The deal is that this posting (30 days minimum) is a required part of the process when filing an application for most ABC licenses. The ABC I am referring to here in this case is the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. (http://www.abc.ca.gov)

This example in the photo here is from a recent client that is applying to become a wholesaler license holder for beer & wine. The address on their license in this case is their home address, since that is where the business will initially be located.This wholesaler license type in California (what in the industry is commonly referred to as the 17/20) is generally what a custom crush client at a winery will hold. What this means is that they contract with the winery to make their wine for them and then take the finished bottled product and go sell it themselves as a wholesaler. Just to give you and idea of the numbers we're talking about there are currently roughly 1,000 of this type of license holder in Napa County.

The ABC requires posting of these public notices as they inform the surrounding neighbors that an application is in process related to the sale of alcohol. The neighbors can then contact the property owner directly to inquire about what type of ABC license they are applying for if they have any concerns.

It used to be that these ABC posting signs were only seen in front of wineries being built or already in existence. In the past decade that has changed. Now you'll spot them just as often in storefront windows and at the end of your neighbor's driveway.

This surge is just a sign of the changing dynamics in the wine industry. For one, the growth in the custom crush client scenario I described above. These numbers continue to grow as most young wine businesses start out this way. 

The other newer category for ABC license holders has been what is called a duplicate winegrower. (also known as an 02) These would be the applications with the signs in storefront windows in commercial areas of town. These days those locations are predominantly tasting rooms which pour wines from multiple wineries. If the winery desires to have their wine poured and sold there they would need to file an application with their ABC office for a duplicate 02. The 02 or winegrower's license is what any winery will originally file for with the ABC to begin their winery.

So now the next time you are driving around town or just on your way through your local neighborhood and see one of these posting signs on display you'll know, they have an application in to begin some type of alcohol (probably wine) related business.

By the way, for you inquiring minds out there, you can also do your own research on license holders via a license query system available on the ABC's site: http://www.abc.ca.gov/datport/LQSMenu.html

Think wine compliance is confusing to understand and even more confusing to manage? Take heart, there is no need to continue pulling your hair out over keeping up with the requirements behind all those licenses, reports and records coming at you from umpteen different agencies. The two words I always come back to when offering guidance to winery clients are (1) Organize and (2) Systematize. If you are trying to manage a winery compliance system without having these two attributes as part of it, right there is usually where the source of your hair pulling comes from.

 Step one, organize. A winery compliance system in it's entirety has a lot of pieces to it. These pieces consist of licenses from a range of agencies, reports submitted to those same agencies and the records that back up those reports, just to name a few. Start by sectioning each of the items in these three categories out separately.

After you've completed this part you'll identify each item and then begin to create a chart with sections for each category, (licenses, records & reports) and then sub categories within each of those for each license or report, along with their unique details included in another column on your chart. (renewal date, fee, report due date, etc.) This chart will become your wine compliance blueprint.

Once you have your compliance blueprint fully filled out this will provide you with a summary bird's eye view of all the parts of your compliance system. It will also then provide the details for the next step in the process, what I call systematize.

The system you have just sketched out in this blueprint shows all the winery compliance pieces. Making sure to include details in it about renewal dates, reporting dates & details, fees, and agency contact info is what can then be used to next create your systems for managing each part.

From all these details you design systems or procedures that walk you through how and when to file reports, renew licenses, or update changes in your winery's status as may be required by some of the regulating agencies. The overall idea is to create and maintain a blueprint-like summary that provides you with any and all compliance details in one place.

The majority of the work with creating a blueprint like this is up front at the beginning. Once you are there it is just a matter of maintaining it with any updates. But once you are used to referencing all your winery compliance details in one place, making updates will be a much easier thing to do.

Are you feeling lost in your own compliance land? Are there certain parts of it that you just don't feel completely confident with? Believe me, you are NOT alone. Just consider the fact that the majority of wineries in the US are small, family owned ones. This means they operate under the "many hats" syndrome which means that their few staff members are each managing multiple responsibilities, compliance being just one of them. Now add to this scenario the fact that they usually weren't given training specific to the compliance responsibilities they are managing. Think that might make it even worse?

Now you get an idea of the layers of why there is a such a need for compliance training. It is one of the main reasons that my business is focused specifically on that area. I don't want you to go through what I did!

Compliance is complicated enough, and feeling like you're lost in the desert when it comes to finding answers just adds to that.

So stay tuned here on my site as I'll be bringing lots more tips, suggestions and guidance this year, all designed to make managing (AND understanding!) your compliance a much easier process.

I'll also be putting together a compliance how-to FAQ page. I've gotten a pretty good idea of some of the most common confusing situations you are up against in compliance land, and this will be designed to answer many of those.

Stay tuned, the doctor is in!