McHenry County Blog

McHenry County Board member John Hammerand has written the following about winery regulation:

When my children were young we played a game called “what is it?” – so here’s one for you.

What is it that serves unlimited quantities of wine and wine fortified with spirits to develop a 80-proof product, opens at 6 am and continues to serve to 2 am?

Of course, it is a tavern.

But that term doesn’t sound too glamorous, so let’s market it as a winery.

I’ve visited Wineries in several states and always enjoyed the experience.

But there are differences between a winery and a tavern.

Until December, the Liquor Commission worked on an ordinance for a winery that would limit samples and require a portion of wine production be from locally grown McHenry County produce.

According to the Winery Business Plan Workbook prepared by the Small Business Development Center at Southern Illinois University, Wine labeled “Illinois Wine” must have 75% Illinois fruit content.

This is good business development for Illinois, and until the February 2012 meeting, the Liquor Commission agreed.

At the February Liquor Commission Meeting, the definition of a winery was changed into a tavern, allowing wine to be sold by the glass and an Industrial bottling plant with a capacity of a quarter-million bottles of wine per year – with no local produce in its production.

Importing the makings of wine from California or anywhere else would be allowed.

The new ordinance would exempt this new form of tavern from sampling requirements of the State of Illinois’ Liquor Code.

A Wine-Tasting is a self-policing action because the owner will only offer enough samples to encourage you to buy his product in bottles – more would be counter-productive.

Once he starts selling his product by the glass, it encourages his customers to drink more and increases the possibility of patrons losing their sobriety.

How does this help local tourism and agriculture?

How does it help existing taverns that are paying high taxes in Business Zoning, and how does it affect property values when a nice home in the country can have Industrial operations located next to it with only 13 votes from the McHenry County Board?

How does Wine Production differ from pickle or milk production since farmers have always realized that they have to bring their crop to Industrial Zones for commercial processing.

Does this mean the Zoning Laws are out the window?

Until now all the taverns in McHenry County had B-2 zoning.

This limits them to locations with appropriate infrastructure for an Industrial/Commercial business operation. Siting facilities on narrow rural roads with poor lighting and police protection will increase the danger to the visitors and local residents.

Some of the bars that were spot zoned before the existing zoning ordinances took effect are having trouble today with their water and sewerage disposal.

These are only a few of the questions and concerns that I have expressed.

There is a difference between an ordinance and a permit.

The petitioner asked for wine-tasting and stated that he expected 5,000 gallons of production annually.

The new ordinance allows the sale of fortified wine by glass and 50,000 gallons of wine production which would include the construction of a bottling plant.

Once the Ordinance is crafted, it will set the maximum allowed by law and that is why we have asked the hard questions.

If this is “throwing out roadblocks”, I believe that is why I was elected – to protect the ”pursuit of happiness” for all the residents in McHenry County.

This past weekend. John Hammerand was cast in an unfavorable light by a Northwest Herald article about the desire of the makers of Blue Star Wine to be allowed to serve customers and sell bottle of wine at the vineyard this past weekend.

Today, McHenry County Board member Barb Wheeler was the focus of a story on WBBM-Radio in which she promoted approval.

Focusing on the objection raised by Hammerand that the winery would essentially be a bar with no limits on the amount of wine sold by the glass, the WBBM story said,

“Blue Star would have to agree not to be a bar, which Wheeler says has already happened.”

Hammerand put his objections in writing, which you can see below:

Winery?

My wife and I have visited many wineries, including California’s Napa Valley, Iowa’s Amana Colonies, Illinois and Wisconsin, and we have enjoyed them.

John Hammerand

On these Wine tasting visits it was always very clear I was not in a Tavern. For one thing the quantities were just a taste – a small quantity – and usually limited to 4-6 ounces per day.In the new proposed ordinance for McHenry County, the wine will be sold by the glass in unlimited quantities. And to make it more interesting, you can buy fortified wines. The process of Fortification raises the alcohol content between 18 – 20 percent alcohol with the addition of spirits to the wine. This — on top of the wine’s natural 17% alcohol content means they could be serving a drink of 74 proof – by the glass.

How does this differ from a tavern?

You might say, it’s the hours of operation. But 6 a.m. to Midnight? Maybe closing an hour early makes it winery, not a tavern.

A Tavern has to be located in Business Zoning. The proposed ordinance does not consider zoning. The process will be handled by a Conditional Use Zoning Petition. and it may be located anywhere outside of municipalities in the County. Many people refer to this as “Spot Zoning” – not a good zoning practice and, in fact, not in compliance with the intent of our recently adopted 2030 Plan.

Maybe it is a Winery and not a Tavern because it is Agri-Tourism. But putting a Tavern in an agricultural area does not make it agriculture.

As the newspaper reported, a majority of the liquor commission opposed requiring local grapes.

I don’t understand how this is Agri-Tourism?

Do we not have grapes, apples, pears, strawberries in the bountiful harvest of McHenry County, hoping to be turned into a local product and keeping our agricultural heritage intact?

In case the McHenry County grape harvest is insufficient because of drought or too much rain, the Director of the Illinois Department of Agriculture could allow grapes to be brought in.

So I have many questions and I hope you do too. It will be discussed in a vote taken to move it on to the County Board Tomorrow, April 10th in the Administration Building at 11:00 a.m.

John Hammerand

Chairman,

McHenry County Liquor & License Committee

p.s. Here’s a letter from a constituent who actually lives in the area affected.

Hammerand also shares a letter he received from a Hebron woman, which you can see below:

Hi John and Cheryl,

Happy Easter!

I have read the article in today’s paper.

I guess you should have told me, or perhaps I should have asked, what the real issues were when you asked me what I thought about having a winery in our area.

If approving this thing allows for bars/taverns to just pop up willy-nilly, I would be against it. If that can be written out of the proposal, it should be.

I have nothing against a nice winery, such as we see on TV, a place to go learn about raising grapes, making wine, what various wines are used for and taste like. That seems “refined,” and safe. It would attract people who have money, and who drink responsibly. It would be a good tourist attraction.

As far as it being a problem for zoning, isn’t it a problem for zoning on either side of your committee/board decision? They have to go through zoning – is your acquiescence a yes vote for zoning, don’t they have their own issues?

I totally support you on any issues you think are dangerous. I understand that what your opponent said sounds a lot like she is trying to bully you.

The thing about using only grapes grown here can be defined somehow – limiting what can be brought in, and some kind of permission from our county Farm Service Agency could be worked out, for instance them defining what would consist of a crop failure that necessitated importing produce. And, the company might want to achieve a certain taste in a wine by adding some exotic-tasting grape that cannot be grown here.

I am not a drinker – but “a little wine for the stomach’s sake” might be something I might do someday. I have a glass or wine or a can of beer three or four times a year at most, and I do not mind if someone else drinks responsibly.

But I surely hate drunk driving – and anything that would encourage or allow it.

You may quote me or use any of my letter if you would find it helpful.

Sincerely,

Carol Hansen

Today’s message comes from Galena Cellars, which is located right next to the locks that keep the river out of downtown Galena during floods.

It says,

IF FOUND

PLEASE RETURN

TO NEAREST

WINERY