[First Reprint]

ASSEMBLY, No. 2644

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

INTRODUCED JANUARY 9, 1997

By Assemblywoman MYERS, Assemblyman BUCCO, Assemblywomen Bark and Crecco

An Act concerning winery licenses and amending R.S.33:1-10.

    Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

    1. R.S.33:1-10 is amended to read as follows:

    33:1-10. Class A licenses shall be subdivided and classified as follows:

    Plenary brewery license. 1a. The holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to brew any malt alcoholic beverages and to sell and distribute his products to wholesalers and retailers licensed in accordance with this chapter, and to sell and distribute without this State to any persons pursuant to the laws of the places of such sale and distribution, and to maintain a warehouse. The fee for this license shall be $8,500.00.

    Limited brewery license. 1b. The holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to brew any malt alcoholic beverages in a quantity to be expressed in said license, dependent upon the following fees and not in excess of 300,000 barrels of 31 fluid gallons capacity per year and to sell and distribute his products to wholesalers and retailers licensed in accordance with this chapter, and to sell and distribute without this State to any persons pursuant to the laws of the places of such sale and distribution, and to maintain a warehouse. The fee for this license shall be graduated as follows: to so brew not more than 50,000 barrels of 31 fluid gallons capacity per annum, $1,000.00; to so brew not more than 100,000 barrels of 31 fluid gallons capacity per annum, $2,000.00; to so brew not more than 200,000 barrels of 31 fluid gallons capacity per annum, $4,000.00; to so brew not more than 300,000 barrels of 31 fluid gallons capacity per annum, $6,000.00.

    Restricted Brewery License. 1c. The holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to brew any malt alcoholic beverages in a quantity to be expressed in such license not in excess of 3,000 barrels of 31 fluid gallons capacity per year. Notwithstanding the provisions of R.S.33:1-26, the director shall issue a restricted brewery license only to a person or an entity which has identical ownership to an entity which holds a plenary retail consumption license issued pursuant to R.S.33:1-12, provided that such plenary retail consumption license is operated in conjunction with a restaurant regularly and principally used for the purpose of providing meals to its customers and having adequate kitchen and dining room facilities, and that the licensed restaurant premises is immediately adjoining the premises licensed as a restricted brewery. The holder of this license shall only be entitled to sell or deliver the product to that restaurant premises. The fee for this license shall be $1,000, which fee shall entitle the holder to brew up to 1,000 barrels of 31 fluid gallons per annum. The licensee also shall pay an additional $500 for every additional 1,000 barrels of 31 fluid gallons produced. No more than two restricted brewery licenses shall be issued to a person or entity which holds an interest in a plenary retail consumption license. If the governing body of the municipality in which the licensed premises will be located should file a written objection, the director shall hold a hearing and may issue the license only if the director finds that the issuance of the license will not be contrary to the public interest. All fees related to the issuance of both licenses shall be paid in accordance with statutory law.

    ¹Farm brewery license. 1d. The holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to brew any malt alcoholic beverages in a quantity to be expressed in the license not in excess of 2,000 barrels of 31 fluid gallons per year and to maintain a warehouse and to sell his products to consumers for consumption off the licensed premises and to offer samples for sampling purposes only. The license shall be issued only when the brewery at which such malt alcoholic beverages are brewed is located and constructed upon a tract of land exclusively under the control of the licensee, provided the licensee is actively engaged in growing and cultivating on or adjacent to the brewery premises an area of not less than three acres of hops or 10 acres of barley which are to be processed into malt alcoholic beverages. For the first five years of the operation of the brewery, at least 51 percent of the hops or barley used in the manufacture of its malt alcoholic beverages shall be grown in this State. Thereafter, at least 75 percent of the hops or barley used in the manufacture of these beverages shall be grown in this State. The fee for this license shall be graduated as follows: to manufacture between 1,200 and 2,000 barrels per year, $300; to manufacture between 100 and 1,l99 barrels per year, $200; to manufacure fewer than 100 barrels per year, $100. For purposes of this subsection, "sampling" means the selling at a nominal charge or the gratuitous offering of an open container not exceeding one and one-half ounces of a malt alcoholic beverage.¹

