consumption, in moderation, could be recommended as part of a heart-healthy lifestyle," said Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum, a preventive cardiologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City.

The authors of the second paper, also from the University of Calgary, conclude that it is the alcohol content that provides the health benefits, not the type of alcoholic beverage (wine, beer or spirits).

Steinbaum agreed with that assessment. "One of the mechanisms of decreasing heart disease is by increasing the HDL ['good' cholesterol], which is independent of the type of alcohol, whether it be wine, beer or spirits," she said.

But the researchers on the first paper noted that although moderate drinking appears to boost heart health, that message needs to be balanced with the caveat that drinking too much is bad for your health.

Discussions about the impact of alcohol on heart disease should now focus on "how to integrate this evidence into clinical practice and public health messages," William Ghali, of the University of Calgary, noted in a news release from the journal's publisher.

Good piece in Wine Spectator about corkage laws, and whether it makes sense for more states to allow people to "BYOB."

Massachusetts is one of the states that permits BYOB and corkage only at establishments that do not have their own liquor license.

A Pittsfield couple hopes to help revitalize the city with the opening of a new nightclub, pending state ABCC approval of their liquor license.

Donald and Melissa Sweener plan to open "Chameleon's," once the Massachusetts Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission signs off on their license application OK'd by the city Licensing Board two months ago, the Berkshire Eagle reports.

While the Sweeners await the ABCC decision, Chameleon's has developed a loyal following on the Internet, which prompted the owners to host an open house last Friday night in Pittsfield.

"We have 2,200 on Facebook following us, so we decided to show them what we have to offer," said Melissa Sweener. "We even had a 75-year-old woman having a good time on the dance floor."

The upscale establishment will focus on a variety of entertainment ranging from Jazz to comedy Tuesday through Sunday nights, at the former Bobby Hudpucker's Bar & Grill.

Meanwhile, the Licensing Board Wednesday afternoon agreed with city building and fire inspectors that Chameleon's maximum capacity be downgraded from 240 to 200 patrons, a decision agreeable to the Sweeners.

While Robert Quattrochi, who abstained from the board's 2-0 vote in December, was satisfied with the change, he expects the Sweeners will find the night club challenging.

"I still think 200 people is a lot for them and their staff to take care of when you have three rooms to watch," Quattrochi said.

The Sweeners have already hired security comprised of current and former law enforcement professionals they say will help Chameleon's avoid the pitfalls of other night spots who, along with some of their patrons, run afoul of the law. Total employment will range between 10 and 20 full- and part-timers. The owners also plan to install identification scanners, security cameras and institute a dress code for patrons.

Reuters reports that ignition devices that stop drivers from starting their vehicles if they are over the alcohol limit help prevent people convicted of driving under the influence from re-offending, according to a new study.

Re-arrest rates for alcohol-impaired driving decrease by 67 percent after the ignition interlocks are installed compared to drivers with suspended licenses, said the study by researchers at the Community Guide branch of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Around 200,000 vehicles in the United States are fitted with interlock devices that are used to prevent drunken driving by people convicted of such offenses.

"The very strong indication is that ignition interlocks work extremely well with preventing people with interlocks installed from re-offending," said Randy Elder, scientific director for systematic reviews at Community Guide, commenting on the study.

"In order to maximize the benefits of these interlocks in terms of preventing alcohol-impaired driving and crashes, we need to get more people (using them)," Elder said on Tuesday in an interview. He said the devices' deployment was growing.

Around 1.4 million people are arrested for driving under the influence in the United States each year and 1 million of those are convicted, Elder said.

The devices are typically mounted on the dashboard and include a tube into which the driver blows for analysis of alcohol breath content.

Typically their installation is part of a sentencing requirement or a state mandates it for certain offenders as a condition of acquiring a license. Use of the interlocks varies from state to state with New Mexico the leader, Elder said.

Crashes by people driving under the influence resulted in nearly 11,000 deaths in the United States in 2009, representing one third of all traffic deaths, the CDC said. The annual cost of impaired driving is $110 billion.

The review to be published in the March issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine is based upon a systematic review of 15 scientific studies of ignition interlock devices.

In back to back liquor violation hearings that took several hours to resolve, selectmen last week meted out punishments to the Mansfield Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3264 and Sake Steak House, reports the Mansfield News.

The Sake restaurant received a letter of reprimand and agreed to a make a $1,000 "voluntary donation" to the town for its three violations of state liquor laws.

The wars post will lose its liquor license for a day based on police evidence that a former manager was served two drinks at the bar before allegedly striking a mother and her baby while driving drunk.

Selectman Doug Annino voted against the one-day penalty, saying serving the manager of the bar while he was intoxicated showed a "lack of judgment."

"I think it's very serious. I don't know if a one-day suspension is enough," he said.

