Casks of wine

States where breweries, distilleries, retailers, and wineries can ship DTC

This post has been updated. It was originally published in August 2020.

Most states permit wineries to ship directly to consumers (DTC). Far fewer allow breweries, distilleries, and retailers to make DTC shipments. Read on to discover which states allow direct shipments of beer, wine, and spirits.

States where breweries can ship directly to consumers

As of June 2025, the following 10 states and Washington, D.C. permit breweries to ship DTC:

  • Alaska (allowed by state law but prohibited in many dry communities)
  • Kentucky 
  • Nebraska
  • New Hampshire
  • North Dakota
  • Ohio
  • Oregon
  • Rhode Island (but only for on-site shipments or beer shipments with over 3.2% alcohol by weight) 
  • Vermont
  • Virginia
  • Washington, D.C.

Many states cap the amount of beer a producer may ship to a consumer in a year. In Alaska, for example, a brewery may not sell more than 288 ounces of brewed beverages to a purchaser in one transaction or more than 13.5 gallons of brewed beverages to a purchaser in a calendar year.

States where distilleries can ship directly to consumers

As of June 2025, seven states and Washington, D.C. generally permit distilleries to make DTC shipments:

  • Alaska (allowed by state law but prohibited in many dry communities)
  • Arizona (only craft distilleries that produce less than 20,000 gallons of spirits annually) 
  • Kentucky 
  • Nebraska
  • New Hampshire
  • North Dakota
  • Rhode Island (but only for on-site shipments or beer shipments with over 3.2% alcohol by weight)
  • Washington, D.C.

States where retailers can ship directly to consumers

As of June 2025, retailers are authorized to make DTC sales in the following states and Washington, D.C.:

  • California (for retailers from states with reciprocal laws)
  • Connecticut
  • Florida (except in dry communities)
  • Louisiana
  • Nebraska
  • New Hampshire
  • New Mexico (for retailers from states with reciprocal laws)
  • North Dakota
  • Oregon
  • Virginia
  • Washington, D.C.
  • West Virginia
  • Wyoming

States where wineries can ship directly to consumers

Almost every state allows direct-to-consumer wine shipments. Starting July 2025, the only exceptions are Delaware and Utah, which do not allow wineries to ship directly to consumers in the state, and Rhode Island, which prohibits off-site wine shipments. Mississippi authorized DTC wine shipping in 2025, and Arkansas is eliminating its on-site requirement. Read on for state-specific details.

Mississippi

The enactment of Mississippi Senate Bill 2145 in February 2025 authorizes licensed wine manufacturers located in Mississippi and other states to sell and ship wine directly to Mississippi residents as well as wine fulfillment providers operating in the state. The winery must first obtain a direct wine shipper’s permit from the Mississippi Department of Revenue.

The passage of SB 2145 gives Mississippi consumers access to products not previously available in the state,” observes Shannon Fahey, Indirect Tax Researcher at Avalara. “Consumers may also benefit from the increased availability of products they’ve already tried and enjoyed.”

Although SB 2145 authorizes DTC wine shipments effective July 1, 2025, as of June 11, 2025, there’s no information about the direct shipper’s permit on the department’s website. The Beer, Alcohol, and Tobacco FAQs explain that it’s illegal to order wine over the internet to be delivered to the home, and that neither in-state nor out-of-state wineries are permitted to ship directly to consumers.

Since DTC wine shipping is entirely new for Mississippi, the state may need more time to put processes in place. This isn’t uncommon; some states bake additional preparation time into the law.

Rhode Island

Rhode Island prohibits shipments of off-site sales, such as internet purchases, but allows the direct shipment of wine purchased in person from an out-of-state winery (on-site sales). This means a resident of Rhode Island may visit a winery, purchase wine while there, and ask the winery to ship the wine to their residence.

Arkansas

Arkansas has had a similar policy as Rhode Island, though unlike Rhode Island, it required wineries to register with the Alcoholic Beverage Control Division prior to making the first shipment.

However, Arkansas is removing its on-site requirement due to the enactment of HB 1476. As with Mississippi, the law takes effect in July 2025, but the state may not be ready to issue direct wine shipping permits on that date; the law allows the state additional time to establish processes.

New Jersey and Alaska

New Jersey limits the size of wineries that are eligible for permits: Licensees cannot produce more than 250,000 gallons of wine per year or own (in whole or in part) any interest in a winery producing more than that. Ohio eliminated a similar capacity cap effective September 30, 2021.

Some states, including Alaska, Kentucky, and Mississippi, have dry communities where alcohol shipments are prohibited, regardless of product type.

Bear in mind that state beverage alcohol requirements are subject to change. To wit, Alaska changed its licensing requirements for DTC shippers with the Title 4 Rewrite legislation. As of January 1, 2024, beverage alcohol producers need a license to ship alcohol directly to consumers in Alaska.

The Title 4 Rewrite also limits how much alcohol a manufacturer direct shipment licensee can sell and ship to Alaska purchasers. For example, they cannot sell more than 18 liters of wine to a purchaser in one transaction or more than 108 liters of wine to a purchaser in a calendar year. 

And similar to New Jersey, Alaska has production limits for breweries and distilleries. In order to be eligible for the manufacturer direct shipment license, a brewery cannot produce more than 300,000 barrels in total of brewed beverages, and a distillery cannot produce more than 50,000 proof gallons of distilled spirits annually.

Out-of-state retailers were allowed to ship directly to consumers in Alaska prior to the Title 4 Rewrite, when Alaska didn’t regulate shipping from out of state.

Will Delaware and Utah allow DTC wine shipping?

Kentucky authorized the direct shipment of wine with the enactment of House Bill 415 in 2020. Alabama followed suit on August 1, 2021. 

Mississippi passed a law allowing DTC wine shipments in 2025, as explained above. Whether Delaware or Utah will ever authorize DTC wine shipping remains to be seen.

Delaware

Delaware allows residents who legally purchase beer, wine, or spirits from a manufacturer at the premises to carry the alcohol home themselves or arrange for shipment personally.

Additionally, any out-of-state brewery or winery holding a Delaware Direct Shipper license may accept orders from Delaware residents and ship wine or beer to a licensed Delaware wholesaler for customer pickup. Shipping to a Delaware residence is prohibited.

For years, Delaware lawmakers have been seeking to authorize DTC shipments. Recent legislation includes House Bill 262, introduced in July 2023. To date, all such efforts have failed.

Utah

Utah House Bill 157 (enacted March 2020) required the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) to establish and administer a wine subscription program through which the department can purchase a wine subscription on behalf of an individual. Instead of being shipped directly to consumers, the wine must be shipped to a state store or package agency for collection by the consumer. Utah’s wine subscription program took effect May 4, 2022.

All legislative efforts to authorize DTC wine shipments in Utah have failed.

Need help with DTC compliance challenges? Avalara for Beverage Alcohol can help with licensing, product registrations, returns, and tax calculation. Contact us for more information.

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