I was out in California and Costco there sells hard liquior - at a much lower price than the ABC stores here. A $53 bottle of Kettle One was $24 at Costco. WTF?

Is there that kind of price difference if driving over the river to DC or MD or WVA?

yes, it is noticeably more expensive in VA vs MD/DC. Not $25 cheaper, but well worth making the trip to save a few bucks.

^ that's what happens when they're stated owned

How much liquor do you have to drink for it to make it worth driving to DC? Sounds like somebody has a problem.

As much as myself and my guests in my home like to drink (Im generous with my boose, not everyone stays home alone and drinks) - so a run might be worthwhile every now and then.

whats the difference between hard liquor and soft liquor?

How drunk is the OP?

soft liquor Wrote:
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> whats the difference between hard liquor and soft
> liquor?
>
> How drunk is the OP?


hard liquor likes penis

soft liquor likes orifices

yea if you live in MD there's one at every corner

you save on gas that way big time

Gin-eration Y Wrote:
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> ^ that's what happens when they're stated owned

There is typically little difference between VA and DC liquor prices. But in VA, more than 50% of the purchase price goes to the state -- thus reducing the need for more taxes -- while in DC, the government receives a small fraction of that. Something like 7-10%.

For somebody living in Alexandria, is it worth driving over into PGC to hit one of the liquor shops along Indian Head Highway?

I've wondered this, but never stopped in one.

Also, some or most of the liquor stores in that part of MD seem to advertise bars, too - are they often liquor stores with bars in the back or something?

Christ, you'd think that PG County was somewhere near Uzbekistan.

http://www.fairfaxcountyeda.org/doing-business-here/taxes/other-taxes

Alcohol Tax — State alcohol excise taxes are paid by the wholesaler and included in the retail price. Distilled spirits retail prices include a 20 percent state tax. There is also a 4 percent tax on wine sold in Alcohol Beverage Control (state) stores. Wine retail prices include a $0.40 per liter wine tax. An additional 2.5 percent sales tax is added to the retail price at the register.



But since this is essentially a meals tax the majority of this tax is paid by visitors/communters to the county not residents.

vd6TJ Wrote:
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> But since this is essentially a meals tax the
> majority of this tax is paid by
> visitors/communters to the county not residents.

Too bad about Eric Cantor, eh, sasquatch?

I researched this last summer after a head-scratching convo at work with three well-versed long-time DMVers. No one was really sure of the answer. I used a regular handle (1.75L) of Smirnoff vodka, which is a fine standard vodka, for my comparison test.

This handle is always $21.90 (45 shots=49¢/shot!), and sometimes even on sale a few times a year for $18.95, at the VA ABC.

In DC I went to Congressional Liquors on Capitol Hill. No handles for sale, but they did have a fifth (750 mL) for $14.95. Wow, what a mark-up!

On to MD. At the time I was living in Huntington so I crossed the Woodrow Wilson and went to Seitz Liquors in Oxon Hill. A handle of Smirnoff there? $26.50! They tossed in the uneasy feeling with all the bullet-proof glass in the place for free.

Now maybe you've got the scoop on a great deal somewhere in DC/MD, but VA has their prices licked from what I can tell. And going into a VA ABC is quite the pleasant experience as opposed to the train-wreck liquor stores I've seen in multiple other states, including Maryland.

If you'd like to check it out, VA ABC publishes a quarterly price-list of EVERY offering in PDF form: http://www.abc.virginia.gov/Pricelist/price.html