legality

I've been being for a few years and never really looked into the legalities of home brewing. Does anyone have references to the laws involved. I remember reading somewhere that you cannot brew more than 500 gallons a year while still claiming to be recreational. Is there any laws in regards to ABV?

100 gallons for single adult, or household with just one person of drinking age. 200 gallons for 2 (or more) adults of legal drinking age. 200 gallons is the absolute cap on how much you can make/brew per year.

Go over to AHA site and look up your state in the HomeBrewing Rights section.

As far as I know, as long as you JUST use yeast in what you make (no concentration of alcohol through heat or cold) you'll not hit the max. BUT, the AHA site has it all spelled out for you.

Depends on your state. Here in Ga apparently it's 50 gals per calendar year

Hulud said:

Depends on your state. Here in Ga apparently it's 50 gals per calendar year

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Right, but it won't exceed the federal limit, which is what I posted earlier.

In CA it's 100 gal. per person up to 200 gal. for a "household". No laws regarding ABV...as long as you aren't distilling.

Washington state law limits it to 20 gallons :lame:

This has links to the original legislation. History of Home Brewing Legalization in the U.S. (seeking info) History of Home Brewing Legalization in the U.S.

DRonco said:

Washington state law limits it to 20 gallons :lame:

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You sure about that??

Special Provisions
§66.28.140 allows for the removal of up-to 20 gallons of family wine or beer (implied by §66.12.010) for use in tastings or competitions.

I didn't see where it mentioned any other volume limitation. Not saying you're not right, just don't see it on the AHA page for that state.

I read it wrong. It's only the transporting limit.

DRonco said:

I read it wrong. It's only the transporting limit.

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feel better now??? Now, what's your gallon target for 2013 going to be??

Is there any laws in regards to ABV? Just the natural limits of the yeast, which is around 25%.

david_42 said:

Is there any laws in regards to ABV? Just the natural limits of the yeast, which is around 25%.

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Not that I'm aware of... Depending on how you treat that yeast, it could go beyond 25%.

Golddiggie said:

feel better now??? Now, what's your gallon target for 2013 going to be??

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Yes! That was a close one. I'm looking into assuming my wife's allotted 100 gallon share.

I'm shooting for 199 gallons... :rockin:

Interestingly enough, while Federal law prohibits distilling, it looks like the law here in MO will allow it....

KevStL said:

I'm shooting for 199 gallons... :rockin:

Interestingly enough, while Federal law prohibits distilling, it looks like the law here in MO will allow it....

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Don't do it (or don't post about thinking about doing it)... The fed's can come down on you like a ton of concrete. Or do it for extracting essential oils, and such. You know, the things you can do LEGALLY...

Golddiggie said:

Don't do it (or don't post about thinking about doing it)...

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No intention to do it, or even talk about doing it. Simply saying what the law is in my state.

KevStL said:

No intention to do it, or even talk about doing it. Simply saying what the law is in my state.

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Yeah... You can also go right to the limit... So 200 gallons is kosher. 200 gallons and 1 ounce, not so much. Not that they'll know unless you make it public knowledge.

wow, thanks for the info so quickly. I wasn't worried about this because I knew that everything was legal but I was just curious where I could get the info. I appreciate all the insight and references. Happy Brewing!

Golddiggie said:

Right, but it won't exceed the federal limit, which is what I posted earlier.

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Well duh. But it's different per state as I was pointing out

Hulud said:

Well duh. But it's different per state as I was pointing out

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Just another reason why I won't be going to live in GA, ever... At least in FL they don't push you below the federal limit... About as inclined to go back to FL as we are of colonizing Mars this decade.

Here is interesting question.....I am brewing on Monday 12/31. Technically speaking does that beer count for the year 2012 or 2013?

Phunhog said:

Here is interesting question.....I am brewing on Monday 12/31. Technically speaking does that beer count for the year 2012 or 2013?

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Brewed on 2012, yeast pitched on 2012, counts on 2012. If you pitch the yeast at 12:01 am on Jan. 1, it counts for 2013.

Golddiggie said:

Brewed on 2012, yeast pitched on 2012, counts on 2012. If you pitch the yeast at 12:01 am on Jan. 1, it counts for 2013.

