Law change allows Backpocket to sell out of state
Newly passed legislation will allow Iowa’s brew pubs to sell products out of state for the first time, a change craft beer makers hope will be a boon to the burgeoning industry.
Jake Simmons, owner and brewmaster of Backpocket Brewery in Coralville, worked with local legislators to revise the existing state laws, which restricted businesses with a brew pub license to only sell to Iowa wholesalers.
Following Gov. Terry Branstad’s signing of the legislation last week, brew pubs will be able to sell to wholesalers across state lines beginning July 1. Currently, Iowa beer makers classified as native breweries — Millstream Brewing in Amana, for instance — are are able to sell out of state.
“It was an unnecessarily restrictive law that came about because the craft beer industry just wasn’t where it is today when the law was written,” Simmons said. “This was a structural fix that was just common sense.”
The bill passed both the House and Senate unanimously earlier this spring. Simmons credited state Sen. Bob Dvorsky, D-Coralville, and Rep. Dave Jacoby, D-Coralville, for helping to usher the bill into passage.
Simmons said Backpocket, which currently sells its beer across Iowa, intends to begin shipping its products out of state as soon as the new law takes effect.
J. Wilson, a representative with the Iowa Brewer’s Guild whose official title is Minister of Iowa Beer, said with about a dozen or so businesses in Iowa holding brew pub licenses, the bill will help the industry continue to expand. According to the guild, the number of Iowa breweries has more than doubled since 2010.
“This makes it a whole lot easier for them to grow, expand to other markets and hire more people,” Wilson said. “It keeps jobs here in Iowa.”
Meanwhile, another bill that was signed into law this spring will allow fill-and-go beer in Iowa stores. Businesses such as grocery or convenience stores holding a Class C state permit will be able to sell beer in refillable containers, known as growlers, for consumption off the premises.
Wilson said that while the law will provide a new means for Iowa beer to be sold, it does raise questions about how stores will ensure quality.
The legislature also this year changed its definition of beer to include brews with higher alcoholic content. Currently under Iowa law, beer technically stops being beer once it reaches the 5 percent alcohol mark. Branstad signed the change into law in March.
Reach Josh O’Leary at joleary@press-citizen.com or 887-5415, and follow him on Twitter at @JD_OLeary. The Des Moines Register contributed to this report.
Changes to Iowa’s beer laws
Three pieces of legislation signed into law by the governor this spring affect Iowa’s beer makers:
•Licensed brew pubs in Iowa will now be able to sell in out-of-state markets.
•Fill-and-go beer sales will be allowed at businesses holding a Class C liquor license, such as grocers and convenience stores.
•The definition of beer has been broadened in Iowa to include brews with alcoholic content greater than 5 percent.