Another stab at liquor law reform

[custosnox]

Baby steps.

Baby steps when you're trying to catch up to the people who are jogging?  Doesn't work for me.

[DTowner]

Baby steps when you're trying to catch up to the people who are jogging?  Doesn't work for me.

Indeed.  It is also disheartening to consider how long and how much effort was required for this baby step.

[TheTed]

On a recent trip to a brewpub out of state, I couldn't help but think of all the different ways in which that would be illegal in Oklahoma.

There was a young couple with an infant (it was a pretty quiet place)
I could buy a pint or three.
I could buy a growler fill.
I could buy a six-pack.
I could visit on Sunday.

[Gaspar]

[heironymouspasparagus]

All this PLUS the Caddo County cops stealing people's money...yeah, we're doing fine Oklahoma... got the outside companies just lining up to come set up shop here!

[dbacksfan 2.0]

[Townsend]

Group Wants Oklahoma's Craft Beer Laws Changed

http://publicradiotulsa.org/post/group-wants-oklahomas-craft-beer-laws-changed

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A group wants to make Oklahoma's laws for craft beer the same as state laws for wineries.

Heather Sams of the League of Oklahomans for Change in Alcohol Laws, or LOCAL, says there's several breweries that are restricted by regulations not imposed on other businesses like wineries.

The Journal Record reports the group wants breweries to be able to sell their whole beer portfolios from the tap. They also want liquor stores to be able to sell alcohol mixers, cheeses and other food pairings.

LOCAL is run by 10 craft beer enthusiasts, with another 40 people as members. The organization's leader, Kevin Hall, says it plans to hire a lobbyist to present the issues to state lawmakers.

[carltonplace]

I wish them luck.

With the price of oil dropping the state of OK should be looking for alternate revenue streams.
Colorado's microbrew industry has annual sales of a billion or more (not to mention the new grass industry). 

Really the only thing keeping us out of the game is our arcane and outdated laws.

[Conan71]

Beer tourism is a very real concept.  Any time we travel out of state, I use the opportunity to find and bring back beer we cannot get in Oklahoma.  There are several breweries I have growlers from and I make sure to pack their empties and take them with us when I know we are going to be in that area again.

NW Arkansas has a "Brewery Trail".

http://www.loopnet.com/ATTACHMENTS/5/A/4/5A4EE44E-C061-4C39-9E00-5F26FBE3B2F6.PDF

A friend of mine was just in Bend, Oregon and tipped me off to this:

http://www.bendbrewbus.com

If we could get full line sales out of breweries, I'd hope it could make nano breweries a reality.  Imagine being able to finish off a day on Grand Lake with a fresh craft beer in the courtyard of a small brewery along the water or making it possible for small operations in smaller towns throughout the state. 

[carltonplace]

Last time I was in Fort Worth I went to a party at the local brewey and it was a blast. I want this for Tulsa.

Plus the stuff Conan said; ditto, that too and additionally also as well.

[HSams75]

Beer tourism is a very real concept.  Any time we travel out of state, I use the opportunity to find and bring back beer we cannot get in Oklahoma.  There are several breweries I have growlers from and I make sure to pack their empties and take them with us when I know we are going to be in that area again.
......
If we could get full line sales out of breweries, I'd hope it could make nano breweries a reality.  Imagine being able to finish off a day on Grand Lake with a fresh craft beer in the courtyard of a small brewery along the water or making it possible for small operations in smaller towns throughout the state. 

Exactly this.  Whenever I travel out of state, I make a point of seeking out craft beer that I can't get here, I visit breweries and sample their beers, I visit local restaurants and try local beer on tap.  Over the summer, we spent a week in Texas on a beercation, visited some breweries, and spent a stupid amount of money on beer at breweries, liquor stores, and growler stations.  I have a friend who works out at Prairie who has to tell disappointed out-of-state visitors that she can only sell them low-point beer and they are NOT happy to hear that.  I've seen posts from out-of-staters who would love to visit our breweries but pass us by because of the low-point restriction. 

Certain segments of the population have a knee-jerk negative reaction whenever it comes to the idea of modernizing our liquor laws, but they fail to look at how change will benefit our state, or the ridiculous inconsistencies that exist (i.e. wineries being able to sell at point-of-production up to 24%, while breweries are limited to 4%; wineries can set up shop at *the farmer's market*, but no way would a brewery be allowed - it's nuts).  Our current focus at LOCAL is parity between breweries and wineries, so we have to educate people on the way that will benefit our state.  The momentum that craft beer currently has nationwide will help, I hope.  We already have a nice concentration of breweries in Tulsa and OKC, so when the laws are modernized, we are perfectly situated to establish a couple of ale trails.  There is so much potential here and it drives me nuts that we're not entirely living up it.
 

[Breadburner]

Craft beer sucks.....

[HSams75]

Craft beer sucks.....

That's how I feel about macro beer, so to each his own.    Regardless, I think we can probably both agree that our liquor laws could stand to be modernized.

[DolfanBob]

Here we go baby steps. This is a good idea but not enough to get me to fall off my wagon just yet. I want strong cold Bud and Coors in grocery stores. Heck I had no problem waiting 10 minutes for a strong beer to get cold in my freezer. 

http://www.tulsaworld.com/scenehomepage3/what-the-ale-could-oklahoma-be-getting-cold-beer-in/article_f005608d-d815-5dbc-8c10-2dee0037c562.html

[Red Arrow]

I want strong cold Bud and Coors in grocery stores.

I doubt I would buy strong Bud or Coors even if it were available in Liquor Stores.  Well, maybe just one each in a Mix-a-Six to remind me why I drink Craft Beer.