Following the lead of Alpharetta and Sandy Springs, the Atlanta City Council may soon consider an ordinance allowing brewpubs to sell take-home beer in the form of growlers to their customers.
The measure out of the Public Safety & Legal Administration Committee, sponsored by Council Members Lee Young Jr. and Kwanza Hall, recognizes that “it is a benefit to the local economy for locally owned and operated brewpubs to be able to sell their locally manufactured beer and malt beverages for consumption on premises and in retail form,” and amends Atlanta liquor ordinances to allow retail sales of growlers and packages.
A brewpub operator would have to acquire a separate license to sell growlers. The ordinance would take effect as soon as it passes the full City Council.
The proposed law defines brewpubs as establishments that brew their own, are licensed to sell liquor and derive at least half their annual sales from food sales. It defines a growler as bottle “filled with a malt beverage from a tank, cask, barrel or other container,” and “capable of being sealed with a tamper-proof or other seal” so a customer can take it home without running afoul of open container laws.
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