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If you pitch at *just the right time* it wouldn't count for either....

KevStL said:

If you pitch at *just the right time* it wouldn't count for either....

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Can you pitch the yeast in less than a nanosecond?

Golddiggie said:

Just another reason why I won't be going to live in GA, ever... At least in FL they don't push you below the federal limit... About as inclined to go back to FL as we are of colonizing Mars this decade.

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True ga does suck for homebrew laws and also craft brew as well. If you are a brewpub you can't sell beer unless its on tap I believe and no growlers

Golddiggie said:

Can you pitch the yeast in less than a nanosecond?

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This is going to be a "wild brew"....yeast will come from nature. So how do you know when the yeast is "pitched"?










Just being a PITA!! It's a normal beer

Phunhog said:

This is going to be a "wild brew"....yeast will come from nature. So how do you know when the yeast is "pitched"?

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Then the clock would start as soon as you had it ready for yeast to enter.

Just being a PITA!! It's a normal beer

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I figured as much... Sending a salvo back atcha hog...

Prior to last year, in order to brew legally you had to apply to the state ABC for a "HomeBrewers License" to brew any amount!!! This also gave the ABC freedom to come and inspect your equipment (not sure if ever enforced), our Great Gov. Christie, sign a law removing this requirement. Now we are free to brew up to the federal legal limit per household, with out a license. Before that many of us were renegades

Phunhog said:

Here is interesting question.....I am brewing on Monday 12/31. Technically speaking does that beer count for the year 2012 or 2013?

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Does any state actually track how much you brew?

Does anyone know if a homebrewer has ever been prosecuted just for exceeding the yearly limit?

jevers said:

Does anyone know if a homebrewer has ever been prosecuted just for exceeding the yearly limit?

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This has been covered before but...NO! In fact it is close to impossible to prove in the first place. You would have to have over 200 gal. sitting in your house. Even then it would have to be proven that it was all made in a single calendar year and not in previous years. The 200 gallon limit was put into place because they have to put some kind of limit on it. In other words they just didn't want that you could make an unlimited amount of homebrew. I might have gone over the limit this year...not really sure and I don't keep records of these things.

jevers said:

Does anyone know if a homebrewer has ever been prosecuted just for exceeding the yearly limit?

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No home brewer has EVER gone over federal limits.

I have stayed under the limits, but I think I broke some rules about transporting across state lines(I don't know)?. Anyone know if they have all the rules in one place?

mikescooling said:

I have stayed under the limits, but I think I broke some rules about transporting across state lines(I don't know)?. Anyone know if they have all the rules in one place?

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Look at posts #2 and #7...

Golddiggie said:

Can you pitch the yeast in less than a nanosecond?

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I am just that good.......

KevStL said:

I am just that good.......

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Pitching FTL??

Doesn't matter anyway. As long as you don't boast about brewing some obscene number of gallons in a year, all over the place, I don't think any harm will befall you. Of course, that still depends on the state you live in.

Golddiggie said:

Pitching FTL??

Doesn't matter anyway. As long as you don't boast about brewing some obscene number of gallons in a year, all over the place, I don't think any harm will befall you. Of course, that still depends on the state you live in.

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I'm in MO, so we can brew up to the federal limit.

And of course I pitch that fast - gotta lessen the chance for infection

I only pitch half-fast

Why such a concern? Brew beer and drink it. If you have not noticed, we are inching closer to the fiscal cliff. Lawlessness (SP?) and Chaos are sure to follow. WA and CO are lighting up as we speak. The only reason I would be concerned about brewing more than the volume(s) listed in this thread is if you are conducting illegal or criminal activities. No reason to give The Man a reason to rip your home apart looking for meth when the warrant was issued for brewing too much beer.

BTW--I rarely drive the speed limit, unless in a school zone.

Easy fix... move to Canada... no homebrew limits But you'll pay double the taxes :S

Glad I saw this, meant to check on what it was where I am, and there's no limit, thank goodness, since I'm storing brews for friends, and I'll likely have 400+gal going through my basement, every year :S