The upstairs at Green’s Liquors off Assembly Street is stacked with cases of liquor, mostly in minibottles sold to restaurants and bars.

A Nov. 2 referendum could lead Green’s and other wholesalers across the state to liquidate much of that inventory.

At issue is a vote to take minibottle requirements out of the state constitution, a move legislators approved Tuesday after years of debate.

On Wednesday, wholesalers and their opposition were figuring out how to appeal to voters while defending financial interests tied up in the 30-year-old law.

For wholesalers like Green’s, a change in minibottle sales ultimately could lead to financial loss if the Legislature were to change laws on how liquor is sold.

As for the restaurant and bar industry, more money is to be made by free-pour liquor sales.

But November’s referendum will only decide whether or not to take the minibottle requirement out of the state’s constitution.

If voters decide they like minibottles, then nothing changes.

If they choose to dump them, then the Legislature would have to rewrite state liquor laws.

Under the current system, alcohol is sold by suppliers to wholesalers to retailers.

In South Carolina, retailers apply for a Class B wholesale license to sell the minibottles to restaurants and bars. Bar owners must buy the minibottles from the 60 businesses that hold those licenses.

Any change in minibottle laws could cause the Class B wholesalers to lose their grip on the restaurant and bar business.

If restaurants and bars could buy straight from a wholesaler, Danny Mansour, of Mansour’s Liquors in Greenville, said he would barely maintain his livelihood.

“I wouldn’t go out of business, but I would have to get rid of four people,” he said.

On Wednesday, a bar owner asked Mansour what he thought of the referendum. Mansour explained his opposition and then told the client how his bar would stand to make more money.

“His eyes lit up at that,” Mansour said.

Storage space is another issue for the wholesalers, said Suzie Riga, vice president of Green’s.

At Green’s Assembly Street store, liquor is stored on a catwalk above the sales floor and in a downstairs stockroom. Minibottles come in compact cases, and Riga can stack 30 into a small space.

“We just don’t have the storage for the big bottles,” Riga said. “We’ll have to decide which brands we want to carry.”

The financial interest will be largely unspoken as the sides gear up for the referendum.

Riga talks about drink quality, tax collections, limited product choices, bartender theft and fruit flies — all reasons she sees for keeping minibottles.

For example, Riga said drinks will lose flavor quality if the state switches to larger bottles because they will be opened and will sit on shelves for several days.

“The qualities will escape into the air and will weaken the flavors and characteristics of that brand,” she said.

During the legislative session, those who want to keep minibottles insisted the system is the best way for the state to collect 100 percent of its liquor taxes.

Those who want to end the minibottle tradition say drinks made from minibottles have a higher alcohol content and, therefore, lead to higher drunken driving accidents.

They also say drinkers miss out on some cocktails.

Tom Sponseller, executive director of the Hospitality Association of South Carolina, used the margarita as an example.

Traditional margaritas call for tequila and triple sec. In South Carolina, they come with just tequila because it’s considered one drink.

Marlene Sipes, executive director of the South Carolina Association of Beverage Retailers, said her group hasn’t figured out a strategy to win over voters by November.

“We’ve got some time before we decide what we’re going to do about that,” she said.

Sponseller said his group’s campaign would depend on what the liquor wholesalers do.

“There’ll be some kind of educational campaign,” he said. “Over the last 30 years, there’s been a lot of confusion. The public doesn’t know what its opportunity is.”

Mansour isn’t waiting around for a formal campaign.

“I want to let people know what they are losing. They are going to get less drink for more money.”

Phillips can be reached at (803) 771-8307 or at nophillips@thestate.com.