    Plenary winery license. 2a. Provided that the holder is engaged in growing and cultivating grapes or fruit used in the production of wine on at least three acres on, or adjacent to, the winery premises, the holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to produce any fermented wines, and to blend, fortify and treat wines, and to sell and distribute his products to wholesalers and retailers licensed in accordance with this chapter and to churches for religious purposes, and to sell and distribute without this State to any persons pursuant to the laws of the places of such sale and distribution, and to maintain a warehouse, and to sell his products at retail to consumers on the licensed premises of the winery for consumption on or off the premises and to offer samples for sampling purposes only. The fee for this license shall be $750.00. The holder of this license shall also have the right to sell such wine at retail in original packages in five salesrooms apart from the winery premises for consumption on or off the premises and for sampling purposes for consumption on the premises, at a fee of $200.00 for each salesroom. Additionally, subject to rules and regulations, one salesroom per county may be jointly controlled and operated by at least two plenary or farm winery licensees for the sale of the products of any plenary or farm winery licensee for consumption on or off the premises and for consumption on the licensed premises for sampling purposes, at an additional fee of $500.00 per county salesroom. For the purposes of this subsection, "sampling" means the selling at a nominal charge or the gratuitous offering of an open container not exceeding one and one-half ounces of any wine.

    For the purposes of this subsection, "product" means any wine that is produced, blended, fortified, or treated by the licensee on its licensed premises situated in the State of New Jersey.

    Any holder of a plenary winery license who sold wine which was produced, bottled, and labelled by that holder in a place other than its licensed New Jersey premises between July 1, 1992 and June 30, 1993, may continue to sell that wine provided no more than 25,000 cases, each case consisting of 12 750 milliliter bottles or the equivalent, are sold in any single license year. This privilege shall terminate upon, and not survive, any transfer of the license to another person or entity subsequent to the effective date of this 1993 amendatory act or any transfer of stock of the licensed corporation other than to children, grandchildren, parents, spouses or siblings of the existing stockholders.

    Farm winery license. 2b. The holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to manufacture any fermented wines [and] , fruit juices and fermented cider with an alcohol content which exceeds regulated levels, in a quantity to be expressed in said license, dependent upon the following fees and not in excess of 50,000 gallons per year and to sell and distribute his products to wholesalers and retailers licensed in accordance with this chapter and to churches for religious purposes and to sell and distribute without this State to any persons pursuant to the laws of the places of such sale and distribution, and to maintain a warehouse and to sell at retail to consumers for consumption on or off the licensed premises and to offer samples for sampling purposes only. The license shall be issued only when the winery at which such fermented wines [and] , fruit juices and fermented cider are manufactured is located and constructed upon a tract of land exclusively under the control of the licensee, provided that the licensee is actively engaged in growing and cultivating an area of not less than three acres on or adjacent to the winery premises and on which are growing grape vines or fruit to be processed into wine [or] , fruit juice or cider; and provided, further, that for the first five years of the operation of the winery such fermented wines [and] , fruit juice and cider shall be manufactured from at least 51% grapes or fruit grown in the State and that thereafter [they] the fermented wine and fruit juices shall be manufactured from grapes or fruit grown in this State at least to the extent required for labeling as "New Jersey Wine" under the applicable federal laws and regulations. The containers of all wine sold to consumers by such licensee shall have affixed a label stating such information as shall be required by the rules and regulations of the Director of the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control. The fee for this license shall be graduated as follows: to so manufacture between 30,000 and 50,000 gallons per annum, $300.00; to so manufacture between 2,500 and 30,000 gallons per annum, $200.00; to so manufacture between 1,000 and 2,500 gallons per annum, $100.00; to so manufacture less than 1,000 gallons per annum, $50.00. No farm winery license shall be held by the holder of a plenary winery license or be situated on a premises licensed as a plenary winery.

    The holder of this license shall also have the right to sell his products in original packages at retail to consumers in five salesrooms apart from the winery premises for consumption on or off the premises, and for sampling purposes for consumption on the premises, at a fee of $200.00 for each salesroom. Additionally, subject to rules and regulations, one salesroom per county may be jointly controlled and operated by at least two plenary or farm winery licensees for the sale of the products of any plenary or farm winery licensee for consumption on or off the premises and for consumption on the licensed premises for sampling purposes, at an additional fee of $500.00 per county salesroom. For the purposes of this subsection, "sampling" means the selling at a nominal charge or the gratuitous offering of an open container not exceeding one and one-half ounces of any wine or cider.

    Unless otherwise indicated, for the purposes of this subsection, with respect to farm winery licenses, "manufacture" means the vinification, aging, storage, blending, clarification, stabilization and bottling of wine [or] , juice or cider from New Jersey fruit to the extent required by this subsection.

    Wine blending license. 2c. The holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to blend, treat, mix, and bottle fermented wines and fruit juices with non-alcoholic beverages, and to sell and distribute his products to wholesalers and retailers licensed in accordance with this chapter, and to sell and distribute without this State to any persons pursuant to the laws of the places of such sale and distribution, and to maintain a warehouse. The fee for this license shall be $500.00.

