TTB and Recipes

[idylldon]

I'm in the process of a 3.5bbl. brewpub start-up (hope to open in late August) and have been reading as much as I can about the TTB licensing and labeling. I have a couple questions that I haven't been able to find the answers for and thought I'd post them here:

1.) If we are only going to serve our own beer out of on-premises taps via brite tanks and/or kegs, do I need to get a label approved?
2.) If I'm only using the traditional ingredients (malt, hops, etc.), do I need to submit recipes for approval?

Thanks in advance for any assistance.

Cheers,
--
Don

[beejay]

If your beer is being served only in state then you need no federal label approval, unless, like Illinois, the State requires federal label approval. Furthermore on site service does not require label approval.

Formula approval is only required when using non traditional ingredients.

[AlphaBrews]

I second what he said.

Check your state rules. In Missouri you don't need any label approval to serve on site.

[idylldon]

Thanks for the responses!

I'll check with the state to see if anything is needed. Being in CA, though, I imagine it will be.

Cheers,
--
Don

[beejay]

As long as you are serving only on premise on draft then you most likely wont have to submit anything regarding labels as there isn't a label associated with the product.

[ChesterBrew]

But keg collars (sort of a label) need TTB approval for each keg whether dispensed on-premises or off-premises, right?

[Brandjes]

Keg Collars

My understanding is Keg Collars are needed if you are selling full kegs - but serving in house they aren't required. If so - then every one-off/experimental batch that you run through the tap room would require a TTB label approval.

[ChesterBrew]

My understanding is Keg Collars are needed if you are selling full kegs - but serving in house they aren't required. If so - then every one-off/experimental batch that you run through the tap room would require a TTB label approval.

Here's what I'm referring to... from the TTB web page:

http://www.ttb.gov/beer/beer-faqs.shtml

What are the requirements for the government warning label?
The Alcoholic Beverage Labeling Act (ABLA) of 1998 applies to sealed containers the brewer offers for sale to consumers. The ABLA does not apply to glasses or containers a brewer uses to serve beer at the brewpub. These containers do not meet the definition for a sealed container in which an alcohol beverage is offered for sale to the public.

However, the law applies to any keg or serving tank from which the brewer dispenses beer to containers. The brewer must apply a government warning label to the keg or tank. The brewer must comply with 27 CFR Part 16 regardless of whether the public has view of the keg or tank.

The statement must comply with these conditions.

It must be legible under ordinary conditions, and on a contrasting background.
The words “GOVERNMENT WARNING” must be in capital letters and bold type. The rest of the statement may not appear in bold type.
The maximum number of characters per inch of the warning statement is 25. All characters, including both upper and lower case, must be a minimum 2 millimeters in size.

I've always seen breweries simply have a boilerplate keg collar with the warning information printed on it, which, in theory, would require some level of approval.

[beejay]

This just means that any serving vessel (keg, tank, growler, etc.) must have the standard government warning on it. This does not require label approval, but simply a sticker with the government warning on it.

[Junkyard]

all the taprooms ive talked to do not do label approvals for in house beer sales in the taproom. it would be ridiculous to require that.

Its easy to spend a lot of time figuring out what you can and cant do in this business.

[ChesterBrew]

Actually, I was referring to the original poster saying he may serve from tanks or kegs, and was thinking specifically about the kegs, such as a generic label like this one that you'd then hand-write the name in for:

http://yankeeschooner.com/Keg%20Collars%20%2526%20Keg%20Caps

But, point well taken... I wasn't specific enough in my comments on that... and I suppose even a bumper sticker with the same warning could accomplish the same purpose for all in-house beers.

[Bainbridge]

Keg collars are treated as labels for the TTB's purposes and require a COLA. Even more fun, if you have check boxes for beer styles, technically each box requires a separate COLA (the collar with that one particular box checked). I've seen many many smaller breweries just using generic keg collars. This is arguably legal sometimes kinda, but not great business practice. On the other hand, we just dropped another $$$ for more keg collars so I can understand it. But I digress.

The Commerce Clause is like Labyrinth, and sometimes you can say "You have no power over me..." The Federal Government, in this case the TTB, gains authority to regulate aspects of you, the brewery, through its power to regulate inter-state commerce under the Constitution, despite the express granting of authority over alcohol to the states under the 21st Amendment. If you are not selling out of state, they can't regulate your commerce. See: http://www.ttb.gov/rulings/2013-1.pdf (Partly, they're also so swamped right now that they released that reminder so that every dinky nano-brewery out there didn't have to deluge them with a new COLA for each new 1bbl one-off.) So if you're pouring on site, you're probably good. If you have limited distribution within the middle of a big state, you're probably good. Problems could arise if you're like, right on the border with another state or something and people drive two minutes from Cascadia into Ozarkansas to get your beer. And regardless, you still must comply with the labeling and health warning requirements. For example, your name/trade name and place of production firmly on the keg, etc. http://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/27/25.141

BUT. As mentioned above, your state will have its own specific laws. Most states unsurprisingly punt the work over to the TTB because ain't nobody got time for that and simply just require you to get federal approval. Some don't. Some have their own approval systems. Learn your own state's laws, that's part of starting up in a heavily regulated industry.

[ForgeBW]

We actually have to submit labels to the state for on site consumption, even though it doesn't ever leave the area. As long as it is in state though, we don't submit federal. Do you have a local case officer yet?

[idylldon]

No local case officer yet. Unfortunately, I'm not the one who is handling the paperwork but I want to make sure we don't miss anything along the way. I will dig into the state laws and see what CA wants.

Thanks to all,
--
Don

[Mraz]

No local case officer yet. Unfortunately, I'm not the one who is handling the paperwork but I want to make sure we don't miss anything along the way. I will dig into the state laws and see what CA wants.

Thanks to all,
--
Don

You don't need TTB or ABC approval for beer consumed in the tasting room. Any beer that is taken from the brewery(kegs,growlers,bottles) does need ABC approval.(in California) and TTB(outside state)

Note: If you do use generic keg collars that you have to write the name on each collar. Each new beer keg collar will have to be sent in for approval. That also goes for growler tags, you can't just write the name of the beer on the tag(ABC need to see it first)
ABC is 4-5 weeks for label approval... and if you need to fix something on the label that is another 4-5 week wait time....

Mike Mraz
Mraz Brewing Company