alcohol beverage law

The Tax Foundation recently released its latest maps of state tax rates on beer, wine and spirits. Taxes vary widely across the country. For instance, beer taxes range from $.02 per gallon in Wyoming to $1.17 per gallon in Tennessee; $3.56 per gallon of wine in Kentucky to $.11 in Louisiana; and $35.22 per gallon of spirits in Washington to…

After consultation with theFDA, the TTB has just revised its interim policy on claims of “gluten-free” in labeling of spirits, wine and malt beverages. The original policy was outlined in 2012. The new policy says that, “Alcohol beverages that are made from ingredients that do not contain gluten (such as wines fermented from grapes or other fruit and distilled spirits…

If you missed the first ever Golden State of Cocktails industry conference, you missed a great event! In a packed session, I discussed the basics of alcohol beverage law with brand owners, bartenders and bar owners in Legal 101 with Malkin Law. For a full schedule of presentations visit: www.goldenstateofcocktails.com/wp-content/uploads/GSC_2014_fullschedule1.pdf During the session, we reviewed some basics of alcohol beverage…

According to Barclays, spirits sales increased for the third consecutive month, to +7.0% from +5.8% in the prior 4 weeks. “On a 12-week basis, industry growth improved to +6.4% from +5.5% in the prior 12 weeks.” Bourbon (+14.1% up from +12.3% last month) and Canadian Whiskey (+16.3% versus +13.0% last month) are both way up. Meanwhile, vodka sales increased just…

California bartenders may be required to wear disposable gloves or use utensils to make drinks under a new food safety law. The California Retail Food Code went into effect at the beginning of 2014 requires chefs and all other culinary workers to wear disposable gloves or use utensils such as tongs, when handling “ready-to-eat” foods. The Code reads as follows:…

A new bill in Florida being proposed will repeal the prohibition against beer tastings at off-premise establishments, like Costco and Publix, where beer is obviously sold. Florida craft brewers are permitted to have a tasting room next to their brewhouses, but permitting beer tastings at off-premise retailers will no doubt increase sales. Just like the consumer sampling rules for liquor,…

The continuing trend of celebrity-endorsers continues with Diddy and DeLeón and Justin Timberlake with Sauza 901. Diageo formed a joint venture with Sean “Diddy” Combs to buy DeLeón, a premium tequila brand. Diageo will add DeLeón to its tequila portfolio, which already includes Don Julio. Tequila priced at more than $60 a bottle — of which DeLeón does — makes…

Lawmakers are responding to the increased demand to lower beer excise taxes, according to Law 360 (http://www.law360.com/articles/498828/lawmakers-push-to-slash-beer-excise-taxes). “The Brewers Excise and Economic Relief Act, or BEER Act, as proposed by senators from Missouri, Utah and other states, would cut the beer excise tax in half, from $18 per barrel to $9 per barrel, saving $1.68 billion in taxes per year,…

According to Guest Metrics, craft spirits continue to outpace mainstream brands. Year-to-date, craft spirit brands (which by Guest Metrics’ definition includes Tito’s) grew volumes by 26%, while mainstream brands are down about 3.5%. Even excluding Tito’s from craft, craft grew 12-13% during 2013 versus 2012. Of overall spirits, craft volume has grown from 2.5% in 2012 to about 3.7% during…

December 5th marks the 80th anniversary of the repeal of prohibition. The current alcohol beverage regulatory environment and many of the laws are in place to avoid the “evils” of pre-prohibition days. The Distilled Spirits Counsel of the United States has a great infographic explaining the rise and fall of prohibition ). Below is a news release, in substance, discussing…