Georgia soon to be the last state where Brewers cannot sell their beer to the public

Atlanta, Ga, September 21, 2016 – Today the Mississippi Brewers Guild announced a deal reached with the Mississippi Beer Distributors Association to that will, upon passage of legislation, allow craft breweries in Mississippi sell beer direct to the public among other concessions. Both the brewers and the wholesalers of Mississippi have shown tremendous leadership and partnership in the advancement of an industry that was in desperate need of attention.

Upon passage of this proposed legislation in Mississippi, Georgia will remain the sole state in the country where a brewery may not sell beer to the general public. As has been for decades now, the craft brewers of Georgia have one customer – their wholesaler. While consumers, economic developers, entrepreneurs, and state legislators have called for the ability to buy beer at a brewery that privilege is reserved for the 13 businesses that wholesale Georgia craft beer.

The Georgia Craft Brewers Guild strongly supports legislation to allow Georgia’s breweries sell beer in tasting rooms among other much needed modernizations to Georgia’s brewery laws. As always, and in the spirit of cooperation, we hope the Georgia Beer Wholesalers Association will have a change of heart and choose to support our legislative efforts this January.

Link to Jackson Free Press:

We’ve written and talked about Georgia’s prohibitive beer laws many times before.  Craft beer lovers in the state are all too familiar with the restrictions here, and visitors from out-of-state are usually confused and dumbfounded when visiting our breweries.

Congratulations to Mississippi, this is definitely a step in the right direction.  It’s a baby step, but it is a step.  The proposal limits breweries to direct sales of 10% of annual production or 1,500 barrels per year, whichever is less.  The major issue here is one of the benefits of direct sales is helping small, new breweries generate revenue and fostering growth.  One brewery-in-planning in Georgia said their first year production could be as little as 250 barrels, this would equate to less than 1 case per day of direct sales.  That’s not a lot of revenue to help with growth.  Hopefully Georgia takes note of this fact when they allow direct sales. #ibelieve

Until we do see that change, here we are… last place, #50, the final hold out.  I guess the good thing about being in last place is you have nowhere to got but up.  Right?  RIGHT???