Seeking info on Oklahoma Alcohol Laws

I know about as much as the next random person on the block about alcoholic beverage laws in the state of Oklahoma.

I know that the brew permit I have allows me to make beer (and wine and cider) up to 200 gallons per year, but NOT sell it.

I'm trying to check all the free resources I can before I go talk to a lawyer, so does anyone have any good current sources on laws of alcoholic beverages in the state of Oklahoma? It would be nice to see something in plain English, not something only intended to be read by lawyers (all the hundreds of pages of 8.5x11 stuff I've found is way too difficult for me to understand and sift through).

I'm not looking to go commercial by any means, but I've been approached by some folks at church regarding a fundraiser by selling home-made beer. I informed them that it would be illegal for me to sell beer I make, but I told them I would investigate the possibility of donating home-made beer to a business who actually has a license to sell (it's a long shot, I know, but it can't hurt to ask), or failing that, what licenses would I be required to apply for and obtain and what are the costs?

Hope someone can help.

Thanks!

Nic

The American Homebrewers Association has a breakdown of the laws of each state on their website:

Oklahoma homebrewing statutes

I think the most relevant language is: No beverage made pursuant to a personal use permit shall be sold or offered for sale.

For any more clarification you should contact:

Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement Commission (ABLE)
4545 North Lincoln Blvd., Suite 270
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73105
Phone: 405.521.3484
Fax: 405.521.6578

Here you go.

http://www.ok.gov/able/Laws___Rules/index.html

509inc, THanks... but that was the first place I looked. After about 30 pages I start to go cross-eyed.

I think I just need to find a lawyer. I did find what looks to be a law firm that specializes in Oklahoma Alcoholic Beverage laws and helping restaurants/bars/distrubuters/liquor stores/etc get what they need to legally sell what they want to sell: http://www.oklahomabeveragelaw.com/

Well the short answer is No the state will not let the beer you brewed at home be sold/loaned/rented/given/donated without proper licenses.

Wait! I'm an idiot. I dug a little deeper in that 174 page document and found some fees listed: Oklahoma Brewer License is $125, and a plain Brewer License is 10 times that. I did not see a definition of Oklahoma Brewer License, just Brewer License.

It states, "A brewer license shall authorize the holder thereof: To manufacture, bottle, package, and store beer on licensed premises; to sell beer in this state to holders of Class B wholesaler licenses and retail licenses and to sell beer out of this state to qualified persons."

I'm assuming an Oklahoma Brewer License is the same thing only you can not sell beer outside of the state of Oklahoma. Do you know if that's a correct or partially correct assumption?

The first few times I read it I thought the same thing. I have also read others threads on here about what it took for them to get licensed and sale their beer, and it was not just a 125$ fee.

If it were just $125 I think everyone on this site would be starting up shop...

Oklahoma has always had ridiculous beer laws. Thanks to those old, outdated laws, Oklahoma can't get a lot of micro brews there like Fat Tire. That's why all you can buy is the usual BMC beers. I moved away from Oklahoma a couple of years ago, but it's my understanding that homebrewing beer has only recently been legalized.

Anyways, I wouldn't bother trying to donate it to be sold. The laws there are so confusing regarding alcohol. I'd find some other way to do fund raising though.

If you sift through some of the 21st Amendment cases, OK comes up as the location or a party to the suit very frequently. They have an interesting take on alcohol for sure.

I didn't see anything that listed a license for only $125. Even if it's out there, did you see all the other licenses/requirements you have to complete first? AND you will still have to obtain a federal permit as well which is definitely not $125.

KC10Chief said:

Oklahoma has always had ridiculous beer laws. Thanks to those old, outdated laws, Oklahoma can't get a lot of micro brews there like Fat Tire. That's why all you can buy is the usual BMC beers. I moved away from Oklahoma a couple of years ago, but it's my understanding that homebrewing beer has only recently been legalized.

Anyways, I wouldn't bother trying to donate it to be sold. The laws there are so confusing regarding alcohol. I'd find some other way to do fund raising though.

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Last year they officially legalized beermaking in Oklahoma. Before this, I believe the law stated that one could make Wine & Cider, up to 200GAL per year, for personal non-sale use. I don't think it said you could NOT make beer, but it didn't say you could, either. So they fixed it and added the word "Beer" to the things you can make. And I think OK law states that beer is made from Barley or similar grains.... not sure how strict they are on that. BUt the permit is free. It costed me nothing to get the form notarized since I had a landlord who was a certified notary person, so all I had to pay was the 44 cents to mail the paper to them. And then they paid another 44 cents to mail back my actual permit. Yay for good use of taxpayer money.

ReverseApacheMaster said:

If you sift through some of the 21st Amendment cases, OK comes up as the location or a party to the suit very frequently. They have an interesting take on alcohol for sure.

I didn't see anything that listed a license for only $125. Even if it's out there, did you see all the other licenses/requirements you have to complete first? AND you will still have to obtain a federal permit as well which is definitely not $125.

Click to expand...

Yep I've looked through the Oklahoma ABLE commission's hundreds of pages of legal jargon, and there are probably 20 different types of licences. I haven't gotten clear definitions, so the cheap $125 one probably doesn't get you much. I'm just going to bug some lawyers for info and get as much as I can for free, since I know a few lawyers. But there's a lawfirm in Oklahoma that's sole purpose is to help companies like restaurants, bars, liquor stores, etc, streamline the process of permitting and licensing for alcohol sales. I emailed them a couple of weeks ago and heard nothing, so I will just have to pick up the phone and call; that will probalby be more effective.

Not giving up on this one!

Sorry to rehash an old thread, but I called the OK able commission and they said to sell beer you need a license that cost $500, BUT you also can only sell to a distributor. I think this doesn't apply if you sell your beer on premises of where you make it, hence brewpubs don't need a distributor license. The possible workaround on all this though is that they either A purchase the grain for you or they "donate" money for the beer. You might also be able to rent the keg to them. Just ideas, not sure the legality.

Hey, no problem. I appreciate the info. I think I've decided to speak with a lawyer before any beer made by me is exchanged for money by any hands. I would recommend the same to anyone else.