THE WINE WARS: What is a Farm Winery License?

The farm winery license lets the holder do a great deal and tell the public almost nothing. That is why the town’s review matters. The Williams have avoided it for years.

The New York farm winery license is one of the most permissive the state issues. The holder can sell wine and other New York alcohol to the public by the glass, run up to five satellite tasting rooms at no extra fee, and, unlike almost every other licensee, alter the premises without first asking the State Liquor Authority for permission.

What sets it apart is what it does not require. A restaurant or bar must give the town thirty days’ written notice, with proof of mailing, before the SLA can act on the application. The farm winery is on the manufacturing track, which requires no notice to the town at all. The application is reviewed and approved in Albany. The neighbors are never told, because the law does not require it. The 500-foot rule that triggers a public hearing for crowded liquor outlets does not apply either.

So the only public review left is the local one. A nonresidential project like this requires site plan approval from the Chatham Planning Board, and that review is publ…