Police Chief Arthur O'Neill said John J. Camara, 79, of Norton, failed both field sobriety and breathalyzer tests after the incident on Dec. 18. He faces charges of operating under the influence of alcohol, causing serious injury, and operating to endanger. But he said the VFW had not had a violation in more than a decade.

The post will not appeal the decision to the state Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission. Camara resigned his position in January. The post will suspend its license on Feb. 22

Selectmen said Sake Steak House in Mansfield Crossing broke three liquor laws with its sake squirting ritual and should face an additional monetary penalty.

Owner Kevin Shi admitted to the violations including serving alcohol to a minor.

Police filed a complaint against the restaurant after the father of a 19-year old college student told an officer that a chef had sprayed sake, or rice wine, into his mouth as part of the"hibachi" food preparation entertainment when the family was dining there on Dec. 30. The man also told police he heard patrons chanting "sake" and a chef responding by squirting sake into their mouths.

Those actions violate the Massachusetts "happy hour" law that prohibits licensees from offering free drinks, except for "tastings," and from encouraging the use of alcohol as part of a game.

"This is not a frat house. This is a restaurant," Annino said.

Shi said he stopped squirting sake the day after the complaint was filed and had replaced the wine with soda.

Guidelines for liquor violations adopted in 2005 call for a letter of reprimand and one- to three-day suspension for a first violation. But selectmen failed to get a majority vote on a penalty three times.

Citing a new state option that allowed them to fine an establishment without shutting it down, they decided on the reprimand and penalty.

But, while a fine would be collected by the state, a "free and voluntary" donation could be handed over to the town.

Shi donated the $1,000 to the town's fuel assistance program.

Liquor might be sold for the first time in Arlington stores now that selectmen have approved licenses for two local stores.

Selectmen last month approved a license for Shanny Beer and Wine on Summer Street to begin selling liquor, and last week the board OK'd another license for Giles Fine Wine at 137 Massachusetts Ave.

Before the stores can begin selling liquor, they must also get approval from the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission, and the town expects that process could take six to eight weeks.

Last fall residents voted overwhelmingly in favor of allowing selectmen to replace the licenses of three beer and wine stores in the town with licenses that would also allow the sale of liquor.

The third beer and wine store, Menotomy Beer and Wine on Broadway, has not appeared before the board requesting a license, but co-owner Neil Duggan has said he intends to so.

The Lexington Farmers' Market (LFM) is seeking to take advantage of new legislation, recently signed by Gov. Deval Patrick, that allows the sale of wine at approved agricultural events in Massachusetts.

On Monday, Feb. 7, Market Manager Deb Jackson presented the Board of Selectmen with a proposal for a liquor license, which would permit local vintner Nate Benjamin to sell wine at the LFM. Benjamin, owner of Charlton Orchards, has been a vendor at the LFM for six years. He is currently selling wine at the Wayland Winter Farmers' Market.

The board did not vote on the proposal but Selectman George Burnell seemed enthusiastic about the idea.

"Provided that there is no stones in the road on this particular issue, I think it is certainly worth the adventure to see how it all pans out," he said.

Turning to face Benjamin, Burnell added, "If you get any good old-fashioned hard apple cider, sign me up now."

On August 5, 2010, Governor Patrick signed S 2582: An Act Relative to Economic Development Reorganization that provides for the sale of wine from a licensed farm winery at approved agricultural events in Massachusetts. According to the legislation, agricultural events such as farmers markets, fairs and festivals must be approved and certified by the Department of Agricultural Resources before a winery can apply for the appropriate license from the local licensing authority.

State Representative Alice Peisch filed legislation this week (HD 2759), which would amend the state's outdated laws from the 1970s that make it impossible for small brewers to switch distributors. Brewers are required to use distributors -- but if the distributor fails to get their products in front of consumers, there's little that brewers can do about it. While current Massachusetts law does allow switching if brewers can show "good cause" (i.e., disparagement of a brand by wholesalers or proof that the distributor failed to put its best efforts into promoting a specific brand), craft brewers don't have the resources for an expensive legal fight -- unlike distributors which are usually well-funded.

"This bill will allow small brewers to make their product more widely available, while also giving adequate protections to wholesalers," said Representative Peisch.

The Martha's Vineyard Times reports that the Oyster Bar Grille in Oak Bluffs has operated year-round without the required license to serve alcohol, according to town officials. Oak Bluffs police have told the financially troubled restaurant's owners that the establishment cannot reopen as scheduled, February 10, without proof of a valid year-round alcohol license.

The restaurant had been closed since New Year's Eve.

Police said they told manager Michael Gillespie that if he opens for business, he will be subject to arrest.

Town administrator Michael Dutton said the town is tightening enforcement of the bylaws, since the Oyster Bar Grille's violations have come to light.

