MdV: Merchant du Vin beer e-newsletter – Tuesday, August 15, 2006: American Beer Laws

It has arrived and is on the way to your favorite beer spot now: Ayinger Oktober Fest-Marzen! More as a 689k .pdf:

http://www.merchantduvin.com/pages/1_about/Ayinger_Okt_Fest_Marz_06.pdf

Ayinger beers in the Tulsa, OK, newspaper; organic beers in the Philadelphia Daily News – including those from Samuel Smith & Pinkus; more accolades for Lindemans Peche & Lindemans Framboise; great beer choices continue to grow.

We keep a current media recap, a national beer event listing, and an archive of this e-newsletter at:

www.merchantduvin.com/pages/1_about/news.html

Beer Chat from the Beer Court Jester: American Beer Laws

Beer is one of the most regulated consumer products in the US today. This month, we take a quick non-comprehensive look at American beer laws.

For perspective: the US Government makes about $13 billion on beer taxes annually – seven times the profits made by the entire beer industry,

according to Miller Brewing’s website. The Federal government charges an

excise tax on beer sold in the US at $18.00 per barrel, or 58 cents per gallon, and each state also has excise tax, ranging from 2 cents per gallon to $1.07 per gallon.

At the Federal level, beer is regulated by the Alcohol Tax and Trade Board

(TTB) (formerly the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms). They ensure

that the “Government Warning” appears on every label, in letters “at least 2 mm tall” and they also review the label of each and every beer that is sold in the US. Some things can never be put on a beer label: for example, the “Nutrition Facts” that are required to appear on all packaged foods in the US

can specifically *not* be put on a beer label.

States maintain and enforce a wide variety of beer laws, as well:

-After collecting applications and fees, states issue licenses to accounts that want to sell beer. The number of licenses available is commonly limited by state legislatures, often based on population.

-In many states distributors are protected by franchise laws. That means a wholesaler is the only legal entity that can sell a specific beer in a particular state or county. Restaurants, bars and stores must all buy from one franchised distributor.

-Some states still limit the varieties of beer available for sale based on strength – anything over 6% alcohol by volume can’t be sold there . . . even when 45% abv vodka is available! (Georgia began to allow beers over 6% abv in 2004; North Carolina in 2005.)

-Closing time: The only state that has 24/7 sales of alcohol is Nevada;

casinos in Atlantic City can also serve 24/7. In every other state, at some period alcoholic beverage sales are prohibited, often starting at 2:00 am (sometimes later) and ending at 6:00 am (or later).

-In many states, promotional goods with a value cannot be legally given from

a supplier to a licensed account. For example, a distributor or brewery

can’t legally give glassware or a neon sign away free to an account – it must be sold. In at least one state, beer logo glassware can’t be used at all, even if was sold to the account.

-In Texas, any beer over 4% alcohol by volume (3.2% by weight) is labeled “ale” whether it is fermented with ale yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) or lager yeast (S. uvarum). Any beer – ale or lager - under 4% abv is labeled “beer.” (See our archived 9-21-04 newsletter on ale vs. lager, right here:

http://www.merchantduvin.com/pages/1_about/enews_archive.html/ )

-All draft beer brewed in Utah and all beer sold in Utah stores is 3.2% abw (4% abv) or less. The only stronger beer (or “heavy beer” as the state calls

it) sold in this state comes from state liquor stores, or is consumed on-premise at a restaurant or airport lounge.

-In Pennsylvania, most beer to go is sold only by the case. (There are a few “single-bottle” licenses.) What about a 12-bottle cases, say of Samuel Smith large bottles, or of Orval Trappist Ale? Nope, it has to be 24 bottles. If you are buying a case of those beers in Pennsylvania you will be buying two 12-bottle cases, packaged together.

-All beer sold to go in Indiana must be warm – no cold beer to go.

-A Tennessee beer delivery truck can have strong beer or weak beer, but never

both: by law, barleywine can never be delivered on the same truck as light lager . . . even if they are being shipped from the same warehouse to the same account.

We live in a great time, in a great place for fine beer. As you keep the laws in mind – never breaking them, never asking a supplier to bend them – remember that bit by bit it is getting easier for more Americans to buy more

fine beer at their convenience. If beer laws cause inconvenience or limit

the choices you have, we recommend you call or write to your legislator, or look for local groups working to change laws.

And keep enjoying the great beers available in the US, purchased during legal hours, with legal labels, a government warning, legal alcohol content, and from a legally-licensed account!

Merchant du Vin, America’s Premier Specialty Beer Importer Since 1978 http://www.merchantduvin.com