TABC Issues Interim Guidelines After Jester King Verdict

As most craft beer lovers in Texas know, Austin's Jester King Brewing, Zax (a bar/restaurant), and Authentic Beverages (a distributor) recently won a partial victory in a lawsuit against the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission, in which a judge overturned laws that required brews to be arbitrarily labeled "beer" or "ale" according to alcohol content rather than brewing method and which banned brewers from informing consumers where their products could be purchased.

In light of that ruling, the TABC has issued a bulletin handing down interim guidelines on how brewers should label their products going forward, to be replaced by more permanent rules following a meeting on January 27.

The highlights: Brewers may either continue following the old labeling rules, or they may put the alcohol by volume on the label and "designate the product by the appropriate class or style that is recognized in the brewing industry." Also, 5.1% ABV will be the new dividing line for defining what "will be considered beer in Texas for regulatory purposes."

Also, brewers may now list ABV in advertising, and where their beer can be bought, as long as they don't receive money from the retail outlets listed in such ads.

The full bulletin may be downloaded at http://ow.ly/8kZh1