Legal Age to Brew?

[krops13]

Congrats passedpawn you're my first sig quote.

 

[skyzo]

I started home brewing at 18, and I'm sure glad that it wasnt regulated. I appreciated good beer at the time, but hadn't had too many microbrews. I moved to a new place where I didn't know anyone, so I had no one to buy alcohol for me, so I figured why not?
So my first beer was just a BMC clone, but then I figured why make crappy cheap stuff when the possibilites are endless? Its been an adventure ever since

 

[DilvishTheDamned]

There's a pod cast on Basic Brewing Radio of a kid doing some homebrew for a science experiment. His teacher was fine with it as long as he stopped the fermentation a few days in, and his dad was supervising the whole time.

Really I think this is partially a non-starter. I suspect that 99% of the LHBS owners will discourage kids from getting into the hobby too early (ie early teens). I suspect that most credit card company will not issue cards to people who shouldn't be drinking, which would put a stop to internet orders. Besides, the sort of irresponsible parents that would be clueless that their kids were homebrewing (and getting kits via the internet) on a regular basis are going to have other problems with them.

As far as regulation goes, it's pretty simple thing to stop, since hops, brewer's yeast, extract, and malt are all specialty items without any real use outside of brewing. Sure you can make other things into hooch, like apple cider + bread yeast, but beer brewing supplies would be simple to regulate.

 

[LVBen]

I suspect that most credit card company will not issue cards to people who shouldn't be drinking, which would put a stop to internet orders.

What are you talking about? 18 year olds can and do get credit cards, and I doubt they would even know if one of their 18 year old customers was buying stuff from online brew stores for making beer.

 

[Haputanlas]

I got my debit card at 16. That card can be used as a credit card for online ordering.

 

[olllllo]

You might be shocked to learn that our Local HBS has been flagged by credit card companies as an alcohol related purchase.

I got a call yesterday to confirm and approve the purchase.

The data is there.

 

[bob1852]

You might be shocked to learn that our Local HBS has been flagged by credit card companies as an alcohol related purchase.

I got a call yesterday to confirm and approve the purchase.

The data is there.

Which one? Chuck's place?

 

[olllllo]

Which one? Chuck's place?

Brewers Connection.

I'm sure the flag exists, it's just up to the CC company to implement it.

I was using my Alaskan Airlines Visa (personal not corporate). Normally my DesertSchools MC doesn't have a problem

I know that as a Homebrew club, once in a while we have to approve alcohol purchases on the club credit card. Not sure if that was placed by the bank automatically because it's a non-profit or what the deal is.

 

[olllllo]

Oh and I almost forgot. The ASU homebrew club is absolutley barred by ASU from making purchases at BC. Their credit card was denied by ASU.

 

[bob1852]

Brewers Connection.

I'm sure the flag exists, it's just up to the CC company to implement it.

I was using my Alaskan Airlines Visa (personal not corporate). Normally my DesertSchools MC doesn't have a problem

I've used my VISA and DSFCU debit at both Phx LHBS without a problem (thankfully).

Oh and I almost forgot. The ASU homebrew club is absolutley barred by ASU from making purchases at BC. Their credit card was denied by ASU.

Wow, that's just wrong...

 

[olllllo]

It's kind of weird. They are ASU funded. They can buy books and equipment online, but no ingredients.

 

[Sawdustguy]

Never been questioned, I think that most shop owners realize that if someone is going through the trouble to brew quality beer, they are also drinking it in a responsible manner, and therefore feel no reason to stop them. If I just drank to get hammered, I would not be going through the trouble to brew it form scratch. There are far cheaper and easier ways for minors to get alcohol.

Absolutely! It brings back memories. Back in the day Boones Farm Apple Wine was popular. I took a Mott's Apple Juice bottle and filled it up with Boones Farm for a quick drink between classes in High School. For the hell of it, I even offered a teacher some of my "Apple Juice" and he said no thank you and complemented me on drinking something healthy instead of soda pop. If he only knew. It looked like apple juice and the teachers were none the wiser. We even mixed some rum in our Coke Bottles and in a pinch drank mouth wash. We were very stupid back then but it proves how inventive minors can be if they want a drink.

 

[mrmekon]

I'm surprised at how many here think it's a good idea for the LHBS to card. It seems absolutely wrong to me to card someone to purchase a bunch of things that they can legally purchase, even if there is an implication that they're going to brew with it. Plastic bottles, sugar, and yeast? They could buy apple juice and harvest yeast out of the air...

*Distilling* is not a natural process and restricting it makes perfect sense, but fermentation is easier to do than to avoid. Just have some food... and wait.

Maybe that comes from my background of highly suspect hobbies. I got weird looks when I was 17 and trying to procure 2 gallons of sulfuric acid... but darn it, reversal film isn't going to bleach itself. I hate age restrictions.

 

[olllllo]

I'm almost positive that no on is taking a position that it SHOULD be done, only that they understand why a business might do so to cover ass.

Other than that, there was some doubt over whether it could be done (specific to CC).

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

Does raise a question tho'.

Legal drinking age is 21 but, an 18 year old can legally serve alcohol in a restaurant.

what then would the legal minimum age to work in a established brewery be? 16? 18? 21?

 

[krops13]

I PERSONALLY THINK if you old enough to serve your country your old enough to be served by your country.

 

[LVBen]

Legal drinking age is 21 but, an 18 year old can legally serve alcohol in a restaurant.

Not in Nevada. In Nevada, you must be at least 21 to serve alcohol. You also have to be at least 21 in order to ring up alcohol as a checker in a grocery store.

That brings up an interesting other question... how old should you be to work at a home brew store?

 

[klyph]

I think the notion of a group of people getting together to decide what other people aren't allowed to do, that they themselves do regularly, is ridiculous.

 

[Scooby_Brew]

Legal Age to Brew?

It's not alcohol, till you start fermenting it. Till then it's a food product. If malted grains were subject to the same laws as beer, so should be honey (you make mead out of it), apple juice (apfelwein), sugar, corn, all kind of fruit.
"Sorry kid, you have to be 21 to buy this apple juice. Oh, you want this cough syrup and a tube of glue instead? Not a problem".

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

I think the notion of a group of people getting together to decide what other people aren't allowed to do, that they themselves do regularly, is ridiculous.

That's Politics Brother.

 

[Scooby_Brew]

Off subject a little, but what I could never understand is exactly why do you have to be 21 in order to have a beer, but you could be only 18 and die fighting a war on the other side of the world. Go figure.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

Off subject a little, but what I could never understand is exactly why do you have to be 21 in order to have a beer, but you could be only 18 and die fighting a war on the other side of the world. Go figure.

Cause you aren't supposed to be drinking in the militia.

Erm, Military.

 

[DilvishTheDamned]

What are you talking about? 18 year olds can and do get credit cards, and I doubt they would even know if one of their 18 year old customers was buying stuff from online brew stores for making beer.

I really don't have a problem with 18 year olds drinking. 16's a bit young, any younger than that, and I believe it's been shown that serious drinking causes mental problems.

 

[Yuri_Rage]

Seems most of us agree with one another here. No need to let this turn ugly.