Illinois you can buy beer, wine, liquor at grocery and convenience stores. It's nice.

Same in Massachusetts. MA tried to overturn the law with a ballot initiative a few years ago, but the police union came out strongly against it, so it failed.

Actually many of the markets in this part of MA have at least wine and beer now, and a couple even have hard alcohol. I think there is a limit on how many of them can have a liquor license in the area.

I learned not terribly long ago that drug stores usually have a pretty good selections of booze because during Prohibition you could buy alcohol with a prescription, so of course they carried whatever they could. With I believe somewhat similar backgrounds to soda/ice cream counters although those have waned more - the syrups were used for tonics, nostrums, elixirs and whatnot

I don't know how that is affected by state law.

Some of the Trader Joes around here (Boston, MA) have wine and beer, depending on how the liquor licenses are permitted by the towns, but the Sunday no-liquor-before-noon is observed by the aisles being roped off.

NH still has state liquor stores, one of which does a busy tax-free business just across the MA line up Rt 93.

In typical MA fashion, they've gotten rid of the blue law, but in a stupid way. Each supermarket chain can have a certain number of liquor licenses now. So when TJ's wanted to have liquor in a new store, they had to take it out of an existing one.

(This is like when they started selling liquor on Sundays, but only within a certain distance of the New Hampshire border. Is it a sin or not???)

Jesse comes through with the details! And I think the reason for the restrictions is because they didn't want to put all the liquor stores out of business by completely opening up liquor sales to all markets. Although, I really wish our local TJ's had alcohol.

I'm coming off one of my migraine meds, which turns out to result in insomnia, which means I didn't get to sleep until 4, and I have to leave for therapy in 5 minutes, which means I will probably either fall asleep or have a meltdown.

It's actually illegal to buy alcohol in Kentucky and bring it into Ohio, but the number of liquor/party stores that are right across the river (a LOT) tells you all you need to know about how that law is enforced (not at all). It's notably cheaper in Kentucky and therefore worth the drive.

And I think the reason for the restrictions is because they didn't want to put all the liquor stores out of business by completely opening up liquor sales to all markets.

Oh yeah, I'm sure that's right.

Blue Laws, ya'll! Maryland laws are county by county and there are exceptions. There are a couple of grocery stores and maybe 1 pharmacy in Baltimore City where you can buy beer and wine. Natty Boh isn't actually Baltimore- made beer anymore but we do have plenty of great local beers!