The Origins of the Three-Tier System

You might be surprised to learn...

I’m working on a few large projects now that have me digging deep into the depths of alcohol regulation including its history and the origins of the three-tier system. You’ll never guess who imagined and came up with this form of alcohol regulation that has so clearly outlived its usefulness,

As for the projects, one is organizing the National Association of Wine Retailers (NAWR) Annual Wine Retailer Summit. As the NAWR executive directly I get to organize this annually. NAWR puts together a program aimed at exploring the legal, political, and regulatory side of the wine retail business. We present panels and presentations on several issues over the course of two days. I usually give a talk entitled “The State of Wine Retail Reform.

I‘m also working on a White Paper for NAWR exploring the proper structure of a state alcohol regulatory system for the 21st century. This in particular has been very satisfying and enlightening.

There is actually very little accessible information about the efforts to design a new state regulatory system in the early 1930s when it was clear Prohibition was coming to an end. One thing however was absolutely clear about the period and those efforts. Everyone from industry to lawmakers to the feds had as their overriding goal to prevent the return of the Tied House System of alcohol distribution that was the dominant form of alcohol sales before Prohibition.

Here’s the short account of how the three-tier system came about.