Dry Counties

Sounds like communism

 

Yes.

Dry counties have been a part of my life here in west Texas. I live in a dry county now, but the county seat legalized beer sales within the city limits 2 years ago. So now I can buy all the AAL I want without a 30 mile drive to the "big" town.

The "big" town has a moderate selection of craft, but it's getting better all the time.

Pain in the ass...yes. Terrible....no.

 

If there is a hell I would have to think a dry county could be considered one, holy cow would that be beyond painful.

 

Dry counties are so bizarre to me. Like why is that still a thing? Prohibition ended like 100 years ago

 

Ocean City, NJ is a dry town and after vacationing there for the first time this past year, I can understand why. Great place for families with young children, and many liquor/beer stores and restaurants serving alcohol a few miles outside town; it wasn't even an inconvenience.

 

I would have to think adults can decide for themselves what is right and wrong, I think officials telling adults they "cannot" buy a beer is silly and childish. Good towns are made by good people, I don't see alcohol as bad when people respect it.

 

When I was in college and going on roadtrips, driving thru Louisiana and Texas it required planning to get the logistics down on when/where/and how much to buy to work around the dry areas.

 

Except it isn't usually the local officials deciding this. Most every dry county or town I've been in, the dry vs wet decision was first made by a voting majority of those folks who lived there when the law was proposed and voted on.

 

No dry counties but there are a couple of dry towns in Connecticut.

 

I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it

 

I worked in a near dry county in Western Australia several years ago. Outside of its two bars, one of which was practically members only, you couldn't buy anything above 2% ABV.

 

Back in the early 80s, I sold beer and wine in north-central North Carolina. Just south of Greensboro (Guilford County) is Randolph County with Asheboro being the dry county seat. Randleman in N. Randolph County, just across the Guilford County line sold beer and wine. Randleman made a fortune supplying Asheboro and other area dry legal entities with the Devil's elixirs. Just a few miles separate Randleman and Asheboro. All week long the intrepidly dry denizens of Asheboro would flock to Randleman, dropping their revenue laden dollars with an almost embarrassed glee. They left with big dark brown bags and sneaked into their homes. There were about 7 retail stores, each one specializing in various options then available (California Cooler was huge). I could visit those 7 stores in about 3 hours and write very big orders, and I built a thriving set of accounts. Asheboro eventually saw the light in 2009 and legalized beer and wine sales, but by a close referendum vote. Back then, I felt like a bootlegger laughing all the way to the bank!

 

Bridgewater was the last dry town, but that has since been changed two years ago.

 

The insanity that is dry and "moist" counties needs to end.

I have been on two different motorcycle trips where we had to make a plan to get beers for the night after we were done riding.

The first was near Mammoth Cave in Kentucky. We had passed a liquor store about an hour before hand and got into our campsite and realized that it was a dry county, had to ride 20 miles south to grab beer.

The other was near the Tail of the Dragon on the North Carolina-Tennessee border.

I just don't understand it.

 

I did not know that, I thought it was a local law thing not the people, good info, thanks!

 

The dry township close to me has ultimately led to the demise of the Mall within it's lines. No alcohol, no restaurants, no people... Evil I tell you.

 

The Heights is an area in Houston that has been dry going back many years (104 years). The clubs/resturants get around it by having you sign a list (join the club) and they can sell you alcoholic beverages. But it has prevented any off premise sales (so no grocery store liquor sales or liquor stores). The first step in repealing this happened earlier this week in the election where they voted 63% to repeal it.

 

Nearly as bad as dry counties are the states that restrict ABV to 3.2% beer. I'm looking at you Oklahoma and Arkansas when I discovered this on my recently-completed road trip. (I think it was those two states, but my trip was a real blitz of time travel.) I can remember back to my early years of beer drinking when 3.2% macro beer was all that I could get in Ohio until I turned 18, so in all graciousness I'll say that the breweries in those states did a good job getting some flavor into the beers that I drank.

 

Ah, I didn't realized that changed. Wilton, CT which is by me, is actually "damp". They allow for the sale of alcohol in restaurants now. It was something that was passed begrudgingly.