Laws about home brew kegs at bars in NC?

nathan · 06-26-2008, 07:40 PM

I have a friend who has become a part owner of a cafe. He'd be interested in hosting local home brewers who wanted to come have an event and share their beers (via cornies or bottles), but he's not sure if it's legal, or what other issues would come up.

Does anyone have suggestions on where I can find more information for him?

The cafe is in Durham, if any GRABASSers have an interest.

**9/9** · 06-26-2008, 08:10 PM

I can't say that I know anything about the legal side, but I think this would be a really great thing to have here in Durham. Can you share any info on which place your is owner of? Has he bought into an already existing cafe, or will this place be new? I have heard some rumors about a new place that someone is working on that would include a similar idea, but I don't know if it is related to what you are talking about here.

nathan · 06-26-2008, 08:24 PM

It's the Broad St. cafe. It will close down in July for a week or two while they gut and refit it with a new kitchen, bar, etc.
His plan is to have more music, 14 taps (trying to use as much NC beer as possible), they got a chef from Pittsboro who is going to try adding in local food, and has experience working with local produce in a seasonal way (using what you can get in the season, not having fresh lettuce in winter, etc.).

It should be a no-cover place, since he hates cover charges and thinks they will drive folks off. But myself and some of his other friends brew and he would love to have homebrew clubs use the space to have a get together or something like that. If you listen to the Brewing Network sunday session podcast, they were doing a party with kegs of homebrew (I presume cornies), and I talked the idea over with him and he'd like it. He just doesn't know the laws and doesn't have time to find out (he has a full time job besides this).

**9/9** · 06-26-2008, 08:38 PM

Excellent, I go there all the time. I had heard that the business was for sale, I guess they found a buyer.

I agree that it would be good for it to be no cover. Actually, my wife and I sometimes complain that there is too much going on there. Sometimes we just want a place to go hang out, and we will avoid a place with a cover and loud band at those times.

Does your friend plan on making it more of a food-based cafe and less of a coffee shop? I felt like BSC must have taken a hit in terms of coffee sales once Joe Van Gogh moved in down the street.

The rumor I had heard was related to the place that Sean Wilson (who headed Pop the Cap, to increase the ABV laws in NC) was looking into last year. So discussion of homebrewers in the comments and discussion on this blog here:

http://www.bullcityrising.com/2007/06/brewpub_possibl.html

(though he ended up not going with this location, or any other that I have heard about)

Professor Frink · 06-27-2008, 12:13 AM

Sounds excellent. I'll definitely have to check it out.

nathan · 06-27-2008, 11:35 AM

I'm not totally sure what they will do, and I'll be out of town in the first half of July while the do it, but I guess we'll all find out in the later half of July!