Growler refill Policy or Law?

Laws vary not only from state to state but even on municipal level. Just recently around me have a few places started selling prefilled growlers or doing exchanges. Most places I'm familiar with you are responsible for bringing in your own, clean, growler or buying a new one. As far as store/bar policy goes, they can do whatever they want, as long as they're legal.

Just wash your growler and cap with lots of hot water, it'll be fine.

 

Rick,
I own R's Market on Monroe Ave in Brighton. We are currently setting up a growler fill station that should be up and running by 11/6. From what I understand NYS does not have control over health code requirements regarding growlers, (but I'm sure they will as soon as they see $$$!). I believe Monroe County Health Dept. oversees the issue. Businesses that fill growlers should have a sanitizing policy in place and a sink to do it in. They should also have the right to refuse to fill a dirty growler as it could contaminate faucets and lines, thus compromising the quality of the beer for the rest of the customers. Best advice is to thoroughly rinse your growler (and cap) with hot water 3-4 times immediately after finishing the beer, then set it in a rack upside down to dry completely. I advise against putting the cap back on as any residual moisture could contribute to mold growth. Better off stuffing paper towel or cheesecloth into the top to keep out critters and dust. That's all I know until I learn otherwise!
Stop in sometime and check us out.
Jason Myers

 

Growler fills are just one of those things that will never get straightened out.

 

Personally I wouldn't bring in an old, dirty growler anywhere with the intention of getting it filled. Best way to clean them IMO, is to rinse with hot water right after you pour the last beer out of it. Set it out to dry and don't recap until completely dry. At my job we fill growlers and I'll rinse them if need be, but we have no responsibility to replace dirty ones. Once you buy the growler its yours, the $$ charged for the glass is not a deposit. (At least not in NY). If yours is too dirty to fill we would be happy to sell you a new one for $3.99. I don't know of any health dept. code that requires a swap for a clean one.

 

From my friends who do fills at some well known locations: NYS law requires a fill station to have means to properly rinse clean a growler brought in for fills. There is no law, according to them, that they have to replace your dirty growler with a clean one. The law is they have to clean yours.

That said, please save yourself money and headaches by ALWAYS rinsing and cleaning your growlers as soon as they are empty. I also use star san on mine just to be safe, but it is prob. unnecessary if proper rinsing and cleaning is done.

 

So this thread is about filling dirty growlers? Like someone else said, once you buy it, it's yours. Why should a place have to replace a growler because someone didn't take the time to clean it.
But what about one place filling some one else's growler, is there a law about that?
Here in NJ, there is one brewpub(that I know of) that will fill a growler from some where else. And I know of a few fill stations at stores that will fill any growler, as long as it's 64oz. I've seen where people complain about this, but to me it's common courtesy. What if one place fills some else's growler and something happens, accident, gets into the hands of a minor, whatever, who is going to get the blame? The place who's label is on the growler as far as I figure it.

 

I live in a tiny town in Colorado with two brewery/restaurants. We've got several growlers that we get filled, we drink, then we thoroughly rinse before bringing them back to refill. I wouldn't think of bringing in a dirty growler for the beer-tender to clean for me.

But that's not my question. One of the brewery's has a beautiful stainless growler that I'd like to purchase as a gift for my brother who lives in Brighton. Other than R's, where else can he go to get it filled? And what is the approximate cost for filling it. Here we pay $11 a fill-up.

(and, btw, if R's is the place I think it is, you've got an amazing deli too!)

 

A lot of places now. Malt and Market, Nathaniels Corner store, Tap and Mallet, Old Toad, Beers of the World. I'm sure there is more too.

 

Thank you @chefduff2!

 

As an owner of a bottle shop in Ohio, it's true... your dirty growler is your dirty growler. Clean it thoroughly with the hottest water from your tap (If you're really unsure, you can always use a drop of bleach or StarSans) , turn it upside down to dry (they now make stands for this, just $9.99), throw away your cap because it will mold if you put the cap back on with the slightest trace of moisture. We always use a new cap for each fill. Just know that we have the right to refuse to fill your growler for any reason we see fit. If we smell the possibility of a lawsuit brewing in your growler, we'll return the growler back to you. It's for your own safety and ours. As far as health department regulations, it varies from place to place. Get advise from your local health department.