Tuesday Wine Headlines: Illinoisans ship wine, Hong Kong auction brings in serious dough, Beckam buys wife Napa winery,

Special Interests Overpower The People: Illinoisans Lose the Right to Buy Wine Online: It’s all over the internet and newspapers: Special interest groups in Illinois, through $6,300,000.00 in donations to politicians, have overturned the states policies on shipping wines from both wineries and out of state retailers. In a move that cripples the right to a free market, residents will no longer be able to find rare wines or good deals thanks to a lobby of greedy wholesalers and distributors. Further, there will be a limit imposed on how much wine one individual can receive from any out-of-state winery. What happened to the part of the constitution that says “States may not enact laws that burden out-of-state producers or shippers simply to give a competitive advantage to in-state businesses.” I guess this doesn’t apply to situations in which flip-flopping politicians will cater to whoever has the biggest checkbook. There is a reason Chicago is called the “windy city” and it has little to do with the weather.

First Acker Auction in China A Huge Success: Decanter.Com reported that an Acker Merrall & Condit wine auction brought in approximately $8,200,000.00 this past Saturday. This historic first China-based auction by Acker is just another sign that the world wine market is going strong, especially in China and other Asian countries. The top lot, according to Decanter, was a case (12 bottles) of the 1990 vintage of the prized Burgundy Domaine de la Romanée-Conti which was worth “US$242,308 (HK$1.89m). The price included a 21% buyer’s premium - US$42,000 (HK$327,600) - which Acker announced would go to victims of the Sichuan Province earthquake.” In other news, if anyone is wondering what to get me for my 30th Birthday in two years, a bottle of 20 year old Domaine de la Romanee-Conti would be a great way to get the night started!

Goooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaallllllllll! Posh Spice Scores Big as Husband Beckam Buys Winery for Her Birthday: The grapes are always greener on the other side. The British magazine The Sun is reporting that David Beckam has bought his wife Victoria (formerly Posh Spice) a Napa Valley Winery for her recent birthday. The article reports that multi-million dollar winery will produce wines for their family and friends, but isn’t going to be for resale. I would be more than happy if someone wants to skip the bottle of 1990 DRC to buy me a winery for my birthday!