![I would love to try home distilling, but it is apparently a legal nightmare of red tape. So you choices are either a) do it illegally or b) have a business attorney filing paperwork before you ever bottle your first product.
Considering the exploding interest in craft distilling and cocktails in the last 5 years, it’s really a major roadblock to what could be a fun home craft, much less people trying to start new businesses. Things like this just make me shake my head:
Transporting the liquor—which in Scarano’s case involves moving the whiskey from this stall to a retail counter about 50 feet away—triggers a minor avalanche of additional notifications and paperwork, exacerbated by the fact that Ohio, as a “control state,” holds a monopoly on the sale of liquor. This means Scarano has to “buy” the liquor he’s made himself from the state before he can resell it to customers.
“Of the people, by the people, for the people” continues to reveal itself to being a huge joke.
theatlantic:
Whiskey Business
Craft distillers not only need to be knowledgeable in such arcane matters as the esoteric habits of yeast and the miraculous properties of copper; they also must be deft in navigating the complex regulatory geography. (As I once heard a tour guide at the Wild Turkey distillery explain: “How do you make bourbon? You take some moonshine, put it in a barrel, and add a bunch of federal regulations.”)
Read more. [Image: Chris Langer]](http://24.media.tumblr.com/d3b9dfb5a105d5609933c671b0e153de/tumblr_mg9rw7ss7n1qcokc4o1_500.jpg)
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I would love to try home distilling, but it is apparently a legal nightmare of red tape. So you choices are either a) do it illegally or b) have a business attorney filing paperwork before you ever bottle your first product.
Considering the exploding interest in craft distilling and cocktails in the last 5 years, it’s really a major roadblock to what could be a fun home craft, much less people trying to start new businesses. Things like this just make me shake my head:
Transporting the liquor—which in Scarano’s case involves moving the whiskey from this stall to a retail counter about 50 feet away—triggers a minor avalanche of additional notifications and paperwork, exacerbated by the fact that Ohio, as a “control state,” holds a monopoly on the sale of liquor. This means Scarano has to “buy” the liquor he’s made himself from the state before he can resell it to customers.
“Of the people, by the people, for the people” continues to reveal itself to being a huge joke.
Craft distillers not only need to be knowledgeable in such arcane matters as the esoteric habits of yeast and the miraculous properties of copper; they also must be deft in navigating the complex regulatory geography. (As I once heard a tour guide at the Wild Turkey distillery explain: “How do you make bourbon? You take some moonshine, put it in a barrel, and add a bunch of federal regulations.”)
Read more. [Image: Chris Langer]
(via americandrink)
