Three moving parts, each one a hard stop.
Who is allowed to send wine in
Tennessee grants direct shipment as a narrow permission attached to wine production. The license attaches to the producer holding a federal basic permit, not to a retailer, wine club, marketplace or private individual.
| Sender | Permitted? | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| A private person sending a bottle to a friend | No | No individual path exists |
| An online wine retailer that did not produce the wine | No | Direct-to-consumer is producer-only |
| A licensed out-of-state winery with the TN Direct Shipper license | Yes | $300 application, $150 annual, federal basic permit required |
| The delivering common carrier | Under contract to the licensee | Face-to-face adult signature; delivery record kept |
The volume rules are producer-scaled. A large winery producing 270,000 liters a year or more may ship up to 27 liters per person annually to Tennessee; a smaller producer may ship up to 54 liters per person annually. Either way, the monthly cap of nine liters per consumer is the same.
The moving parts of a compliant Tennessee shipment
Producer holds a federal basic permit
The Tennessee license is granted to a person, firm or corporation that holds a TTB permit to manufacture, bottle or rectify wine, and ships wine produced under that permit. A wine club without a production role does not qualify.
Common carrier, face to face at the door
The license requires delivery by a common carrier that will perform face-to-face delivery to a person 21 or older, with signature at receipt. The outer carton must be labelled visibly from at least three feet away with the mandated CONTAINS ALCOHOL notice.
Records for three years, reports every quarter
Direct shippers keep records for three years and submit a quarterly report to the commission with recipient names and addresses, shipment dates, quantities and products. A quarter with no shipments still files.
Tennessee has been an active enforcer of its DTC statute. In 2024 the state entered consent orders with several online retailers that had shipped without a license, so a mail-order operation that treats Tennessee informally is unlikely to remain informal for long.
Dry counties, dry municipalities
Tennessee still has dry and partially wet counties and cities under its patchwork local-option regime. The direct shipper statute is silent on dry-area shipments in the base text; the carrier is under no obligation to inspect the destination. Practically, a licensee that ships into a jurisdiction where possession is illegal exposes both the household and, at the margin, its own license. A pre-order check against the current state map is quiet insurance.
Signature at delivery does not create a defence to a local dry-area breach; it satisfies the age-verification rule alone.
Where these rules come from
- Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission, Winery Direct Shipper License — permit definition and face-to-face delivery rules. Read 2026-08-11.
- Tennessee Compilation of Rules and Regulations, 0100-10-.01 Applications for Direct Shipper — carton marking, three-year record retention, quarterly reporting. Read 2026-08-11.
- Wine Institute, Tennessee DTC summary — 9-liter monthly and 27- or 54-liter annual caps, $300 and $150 fees. Read 2026-08-11.
Tennessee updates the direct shipper text periodically through its rule-making process. The numbers above are what those sources published on the date shown; a shipping program should read the current text before opening the Tennessee account.
Common questions
Can an individual ship wine to a Tennessee address?
No. Only a producer holding a Tennessee Winery Direct Shipper license may send wine to a Tennessee consumer, and only through a common carrier that will deliver face to face with adult signature.
How many bottles can one Tennessee household receive?
Nine liters in any calendar month, and no more than 27 liters annually from a large producer or 54 liters annually from a small producer under 270,000 liters. That works out to roughly one to two cases a year per household from any one winery.
Does the carrier need to see ID at the door?
Yes. Tennessee requires face-to-face delivery to a person 21 or older, with signature on receipt. The outer box must be marked in a way visible from at least three feet with the words CONTAINS ALCOHOL: SIGNATURE OF PERSON OVER 21 OR OLDER REQUIRED FOR DELIVERY.
What does the Tennessee direct shipper license cost?
A $300 non-refundable application fee and, once approved, a $150 annual license fee. The winery must already hold a federal basic permit from the TTB and produce wine under that permit.
Do direct shippers report to Tennessee?
Yes. Records must be kept three years and a quarterly report goes to the commission listing recipient names, addresses, dates, quantities and products for every shipment.