sheeshomatic
Well-Known Member
I know there have been threads about whether or not people sell their beer to friends, family, etc - even people starting nanobreweries and whatnot. I'm hoping this question is a little different.
I've been brewing for a few years, and just like most of you, it's starting to become a pretty regular habit and sometimes a near obsession. I've displaced much of my freezer space for hops and I have storage bins for sacks of grain. A lot of this has been at the behest of my friends who are generally astounded that anyone can make beer this good using basically a cooler and a turkey fryer.
They all want to buy it. They tell their friends about it. They have tried it. They want to buy it. Not a bad problem to have at all. The trouble is of course, doing it legally. NJ is not known for being very simple about selling alcohol. I could do everything under the table of course, but if I start selling a few thousand dollars worth of beer a year, then I'd rather do it on the up and up if I can.
Here's my idea - I'd like to sell custom recipes to my customers. They ask for a particular kind of beer, or choose from one of my own creations. Then, they purchase the INGREDIENTS from me (at a premium of course). They give them to me and come back 6 weeks later for their ingredients, which somehow were turned into liquid. So, they're not buying the beer per se, but the grain, hops and yeast. I'm giving them the beer. I could then start a simple LLC and not have to worry about the ATF banging my door down. I'm thinking they probably would anyway - anyone have any thoughts?
I've been brewing for a few years, and just like most of you, it's starting to become a pretty regular habit and sometimes a near obsession. I've displaced much of my freezer space for hops and I have storage bins for sacks of grain. A lot of this has been at the behest of my friends who are generally astounded that anyone can make beer this good using basically a cooler and a turkey fryer.
They all want to buy it. They tell their friends about it. They have tried it. They want to buy it. Not a bad problem to have at all. The trouble is of course, doing it legally. NJ is not known for being very simple about selling alcohol. I could do everything under the table of course, but if I start selling a few thousand dollars worth of beer a year, then I'd rather do it on the up and up if I can.
Here's my idea - I'd like to sell custom recipes to my customers. They ask for a particular kind of beer, or choose from one of my own creations. Then, they purchase the INGREDIENTS from me (at a premium of course). They give them to me and come back 6 weeks later for their ingredients, which somehow were turned into liquid. So, they're not buying the beer per se, but the grain, hops and yeast. I'm giving them the beer. I could then start a simple LLC and not have to worry about the ATF banging my door down. I'm thinking they probably would anyway - anyone have any thoughts?