News-Record reports:
Those who don't follow either Western North Carolina economic development activity or state alcoholic beverage news may have been wondering what the beer portion of H 796 was all about. The bill, which passed the House and Senate Monday and is on its way to the governor, contains a beer provision and a couple of education items. The beer portion of the bill would allow large breweries to sell their own products on site. (Smaller brewers can already do this.) In fact, big breweries would be able to sell beer made at their company's other locations. ...
So what's in the offing here? Two nationally known breweries — Sierra Nevada and New Belgium — are looking at relocating to the Asheville area. ...Read the full article
Those who don't follow either Western North Carolina economic development activity or state alcoholic beverage news may have been wondering what the beer portion of H 796 was all about. The bill, which passed the House and Senate Monday and is on its way to the governor, contains a beer provision and a couple of education items. The beer portion of the bill would allow large breweries to sell their own products on site. (Smaller brewers can already do this.) In fact, big breweries would be able to sell beer made at their company's other locations. ...
So what's in the offing here? Two nationally known breweries — Sierra Nevada and New Belgium — are looking at relocating to the Asheville area. ...Read the full article
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For more on the same topic, see this article by John Frank in the News & Observer:
http://www.newsobserver.com/2011/11/30/1679600/law-boosts-states-pre-eminence.html#ixzz1fDgIZ7bZ
Until now, state law reserved the beer garden niche to breweries that produced less than 25,000 barrels a year, using the cap as a way to help regulate alcohol sales. All of the state's approximately 50 small craft breweries fit under the ceiling in the existing law.
State Rep. Tim Moffitt, an Asheville Republican, said the change would help attract the Colorado-based New Belgium and the California-based Sierra Nevada to open East Coast production facilities, potentially creating about 275 jobs and more than $200 million in capital investments.
New Belgium is looking to open a facility in Asheville and Sierra Nevada is eyeing property in Hendersonville, officials said.
"Asheville is becoming the craft brewery capital of the Southeast, if not the nation," Moffitt said. "This was a small change in the law to allow our state to benefit from additional jobs and additional investment."
By Jeff Fobes
11/30/2011