    Winery-brewery sublicense. 2d. The holder of a plenary winery license or a farm winery license, provided that the licensee is engaged in growing and cultivating ¹[barley and] at least three acres of ¹hops ¹or 10 acres of barley¹ used in the production of malt alcoholic beverages ¹[on at least three acres]¹ on or adjacent to the winery premises, shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to brew any malt alcoholic beverages in a quantity expressed in the license not in excess of 3,000 barrels of 31 fluid gallons capacity per year. The fee for this sublicense shall be $750. The holder of this sublicense shall be entitled to ¹[sell and distribute malt alcoholic beverages to wholesalers and retailers licensed in accordance with this chapter, and to sell and distribute without this State to any person pursuant to the laws of the places of such sale and distribution, and to]¹ maintain a warehouse and to sell ¹[malt alcoholic beverages] his products¹ at retail to consumers for consumption ¹[on or]¹ off the licensed premises and to offer samples for sampling purposes only. ¹[The holder of this sublicense shall also have the right to sell such malt alcoholic beverages at retail in original packages in five salesrooms apart from the winery premises for consumption on the premises, at a fee of $200 for each salesroom. Additionally, a salesroom jointly controlled and operated by at least two plenary or farm winery licensees, pursuant to subsection 2b. of this section, may offer for sale the malt alcoholic beverage products of the plenary or farm wineries for consumption on or off the premises and for consumption on the licensed premises for sampling purposes, at an additional fee of $500 per county salesroom, provided the wineries hold sublicenses under this subsection.] For the first five years of the operation of this sublicense, at least 51 percent of the hops or barley used in the manufacture of its malt alcoholic beverages shall be grown in this State. Thereafter, at least 75 percent of the hops or barley used in the manufacture of these beverages shall be grown in this State.¹ For purposes of this subsection, "sampling" means the selling at a nominal charge or the gratuitous offering of an open container not exceeding ¹[three] one and one-half¹ ounces of any malt alcoholic beverage.

    Plenary distillery license. 3a. The holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to manufacture any distilled alcoholic beverages and rectify, blend, treat and mix, and to sell and distribute his products to wholesalers and retailers licensed in accordance with this chapter, and to sell and distribute without this State to any persons pursuant to the laws of the places of such sale and distribution, and to maintain a warehouse. The fee for this license shall be $10,000.00.

    Limited distillery license. 3b. The holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to manufacture and bottle any alcoholic beverages distilled from fruit juices and rectify, blend, treat, mix, compound with wine and add necessary sweetening and flavor to make cordial or liqueur, and to sell and distribute to wholesalers and retailers licensed in accordance with this chapter, and to sell and distribute without this State to any persons pursuant to the laws of the places of such sale and distribution and to warehouse these products. The fee for this license shall be $3,000.00.

    Supplementary limited distillery license. 3c. The holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to bottle and rebottle, in a quantity to be expressed in said license, dependent upon the following fees, alcoholic beverages distilled from fruit juices by such holder pursuant to a prior plenary or limited distillery license, and to sell and distribute his products to wholesalers and retailers licensed in accordance with this chapter, and to sell and distribute without this State to any persons pursuant to the laws of the places of such sale and distribution, and to maintain a warehouse. The fee for this license shall be graduated as follows: to so bottle and rebottle not more than 5,000 wine gallons per annum, $250.00; to so bottle and rebottle not more than 10,000 wine gallons per annum, $500.00; to so bottle and rebottle without limit as to amount, $1,000.00.

    Rectifier and blender license. 4. The holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to rectify, blend, treat and mix distilled alcoholic beverages, and to fortify, blend, and treat fermented alcoholic beverages, and prepare mixtures of alcoholic beverages, and to sell and distribute his products to wholesalers and retailers licensed in accordance with this chapter, and to sell and distribute without this State to any persons pursuant to the laws of the places of such sale and distribution, and to maintain a warehouse. The fee for this license shall be $6,000.00.

    Bonded warehouse bottling license. 5. The holder of this license shall be entitled, subject to rules and regulations, to bottle alcoholic beverages in bond on behalf of all persons authorized by federal and State law and regulations to withdraw alcoholic beverages from bond. The fee for this license shall be $500.00. This license shall be issued only to persons holding permits to operate Internal Revenue bonded warehouses pursuant to the laws of the United States.

(cf: P.L.1993, c.372, s.1)

    2. This act shall take effect on the first day of the fourth month following enactment.

Establishes winery-brewery beverage license and permits farm wineries to produce hard cider.