News

Pennsylvania wine kiosks could be shelved

November 28, 2010

According to the Pittsburg Post-Gazette, proposals to privatize state liquor stores in Pennsylvania could mean the end of the self-service wine kiosks recently deployed in them.

The wine-dispensing devices first appeared in Pennsylvania grocery stores just five months ago, but some lawmakers say they quickly could become obsolete.

"I think those kiosks are coming to an end," newly elected House Majority Leader Mike Turzai, sponsor of the latest proposal to sell off state Wine and Spirits stores, told the paper.

Manufactured by Conshohocken-based Simple Brands, the machines have been described as Rube Goldberg machines that incorporate a Breathalyzer, identification-card scanner and security cameras monitored in real time to prevent purchase by the intoxicated or the under-aged, the paper says.

Simple Brands CEO Jim Lesser tells the paper he doubts privatization has a real chance of happening.

Even if the kiosks remain in place, they may not greet happy users. Complaints about the kiosks address aspects such as limited payment options, a Breathalyzer surface that is not cleaned regularly and difficult touch-screen navigation. Alluding to "2001: A Space Odyssey," one wine writer said, "Welcome to Pennsylvania and the bizarre alternate universe of the Pennsylvania State Liquor Control Board. You want to buy wine in grocery stores, you're going to have to convince a passive-aggressive computer to open the pod bay doors first."