Worst Beer/Liquor Laws By State

Alabama's laws have been massively reformed recently, to wit:

* ABV cap on beer is 13.9%
* container size cap for beer is 25.4oz/751ml
* glass growlers (in any size) are legal, and you can re-use whatever glass growler you have
* taprooms are legal
* fermented beverages are sold in grocery stores as well as package stores. Package stores tend to not be open after 2am
* Sunday wet status; depends per county and municipality. Wet counties/municpalities allow alcohol sales after 12pm Sunday
* liquor is state monopoly, overpriced, and shoddy selection, but you can buy liquor in package stores
* you can buy kegs of whatever size from most package stores (a lot of them don't sell kegs to go, but that is a decision by the store, not government fiat)

Still to be changed:

* growlers to go from breweries (*may* already be legal, but not certain of that)
* brewpubs need to be allowed to package for off-premises sales
* home brewing needs to be legalised

 

That law is long gone.

What I don't get is people whining about no sales after 9 pm or on Sundays. While I agree those are silly laws, I'm wondering why competent adults can't plan ahead to have beverages available after 9 or on Sundays. Yes, there is the occasional random event like unexpected guests or dropping your six pack on the floor, but even then, you should be able to handle the inconvenience for one day.

 

If I law is pointless or silly or easily planned around, then it shouldn't be a law at all.

 

The 2am isn't that bad but I guess thats because I'm used to bars around here that are 1am. The problem with the 2am closing is that the MBTA doesn't run that late so you have thousands of drunk people emptying out onto the streets of Boston on a typical Friday or Saturday night and no public transit besides taxis. Maybe the city/state really just wants the revenue from all those DUIs that they are willing to let a few people get hurt in the process.

 

I don't mean South Carolina in particular, although they are somewhat strict but, a lot of southern states in general. Like in Alabama homebrewing is illegal, there are caps in states on ABV etc.

 

North Carolina has some shitty laws. 15% abv cap and growlers can only be filled at breweries. The growlers have to be that specific breweries growler to. So if anyone is into collecting growlers NC is the place to do it.

 

I thought this recently changed and brewers are not required to print "Ale in TX" on the labels anymore. Which is why were getting more distro from out of state brewers.

 

Too many beer geeks in CA snatch up special releases

 

This is a big problem in NJ too.

 

I thought that law got changed a while back as I dont own a NC based brewery growler and have filled quite a few growlers down there this year.

 

Northern Illinois is great. It's not the law's fault but Southern Illinois has some shitty distribution for sure.

 

I believe their are carry-out for wineries only.

 

I live in Mass and you can buy beer,wine, and liquor at the Stop and Shop down the road from me.

 

This one was pretty bad (makes some of the above look kinda petty, too), and it applied to all
50 uh, 48 states...

 

It may be a tax thing and it may be a "let's see what the market will bear" thing. I've noticed prices are about $1 - $2 cheaper on some beers in Connecticut and have seen $1 - $2 swings between stores in a 25 mi. radius here in NY. Of course, I'm in the northern suburbs of NYC so things are naturally more expensive here. I recall seeing Flower Power for $9.49 a six in Binghamton a couple of years ago when it was $12.99 - $13.49 in the northern burbs so I believe it's a market thing.

 

I wasn't whining, just mentioning what I want changed.

 

California?

 

I thought it had changed as well, but I checked the TABC web site and its still there. Maybe they havent updated the web site in a while

 

Other than the 6.2% split mentioned previously, Tennessee is not that bad. No abv cap, no growler laws, microbreweries can self-distribute as well as sell samples, pints, growlers, and kegs from the brewery. Under 6.2%beer can be purchased anywhere from 6am until midnight unless the local government has more restrictive hours. Wine and liquor must be sold in liquor stores but these stores are privately owned and not state run. They are closed on Sundays but open until 11pm every other day of the week. Unfortunately, the split on beer keeps many breweries out of the state and is the only real issue I have with TN laws.

 

One of my biggest gripes with SC laws (well, besides the distributor system) is that you can only serve four 4-oz. samples at a brewery tasting room. I would love it if this were changed and, as in NC, you could have a few pints at the local brewery and relax. Things have improved here dramatically in recent years, however, thanks to a number of pieces of legislation introduced by my friend Rep. Bill Herbkersman, and I trust that as change continues to occur in the industry, he'll do all he can to help SC evolve along with it.