Tucked away in a Southtown Star article is some rather significant news about a push by homebrewers in Illinois to showcase their beer at festivals across the state.
It’s something they’ve been doing for years – up until this year – when the Illinois Liquor Control Commission started cracking down on the practice citing laws that are currently on the books that allow homebrewers to share their beer in their home but not outside of it.
“After hearing about that, State Rep. Keith Farnham, D-Elgin, took up the cause. This week, Farnham shared a preliminary draft of a bill with club members and event organizers that would modify Illinois’ law. It is based on similar legislation in Wisconsin, Farnham said.
Placko said he intends to share the draft with the nonprofit American Homebrewer’s Association to get that group’s input.
As proposed, the bill would allow establishments to host homebrew exhibitions, demonstrations, tastings, and competitions and to charge a cover or admission fee but not for individual samples.
Farnham hopes to introduce the legislation after the November election.”
Here is a link to the Wisconsin legislation mentioned in the article.
This is the first we’ve heard of any substantive movement towards legislation addressing this issue. Kudos to Representative Farnham for taking up the cause.