Thursday, April 7, 2016

Liquor Memo Updates That'll Make You Want to Dust Off Your Glad Rags

Pssst. Say, friend. Do requests from breweries or microdistilleries to open a brew pub, taproom, or a cocktail room make you feel like you’ve traveled back to the 1920s? Do folks ask you about selling growlers or spirits off-sale?

When you hear that baloney, do you make for the hills, shouting “23 Skidoo!” rather than see if they’re on the level?

Well Jumpin’ Jehoshaphat, the 18th Amendment is long gone, and the newly updated memo “Liquor Licensing and Regulation” and its model licensing ordinance is for you! It’s the cat’s pajamas and can help your city stay on the up and up.

The Legislature made scads of changes to liquor laws last year. They moved laws around pertaining to microdistilleries, brew pubs, and taprooms. If your city’s liquor ordinance refers to Minn. Stat. § 340A.301, chances are you need to consider making some changes, and the included model liquor licensing ordinance is the ticket!

Wondering about how to allow Sunday sales of spirits and growlers? Grab this hotsy-totsy memo and ordinance lickety-split, and all your friends will say, “Now you’re on the trolley!”

The Legislature also got everyone siphoning those Sunday morning mimosas and bloody marys a couple hours earlier, moving the allowable serving start time from 10 a.m. to 8 a.m. Zounds, that’s two hours more the gin mill will be serving giggle water! So much for speaking easy in the speakeasy!

The nifty updated liquor licensing ordinance adds licenses for brew pub off-sale, small brewer off-sale, cocktail rooms, and more, as well as changes due to recodification shenanigans. Whether it’s been a dog’s age since you’ve looked at the city’s liquor ordinance, or you just made changes, grab the updated memo and the League’s model licensing ordinance, give them a gander, and soon you and your constituents will be spifflicated with excitement over all your licensing ordinance has to offer. And how!


This blog post was written by attorney Ed Cadman. Ed gets really into his subject matter, which is why he's such a great attorney. Contact: ecadman@lmc.org or (651) 281-1229.