Small craft brewers in Jacksonville and around the state are speaking out against a bill that they say would heavily restrict their burgeoning industry.
"This is not a fair fight," said Ben Davis, owner of Jacksonville's Intuition Ale Works.
This week, the Senate Rules Committee voted 9-4 for a measure known as the "growler bill." It would limit retail operations at Florida microbreweries by requiring the smaller brewers to buy back their bottled products to sell on premises once the breweries reach a certain size. Only Florida, Idaho and Mississippi forbid craft beer to be sold in the half-gallon size.
SB 1714 is backed by the Florida Beer Wholesalers Association, which has controlled beer distribution in the state for decades. Since the repeal of Prohibition, alcohol is essentially distributed under a three-tiered system that separates manufacturers, distributors and retailers.
