GROSSE POINTE WOODS, Mich. (WXYZ) — The Woods Wholesale Wine in Grosse Pointe Woods is closed for business after sending beer to an in-state address.
The second-generation owner, William Matouk, said an employee mistakenly fulfilled the order. They believe this was part of a sting operation by the Liquor Control Commission.
Matouk called the punishment unfair and egregious.
"We just don't know why they're coming down so hard on us for a minor violation," Matouk said. "We made a mistake when one of the employees shipped it. We would never jeopardize our operations for three bottles of beer."
He said the punishment forced them to shut down for seven days or appeal and if they lost the appeal it would end their liquor license. They decided to close on Monday.
It's against the law in Michigan to ship beer to a residence in the state. The store has a retail location and online operation that ships to homes across the world.
"There's one license that covers beer and wine because of lobbying and other things that happened in the past you can ship wine," said Matouk's attorney Brian O'Keefe. "But you can't ship beer. That's a trap."
In 2015, Woods Wholesale Wine was shuttered for illegally shipping alcohol.
7 Action News reached out to Michigan Liquor Control Commision and they declined to comment.