"He shouldn't have been allowed to operate," Mr. Dutton said. "It has highlighted a little bit of miscommunication between the police department, the selectmen's office, the ABCC, and the applicants."

The state Alcohol Beverages Control Commission (ABCC) denied the Oyster Bar Grille's application for a year-round license in February 2008, but the Circuit Avenue bar and restaurant has been open for business during parts of the past two winters, violating state and local laws. Neither the state nor the town took enforcement action against the restaurant.

The Oyster Bar holds a valid seasonal alcohol license, which permits the sale of alcohol, only from April 1 to December 31.

This week, the ABCC again denied an application for a year-round alcohol license. The commission dated its disapproval February 4. The ABCC cited "failure to comply with Massachusetts tax laws," as the reason for the rejection.

MAD Corporation, the limited liability corporation which operates the Oyster Bar Grille, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on January 14, according to federal court records.

The beginning of bankruptcy proceedings came on the same day that an auction was scheduled to sell the building at 57 Circuit Avenue, along with all the furniture and fixtures. The filing halted the auction and all other actions by the creditors.

The bankruptcy filing lists the Internal Revenue Service, The Massachusetts Department of Revenue, and the Oak Bluffs tax collector as creditors.

According to a motion filed by Edgartown National Bank, the largest creditor, MAD Corporation's debts total $1,587,658, including $742,832 owed to the bank. The filing shows the company owes the town of Oak Bluffs $108,700.

The Times made several attempts over the past three weeks to contact Oyster Bar Grille manager Michael Gillespie and his bankruptcy attorney. Neither responded to messages requesting comment.

Continue reading "Oak Bluffs Restaurant Cannot Open Without Year-Round License" »

Some area restaurant owners say legislation supported by 20 state senators and representatives that would eliminate the state's 6.25 percent meals tax on food and alcohol for a week in March would give local restaurants much-needed attention, reports the Worcester Telegram.

Multiple snowstorms have kept people stuck inside, and the proposed meals tax holiday March 20 through March 26 would bring consumers back out to eat, one restaurant owner said. The tax holiday would not apply to the .75 percent meals tax that towns and cities are permitted to charge.

Paul Barber, owner of the Flying Rhino Café & Watering Hole on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester, said the holiday "would definitely help shake the poor habits ... the routine of not going out." He said it would bring "awareness to part of the economy that has been struggling through the winter."

But such a holiday would cost state meals tax collections an estimated $11 million to $15 million, according to Robert Bliss, spokesman for the Massachusetts Department of Revenue. A year ago, meals tax collections for March totaled $63 million, or about $16 million per week.

Restaurateur Mike Covino of Niche Hospitality Group in Worcester thinks the tax holiday would encourage customers to feel good about spending and supporting the local economy. Were the bill passed, Mr. Covino said he would make additional price adjustments to encourage customers to come in.

"I think it would be a good idea to try to get people out spending, especially when they've been cooped up in the house from the snowstorms," said Joe P. Gerardi owner of Big Joe's Deli on Shrewsbury Street in Worcester. "Maybe this will get them out and generate some revenue in the city and in the state."

Not all restaurant owners favor a tax holiday. Robert J. Dagnello, owner of Wonder Bar Restaurant on Shrewsbury Street, felt that it would not benefit small restaurants. "It's going to create more paperwork than it's worth," he said. "If they really wanted to help the small businesses, they would do six months, not one week."

But Madeleine Ahlquist, owner of VIA Italian Table on Shrewsbury Street, part of the three-venue Worcester Restaurant Group, said, "I think a week is very generous." According to Ms. Ahlquist, the tax holiday would most likely not bring new customers to her restaurant, but might encourage regular customers to come that week.

"We've got to continue moving forward and try to find ways to continue our efforts in support of business," said State Sen. Michael O. Moore, D-Millbury, who is among the co-sponsors of the legislation. "I would love to see the restaurant industry come out of this week with record profits, people going to restaurants, filling tables, so that restaurants can establish new business which will hopefully result in returning customers," he said.

Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll's plan to create three new liquor licenses and allow existing seasonal license holders to sell alcohol year-round failed last week to win the support of the City Council subcommittee charged with reviewing it, reports the Salem News.

Driscoll said the proposed changes would encourage new investment in a city already over its state-imposed license limit and provide relief to Salem businesses now prevented from selling alcohol for three months a year. But Councilor-at-large Joan Lovely, chairwoman of the Committee on Ordinances, Licenses and Legal Affairs, couldn't support the three new licenses because they would create a glut in what she said is already a "saturated" market.

Lovely and Councilor Michael Sosnowski voted against the plan. Councilors Joe O'Keefe and Arthur Sargent voted for it. O'Keefe said it would help energize the city's already vibrant downtown.

After a vote in favor of Driscoll's proposal resulted in a tie, the committee opted to put the matter before the full council next week without a recommendation. The mayor needs six votes to send what is a home-rule petition to the state Legislature for its approval.

