The 64-oz. beer growler may finally be allowed by the Florida Legislature

The fact that brewpubs in Florida cannot sell a regular growler of beer is no secret to anybody. Florida’s alcohol-container laws have long been disputed by everyone in the industry and occasionally customers who wanted to enjoy a 64 oz. growler of beer, but were prevented by the laws of this state. This is the measure that has become the standard size for any brewer, which is why many people consider the law that prohibits the sale quite ridiculous. In fact, this refusal to allow 64 oz. growlers is often the punch line of many jokes and some brewers actually offered to sell two 32 oz. growlers together, just to demonstrate the pointlessness of this law. Fortunately for them, the Legislature is just one vote away from finally legalizing these growlers along with many other changes in the Florida alcohol industry. With the Senate already having passed Bill 186 with a unanimous vote, the House is expected to take measure in the following days and offer the results to what many people from this field have worked on for over 4 years. There are many ambiguities in the current law that should be resolved with the passing of this new Bill, and the freeing of the 64 ounce growler is definitely one of the most important ones. The law that prohibits the selling of standard sized growlers in the state of Florida has often been considered one of America’s dumbest laws and has been the subject of several debates over the years. In fact, the system requires three tiers for alcoholic beverages and those who are involved in the system can only be part of one of the three tiers: manufacture, distribution or vending. Breweries can only sell their product to distributors, but not on site, except for those who have special tasting rooms, which are meant to encourage tourism in the area. At the same time, brewpubs cannot sell beer for retail purposes or to go and the growlers are not exactly convenient for most people. This entire system has a faulty design and this Bill means to put an end to at least some of these problems. In fact, Senate Bill 186 will allow brewers that have a valid license have up to eight tasting rooms as well as allow distilleries such as the ones in Fernandina Beach to sell four bottles a year to their customers as opposed to the two they are allowed to sell today. This law should make the industry more valuable and enable breweries to expand and develop. It should also put an end to all the jokes that have been made over the Florida liquor license law and finally allow the selling of 64 ounce beer growlers to become reality. This new law has been a subject of debate for many years and it has been long awaited by those who operate in Florida’s beer industry as well as regular consumers who often joker about the 32 ounce sizes as being medicine bottles and it may finally satisfy beer lovers from all over Florida.