High Gravity Beer

    As we wandered the supermarket yesterday, I noticed this beer on the shelf and instantly thought of Santa Barbara. I'm sure drinking it is not quite the same as riding around town (and the harbor) on a land-sea vehicle while consuming curious types of alcohol, but it still made me smile.

    And speaking of alcohol, there has been some concern (by us and others) as to whether Alabama and more specifically Huntsville, are considered Dry. Well, after some research, and exploring around town, I've learned some things...

    As a state restriction, residents in Alabama cannot have wine or alcohol shipped directly to them, so unfortunately we have to cancel our wine club membership at Buttonwood. It's very sad, but there's nothing we can do unless Free the Grapes makes huge advances in allowing direct shipment of wines across the country (good luck!).

   Out of a total of 57 counties in Alabama, 26 are considered Dry - all sales of alcohol are prohibited. Huntsville resides in Madison County which is one of the Wet Counties. Fortunately for us, this means that we can purchase beer and/or wine in the grocery stores, but hard alcohol and liquors must be purchased in an “off premises” store; these are commonly referred to as “ABC” (Alabama Beverage Control) or “package” stores.

   Madison County is somewhat unique in that we are allowed to purchase alcohol on Sundays, too. Only 6 other counties in the state allow sales of all types of alcohol on Sundays – most either prohibit sales on Sundays or restrict it to bars and restaurants only. Furthermore, Madison allows the sale of Draft Beer any day of the week (even the wet counties don't allow this by default). Makes me proud to live in Madison County – we're so progressive!

   Now, despite all this freedom we started feeling, we have learned that there are still some very arcane laws on the books. Here are a few:

1. Consumption of beer is prohibited on the premises of a Brewery. Beer can only be bottled for off premises sale. Meaning that a Brewery could give you a tour, but no tasting allowed!
   
2. Brewpubs do exist and can sell alcohol for consumption on the premises, but only if they are located in a historic building AND only if the city was known to brew beer before Prohibition. Needless to say we haven't found a single brewpub yet...
   
3. All beer served or sold must be 16 ounces or less (other than draft beer for commercial establishments). Sorry, but no 40s in Alabama.
   

   There was also a law stating that no beer with an alcohol content of more than 6% was allowed for purchase, but thanks to Free The Hops (an organization dedicated to repealing these laws), the Gourmet Beer Bill was passed in May 2009 that now allows for beer up to 13% to be sold. The people of Huntsville are still enjoying this new found freedom as we've seen several advertisements for “High Gravity” beer.

   Overall, it seems that Huntsville treats alcohol very much like we are used to on the West Coast. We'll just have to get used to going to the ABC store if we want something more than beer or wine, and say goodbye to our beloved wine clubs...