Community Corner

Liquor Stores Waiting to See if They Have to Stop Selling Popular Beers

MillerCoors products could be pulled from the shelves by this weekend unless the company is able to renew or extend its sales license.

John Wiggins is a beer man. 

He delivers mostly Miller products throughout the Metro area for J.J. Taylor Distributing and on Thursday was making his regular stop at the municipal liquor store in Wayzata

But life could be about to change for Wiggins and the other Minnesotans on both the distribution and consumption ends of popular beers such as Miller Genuine Draft, Blue Moon, Fosters, Coors and dozens of other brands.

Find out what's happening in Lake Minnetonkawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Chicago-based MillerCoors failed to renew the company's brand label registration prior to its July 1 expiration, and has been unable to do so while the state government is shut down. Unless it can be renewed today, or they can obtain an exception or extension, all of the brews Wiggins hauls may not be licensed for distribution in Minnesota past Friday.

"Today we're delivering like usual," Wiggins, who lives in Burnsville, said. "We haven't heard anything about them pulling it off the shelves or anything like that. Not yet anyway."

Find out what's happening in Lake Minnetonkawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Wiggins said he and other drivers have heard little from headquarters about the licensing problem and most of the information he's heard has been from media reports.

"We're delivering everything here today—High Life, MGD, all of the stuff they are talking about," he said.

Dane Johnson manages the Liquor Barn in Long Lake and said Thursday morning his store currently has about $5,000 worth of MillerCoors products on hand.

"We have no idea what's going on," Johnson said. "They're supposed to be delivering here today. Right now, the distributor is saying everything is cool, and the owner thinks we can sell it because we've already paid for it."

The Liquor Barn sells about 200 cases of Coors beer each month. Any wide-scale removal of MillerCoors brands from store shelves would, Johnson said, result in a noticeable loss of revenue. Exactly who—whether store staff or the respective distributors—would be responsible for pulling MillerCoors products from store shelves is unclear.

Sources tell Patch MillerCoors is setting times to come collect products from the shelves in the event merchants have no room to store it.

Gina Holman, who manages the municipal liquor store in Wayzata, hasn't heard anything about inventory needing to pulled from shelves and as of Thursday afternoon said she planned on selling MillerCoors products uninterupted until she heard otherwise.

"It's not affecting us, I've heard nothing," Holman said. "It will still be sold according to what I've heard from my distributors."

John Farrell owns the Haskell's Liquor Store in Excelsior and 11 other locations throughout the Metro area and likewise has heard little official word from the state or from MillerCoors.

“We’ve reached out to our [MillerCoors] rep but we haven’t heard anything,” he said. “We’ve heard absolutely nothing, except what’s been reported on the news.”

Haskell added that MillerCoors products being pulled from his shelves would likewise result in a loss of revenue for his company.

“It would be a substantial amount of product, but if they don’t have a license, we can’t sell it,” he said.

Liquor stores wouldn't be the only retailers affected by an inability to sell MillerCoors products. As of Thursday morning, bars and restaurants throughout the state would likewise be prohibited from dispensing the brews.

MillerCoors is a private company and not publicly traded. 

The brands affected:

Blue Moon Pale Moon Belgian Style Pale Ale, Coors Banquet, Coors Light, Coors Light 3.2, Foster’s Lager Beer, Foster’s Premium Ale, Grolsch Amber Ale, Grolsch Blonde Lager, Grolsch Light Lager, Grolsch Premium Lager, Hamm’s, Hamm’s Genuine Draft Style, Hamm’s Special Light, Henry Weinhard’s Dark, Henry Weinhard’s Hefeweizen, Henry Weinhard’s Pale Ale, Henry Weinhard’s Private Reserve, Icehouse Beer, Keystone Light Beer 3.2, Killians Irish Red 3.2, MGD Light 64, Mickey’s Ice Ale, Mickey’s Malt Liquor, Miller Genuine Draft, Miller High Life 12/16 oz can, Miller High Life Ice, Miller High Life Light 12 oz can, Miller Lite 3.2%, Miller Lite Beer, Milwaukee’s Best #1 , Milwaukee’s Best Ice, Milwaukee’s Best Light #1 3.2, Molson Canadian, Molson Canadian Light, Molson Golden, Molson Ice, Molson XXX, Olde English 800 Malt Liquor, Sparks Light


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