BOSTON – Former NFL quarterback Drew Bledsoe, now a winemaker, returned to Massachusetts on Thursday to urge legislators to lift a ban on the direct shipment of wine to consumers.

Bledsoe said the prohibition prevents him from shipping products from his Doubleback winery in Walla Walla, Wash., to most Massachusetts residents, including some former fans and teammates from when he played for the New England Patriots.

“We have a ton of fans out here who want to try the wine, who want to get a hold of it,” Bledsoe said after meeting with lawmakers at the Statehouse. “I want to sell it to them and there’s really no reason why that shouldn’t happen.”

Massachusetts is one of 11 states that ban or sharply limit direct wine shipments, according to the group Free the Grapes, which advocates for wine producers and consumers.

A bill has been filed that would allow out-of-state producers and distributors to send wine to Massachusetts customers if they obtain a shipping license from the state.

Wineries would be required to pay state sales tax on all shipments, including those ordered online.

The bill is opposed by a group that represents liquor outlets in the state.

“It’s not meeting an unmet need,” said Roger Donoghue, legal counsel for the Massachusetts Package Store Association. “People have ample access to get the wines and other products they want from the package stores.”

But passer-turned-vintner Bledsoe and other winemakers say that doesn’t ring true, especially in the case of high-end wines from smaller vineyards that would not normally be available in neighborhood stores. Bledsoe said his wine is sold in a handful of restaurants and wine shops in Massachusetts.