The petition asks state lawmakers to let Salem convert seven seasonal licenses -- three all-alcohol licenses and four beer and wine licenses -- into annual licenses and establish up to three new all-alcohol annual licenses. Both the converted and new licenses would be subject to fees the city would collect and put into an economic development fund that would support promotions and activities to bring people downtown.

If one of the converted or new licenses were to be no longer in use, for whatever reason, it would be returned to Salem's Licensing Board, which could then grant it to another business.

The city would solicit bids for the three new licenses.

"We want to be open for business, we want to bring people here," Driscoll said. "We can't close our doors and say, 'No more.'"

Continue reading "Salem Mayor Pushes Liquor Plan " »

The Salem News reports that the Danvers Board of Selectmen is doing a little digging into the status of several liquor licenses in town. You can read about it here.

The Patriot Ledger reports that a Cohasset businesswoman, who thinks it's unfair her beer has been banned because it has caffeine, is trying to convince state officials her Moonshot pilsner shouldn't be on the same list as such notorious products as Four Loko.

"For a small independent company, the order to halt the sale of Moonshot has been devastating to my business," Rhonda Kallman, founder of New Century Brewing Co., told the Alcoholic Beverages Control Commission this week.

The ABCC issued a 90-day statewide emergency ban on alcoholic beverages with caffeine added in the manufacturing process last fall. Tuesday's hearing was held to gather comments about plans to make the ban permanent when the prohibition ends on Feb. 16.

The Ledger reported that Kallman was one of the two constituents to testify during the snowy afternoon hearing, telling the commission that her beer, with 5 percent alcohol and 69 milligrams of caffeine, is equal to half a cup of coffee - a fraction of the 260 milligrams and 12 percent alcohol that had been found in Four Loko.

But because the caffeine in the beer, which is mostly sold in restaurants, is added as an extra ingredient, it had to be pulled from the market.

Kallman compared her product to alcoholic beverages such as Twisted Tea and Kona Brewing Co.'s Pipeline Porter, both of which use tea leaves or coffee beans to add flavor.

"Moonshot is a beer with character and integrity, and is marketed as an alcoholic beverage rather than a stimulant," she said.

The ban on caffeine in alcohol products came last fall after several reports around the nation of college students who became severely ill and intoxicated from drinking Four Loko. For many Massachusetts liquor stores, the popularity of the product was a short-lived phenomenon largely driven by media stories.

The Associated Press reports that an alcohol-detection prototype that uses automatic sensors to instantly gauge a driver's fitness to be on the road has the potential to save thousands of lives, but could be as long as a decade away from everyday use in cars, US federal officials and researchers said.

This week US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood visited QinetiQ North America, a Waltham, Massachusetts-based research and development facility, for the first public demonstration of systems that could measure whether a motorist has a blood alcohol content at or above the legal limit of .08 and -- if so -- prevent the vehicle from starting.

The technology is being designed as unobtrusive, unlike current alcohol ignition interlock systems often mandated by judges for convicted drunken drivers. Those require operators to blow into a breath-testing device before the car can operate.

The Driver Alcohol Detection Systems for Safety, as the new approach is called, would use sensors that would measure blood alcohol content in one of two possible ways: either by analysing a driver's breath or through the skin, using sophisticated touch-based sensors placed strategically on steering wheels and door locks, for example.

Both methods eliminate the need for drivers to take any extra steps, and those who are sober would not be delayed in getting on the road, researchers said.

The technology is "another arrow in our automotive safety quiver" said LaHood, who emphasised the system was envisioned as optional equipment in future cars and voluntary for auto manufacturers.

David Strickland, head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, also attended the demonstration and estimated the technology could prevent as many as 9000 fatal alcohol-related crashes a year in the US, though he also acknowledged that it was still in its early testing stages and might not be commercially available for 8-10 years.

The systems would not be employed unless they are "seamless, unobtrusive and unfailingly accurate", Strickland said.

The initial $US10 million research program is funded jointly by NHTSA and the Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety, an industry group representing many of the world's car makers.

Critics, such as Sarah Longwell of the American Beverage Institute, a restaurant trade association, doubt if the technology could ever be perfected to the point that it would be fully reliable and not stop some completely sober people from driving.

"Even if the technology is 99.9 per cent reliable, that's still tens of thousands of cars that won't start every day," said Longwell. Her group also questions whether an .08 limit would actually be high enough to stop all drunken drivers, since blood alcohol content can rise in people during a trip depending on factors such as how recently they drank and how much they ate.

"It's going to eliminate the ability of people to have a glass of wine with dinner or a beer at a ball game and then drive home, something that is perfectly safe and currently legal in all 50 states," she said.

LaHood disputed that the technology would interfere with moderate social drinking, and said the threshold in cars would never be set below the legal limit.