NH State Distribution Laws

I was at my favorite local beer shop last night (The Beer Store in Nashua NH) and asked if they would be getting Dogfish Head's Tweason'ale. He told me yes, if the state approved it.

I was surprised since I assumed that distribution was approved by brewer, not individual beer, and we have DFH distributed here. It seems that the state will deny individual beers based on recipe - especially if they believe additional fermentation will occur in bottle resulting in a higher ABV than labelled.

Is this a common practice in other states? It's particularly annoying for me in this case since my wife has Celiac disease and Tweason'ale is gluten free. There are so few commercial GF brews, and many are pretty terrible, so we are really psyched to try what Sam Calagione has brewed up. I need to figure out who in the state government I must speak with to influence a fast approval on this!

I have never heard of such a thing. I'd give a call to your state rep, talk with one of her/his staffers and ask about this.

Yeah, Pappers, it sure was a surprise to me - especially here in the Live Free or Die state. I'll see what more I can learn.