‘We’re Sure That This System Is Gonna Run Really Well’: Virginia ABC Bourbon Lottery Makes Changes Following April Fiasco
Bottles of Buffalo Trace and Sazerac on display at a store. (Photo: AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
The Virginia ABC Lottery is set to make some changes this month, WTKR reported Monday. The state’s ABC lottery system faced scrutiny in May after an issue sorting lottery data generated abnormal results during one of Virginia’s exclusive opportunities for its residents to purchase rare bourbons.
May’s issue resulted in duplicated lottery winners. Out of 146,221 entries, just 978 participants were chosen to purchase 1,313 bottles available.
The state says its new system should be a positive change for the process, offering everyone a fair shot at the chance of purchasing rare whiskeys.
Some of the changes implemented at the Virginia ABC allow multiple members of the same household the ability to enter, although each entrant must provide their own email address in addition to their own Virginia DMV-issued license or ID.
In order to enter, the new form requires participants to share the last four digits of their ID, and winners must present valid identification matching the ID submitted on the lottery’s entry form.
The state’s latest lottery is set to run from August 21 – 25, according to WTOP News. The Virginia ABC will be offering 72 bottles of Virginia’s own Reservoir Distillery Hazmat Rye Whiskey, priced at $150.
The Virginia ABC Lottery Explained
Virginia’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority offers the lottery when the state gets access to rare whiskey bottles, such as offerings from the Buffalo Trace Antique Collection.
The state’s lottery provides winners a chance to purchase these expressions at the MSRP instead of the exorbitant sums they often go for out in the marketplace.
In theory, the ABC Lottery grants access to rare whiskeys like Pappy Van Winkle to regular people with regular budgets.
May’s incident resulted in public backlash and media attention due to the fact that many participants found the odds of such a small group of individuals winning access to multiple high-tier collector’s expressions extremely unlikely.
“To put that into perspective, the chances of this happening is the equivalent to finding a single atom in our entire solar system,” Gus Guimond, a member of the DMV Bourbon Drinkers club, wrote to the Virginia ABC in an email per an article in The Washington Post.
Yet, the Virginia ABC appears confident that these changes will smooth out any potential kinks going forward with the state’s lottery system.
“We’re sure that this system is gonna run really well,” Virginia ABC Spokesperson Pat Kane said, according to Fox 5 DC.
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