This seems like a bad joke, but it's all too real: the Arkansas House passed a bill yesterday that would allow Arkansas to ban California wines. It's retribution for a law California passed requiring that all eggs sold in California come from hens that are able to extend their wings and turn around freely.

Whether you like the California egg law or not, it's crazy to turn this into a trade war between states. You know who loses? Everybody. Banning California wines in Arkansas would reduce consumer choice, undermine free trade, and embarrass the state. And it would hurt your friendly wine purveyors here at Rebsamen Liquor.

Personally, I don't care for California's egg law, but two wrongs don't make a right. Let California buckle under the weight of protectionism and excessive regulation; we don't have to join them.

If you want to keep California wine in Arkansas, call or write your state senator. If you live anywhere near Rebsamen Liquor, your state senator is David Johnson: (501) 682-6107 or david.johnson@senate.ar.gov. Contact him today and tell the Senate not to pass this crazy bill!

You probably know the brief version of Rebsamen Liquor's origin story. Today we wanted to give you some more details about where things currently stand with our renovations. It's actually pretty exciting! 

Through the first two months of 2015, we undertook some pretty intense work to clean the store, repaint, and remove old junk. The picture below is truly just the tip of the iceberg of what we removed.

At the same time, we have been gradually updating our product mix. With all the additional shelf space that we've discovered since shipping out the junk, we've been able to add a ton of new product lines. Our wine and bourbon selection is pretty darn awesome for this area. And our beer selection is getting there!

This photo shows us at an intermediate stage. You can see we've got some quality craft labels, and we were decently organized (from left to right: macro domestics, imports, craft), but we've improved since. We've gotten rid of some of the duplicates you see here and cycled in some great, hard-to-find craft beers. Ben Jordan, who joined in January, really knows his craft beer and has been working on keeping things fresh and challenging. You've got to come in on at least a weekly basis, though, because when we sell out of one brand, it's onto the next!

Next up is getting some exterior signage so people know we're Rebsamen Liquor and we are open for business. We've got a pylon sign that says "LIQUOR" out front, but sometimes it's hard to know whether that is an antique or a sign for a real, working store. Rest assured, we are as real as it gets. Once we spruce that sign up and get some building signage as well, it will be unmistakable.

We'll keep you updated!

Thanks for checking out Rebsamen Liquor! We'll regularly blog about the goings-on out here at the store. That means info on deals and discounts, news and upcoming developments, and recommendations from our great selection of wine, microdistilled spirits, and craft beer. Occasionally, I'm sure there will be some weird miscellaneous stuff as well. 

If you haven't been by yet, please drop in. The store has a brand-new look and it's awesome! We have more selection than ever, with the same low prices that beat anywhere in the Riverdale area or The Heights. See you soon!