Happy New Year! The beginning of the year is a great time for alcoholic beverage industry members–manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers–to review the events of the prior and confirm that they have taken care of regulatory compliance. In addition to periodic reporting required at the federal and state levels, changes to ownership, management, or premises triggers the requirement to update...
Continue ReadingLaws and regulations that govern the production and sale of alcoholic beverage products can seem very strict. This is true for the most part. However, there are circumstances when variances from the rules–either permanent or temporary–are authorized. The key to any variance from federal or state alcoholic beverage regulations is the same: a request for variance must be made...
Continue ReadingBrewdog Brewing Asked About a Flaw in the Florida Beer Franchise Law In 2020, Brewdog Brewing Company LLC (“Brewdog”) asked the Florida Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco (ABT) what the word “successor” means as used in the Florida Beer Franchise Law, Florida Statutes Section 563.022(16). At stake was whether would be bound to the distribution agreements that had...
Continue ReadingNothing. Despite the popularity of pop-up bars and restaurants, Florida does not have special laws and regulations that are specifically aimed at these short-term hospitality concepts. That’s a problem for pop-up organizers. The primary attributes of pop-ups are their limited durations (sometimes as short as one event) and their uncommon locations (abandoned businesses, building rooftops, airplane hangars, etc.). But...
Continue ReadingFlorida Beverage Law authorizes two types of permits for the storage of alcoholic beverages: the Off Premises Storage (OPS) permit and the State Bonded Warehouse (SBW) permit. A comparison chart showing the different attributes of both permits is below. Off Premises Storage (OPS): Ideal for Vendors The Off Premises Storage (OPS) permit is intended for the storage of taxpaid,...
Continue ReadingThe Florida Beverage Law and related regulations contain no specific requirements concerning restrictive territories or any other contractual terms concerning wine and distilled spirit products. For beer and malt beverage products, however, the Florida Beverage Law, requires exclusive sales territories for beer and malt beverage products (collectively referred to here as “beer”). Since 1988, beer may be sold by...
Continue ReadingThe Florida ABT’s 1998 Declaratory Statement tells that licensed alcoholic beverage retailers can pay manufacturers for the use of their trademark under certain terms. Friday’s Wanted to Create the Jack Daniel’s Grill In Declaratory Statement 98-01, the ABT was asked whether Friday’s Hospitality Worldwide Inc. (“Friday’s”, operators of the same restaurant chain at the time), a alcoholic beverage vendor,...
Continue ReadingIt’s natural to want to expand a successful brewery and taproom to new parts of the state. Before launching that second Florida location for your brewery or taproom, Florida brewery owners should pay attention to the following three considerations.
Continue ReadingAlcoholic beverage retailers–including bars, restaurants, breweries, wineries, and distilleries–are often asked to provide off-site alcohol service–catering–for a range of events. In Florida, there are a limited number of ways in which an alcohol retailer can participate in providing alcohol service away from its licensed premises. Option 1: Sales to Private Party for Open Bar Alcohol retailers that have a...
Continue ReadingWhat happens when a Florida licensed beverage company violates the Florida Beverage Law? In 1994, the ABT issued penalty guidelines concerning single and repeated violations of the Florida Beverage Law. While these penalty guidelines have not been updated to reflect all changes to the law since 1994, it is a helpful guide to the ABT’s disciplinary actions. Unfortunately, the...
Continue Reading