Celebrating National Bourbon Day – And Possible Future USPS Liquor Delivery

June 14^th marks National Bourbon Day – a day to celebrate the drink that was “born on the American frontier,” and comes with a history that “reflects the nation invented it.” Indeed, the beginnings of “American whiskey” began long before the arrival of Europeans. In 7,000 BC, early Native Americans domesticated teosinte – “a weedy Mexican grass,” into corn, which is the main ingredient in bourbon. By 1783, Evan Williams would open the first bourbon distillery in Louisville, Kentucky.

Bourbon remains a popular American spirit. The past two decades has seen a “boom” in bourbon sales. In 2019, “off-premise dollar sales grew 12.9 percent … reaching a total of $1.78 billion.” And while a national day may give anyone reason to sip their favorite Mad Men-inspired bourbon infusion, there is more celebration to be had as lawmakers in D.C. have recently introduced legislation that would allow the United States Postal Service (USPS) deliver bourbon – and other alcoholic beverages – to consumers’ doors.

The “USPS Shipping Equity Act” is a “bipartisan bill [that] would end the Prohibition-era ban,” and “would allow USPS to ship alcoholic beverages directly from licensed producers and retailers to consumers over the age of 21, in accordance with state and local shipping regulations.”

This legislation couldn’t come at a better time. Not too long-ago, social media companies were grappling with a large underground market of bourbon aficionados and unlicensed sellers on their platform. In June 2019, Facebook shut down a private group on its website that had around 55,000 members and was “a spot for drinkers to re-sell bottles of coveted American whiskeys.”  That group – and others on Facebook – helped propel sales of bourbon by connecting bourbon lovers. Even though Facebook shut down the group, the net result was positive because Blake Riber, who started the Bourbonr website in 2013, told Esquire in 2019, that “Facebook played a huge role in building and expanding the bourbon world. It’s where a majority of people found other enthusiasts online.”

Although the internet and social media could connect bourbon enthusiasts – it does come rife with issues. For one, it’s illegal to sell anyone any type of alcoholic drink without a license. Despite this, a large black market for bourbon looms. States have grappled with this issue for years. For example, in 2019, the Ohio liquor control estimates that the Buckeye State’s black-market liquor sales generate “more than $1 billion in revenue a year.” Second, the market is saturated with counterfeit bourbons. In May 2021, Inside Edition purchased a $1,000 bottle Colonel E.H. Taylor – Four Grain bourbon from Acker, “America’s oldest wine shop, in New York.” They sent the bottle to a distillery and conducted tests and found that the bottle was not “authentic.”

The USPS ought to celebrate National Bourbon Day by endorsing the legislation. In a 2012 blog post, the USPS Office of the Inspector General posed a question to the public titled “Distilling New Revenue,” noting the need to “secure new sources of revenue in an era of declining mail volume,” and that the “shipping of alcohol could create an additional revenue stream.” It’s estimated that if the USPS was allowed to ship alcohol, it “could bring in an additional $50 million per year, according to the Congressional Budget Office.”

Allowing the USPS to ship alcohol also comes at the most opportune time. Market data found that in 10 markets, alcohol e-commerce grew by 42 percent. And, in the United States, “44% of alcohol e-shoppers only started buying alcohol online in 2020, compared to 19% in 2019.”

WC Fields once said, “How well I remember my first encounter with the Devil’s Brew. I happened to stumble across a case of bourbon – and went right on stumbling for several days thereafter.”

Here’s to hoping that USPS can stumble into alcohol delivery sales, and next year, perhaps be able to celebrate National Bourbon Day by finally being able to deliver the Official Spirit of America.

Lindsey Stroud is the Director of Taxpayers Protection Alliance’s Consumer Center.