Maine signs 10-year liquor administration contract with current provider [Video]

Following months of negotiations, Maine’s Bureau of Alcoholic Beverages and Lottery Operations reached an agreement to continue contracting with its current liquor distributor for another decade.

The state’s new contract with Pine State Trading Co., which was signed last week and took effect Sunday, replaces two previous contracts that were extended to allow more time for negotiation, said Sharon Huntley, director of communications at the Department Administrative and Financial Services, which oversees the bureau.

Pine State has overseen trade marketing and administration for the department since it was awarded the previous contract in 2014.

Following an open request for proposal issued late last year, Pine State was the only company to place a bid.

The contract gives the company, based in Gardiner, sole authority to market, sell and distribute distilled spirits products to the more than 600 agency liquor stores within Maine. State law dictates that only agency stores can …