Free Beer Samples in Ohio Now Legal: Breweries, distilleries and restaurants in Ohio can now offer free tastes to customers.
Ohio Governor John Kasich has signed a bill into law allowing breweries, distilleries and restaurants to offer up to four samples of beer, wine or liquor to customers, per WHIO.
The approved legislation puts Ohio in line with the 37 other states that have some type of free sampling available, Natalie Walston, communications director for the Ohio Restaurant Association (ORA), told this news outlet last month. The proposal “takes away some red tape when offering customers samples of alcohol,” Walston said. Nothing in the legislation requires restaurants and breweries to offer free samples, but simply allows them to do so if they choose.
This change in law comes over two years after retailers were given the green light to hand out samples for free. Prior to the summer of 2014 you had to pay a quarter or 50 cents for sample — and still do for liquor over a certain proof.
Interestingly, Ohio wineries asked to be excluded from the legislation. Many Ohio wineries charge for small samples at their tasting rooms, so giving away samples didn’t make much sense for them.
This marks the second win for Ohio’s craft beer industry in less than a year. Gov. Kasich signed legislation last May doing away with the state’s ABV cap.