Only from Utah

[Waynep005]

A friend just brought me a 12 pack of craft beers from Utah. It is funny to see a Pilsner, Lager, Pale Ale, and Porter all with the same ABV of 4 %.

 

[dg35884]

Alcohol laws in Utah are weird. Research just a bit to get the exact answer but I know that is why.

 

[Gameface]

It's sort of sad, especially when it's clear the beer would be excellent had they only been allowed 1-2% more abv to brew it to style.

 

[Brewtah]

It's sort of sad, especially when it's clear the beer would be excellent had they only been allowed 1-2% more abv to brew it to style.

You have to go to the liquor store to get all of the local beer that is over the 4%. All you see at the grocery store is 4% or under. If you are still in Utah you should check it out, there are 4-5 really good breweries in Salt Lake.

 

[Waynep005]

I have nothing against a 4 % beer but it is just strange to see 4 different styles all wtih the same abv. I am not in UT this was a gift froma friend who lives in the Salt Lake City area. Of course the brewers have to live with the law like it or not.

 

[Gameface]

You have to go to the liquor store to get all of the local beer that is over the 4%. All you see at the grocery store is 4% or under. If you are still in Utah you should check it out, there are 4-5 really good breweries in Salt Lake.

Oh, I know that. I really like Epic Brewery for instance and they don't brew anything at or below the 4% limit. It's just that if you want to sell more beer and have it available outside of the state run liquor store you need to keep it under 4%. So a beer that ought to be 5% can be worked down to 4% and be available to a larger market at a lower price. It seems Uintah, Squatters, Wasatch and Bohemian have all decided to live mostly at the 4% limit, even though they have a few beers sold at the LQ that are higher abv.

I agree with the OP that it is sort of funny to see all the beers at exactly 4%. It is a response to the law that has created the phenomenon of all styles being brewed to the exact same abv. It has created a myth in the state that all regular beer is 6%+ and only Utah beer is 3.2% (where they use abw to make it seem even more dramatic than it is). The reality being that there are great beers brewed to style at 3%abv all the way up past 10%abv with a good portion of beer being to style in the 4%-6% range. It sure would open up many more possibilities for local breweries if we could get the bottle and draft abv limit abolished.