State Law

Homebrewing Law In Connecticut

By Ryan

My brother-in-law, Dan, is not only a fine person but a brewmaster in waiting. Dan is majoring in chemical engineering and as he likes to say “there’s a lot of chemistry in making beer.”

Dan makes some of the best beers that I’ve ever had. He is a true beer engineer. Everytime I see him, he has a new brew from oatmeal stouts to brandy beer.  He has a talent for what he does.

Someday, he’ll be a famous masterbrewer but for now he’s a homebrewer.

How much beer can Dan make? He’s a college student so it may be an economic question but  is a legal blog and no surprise there’s a law regulating how much beer Dan can brew in a year.

Here’s what CT’s statutes have to say about homebrewing:

The provisions of this section shall not prohibit a person, other than a minor, from producing beer for personal or family use only, in the following amounts: (1) One hundred gallons or less in one calendar year if there are two persons who have attained the age of twenty-one residing in the household; and (2) fifty gallons or less in one calendar year if there is only one person who has attained the age of twenty-one residing in the household. Such beer may be transported in sealed containers for use at organized affairs including beer exhibitions, contests or competitions. Such beer shall not be sold or offered for sale. Conn. Gen. Stat. Sec. 30-77(b).

So Dan can rest easy as he brews beer for me to sample up to 100 gallons per year. And if he’s reading this, he needs to take advantage of this law and transport some of his brandy beer to “organized affairs including beer exhibitions, contests, or competitions.

So long as he shares his beers with me, it’s my advice that he makes a 100 gallons a year.

Full post as published by A Connecticut Law Blog on January 11, 2009 (boomark / email).