Legislation recently introduced to the Ohio House could have a positive impact on Ohio distilleries, including Columbus-based Middle West Spirits and Watershed Distillery.
House Bill 499 would allow distilleries to sell 750 gallons of their own packaged spirits directly to consumers, instead of using the state as a mark-up middle man. The bill was introduced on March 18 by State Rep. Ron Young and has four co-sponsors.
Currently distilleries are required to sell their spirits to the State of Ohio, and then buy them back from the state to sell them out of their own shops. Watershed Distillery owner Greg Lehman explained that a bottle of their vodka sells to the state for $13.26, which he then has to buy back from the state for $24.95 to sell to a customer for $24.95.
“Keep in mind during that process the bottle never leaves Watershed Distillery,” said Lehman. “The mark up goes to the state to cover shipping, handling, and all the other logistics involved in getting the bottle to the state liquor store. However, in this case, the state never physically touches that bottle. Breweries and wineries in Ohio are permitted to keep this mark-up for bottles sold from their shops. This bill would allow us to do the same.”
This bill would be the first major adjustment to House Bill 243, which passed in 2012. Before that law was enacted, only Ohio counties with more than 800,000 people could have a distillery, and only one permit could be issued per county. Ohio has added more than a dozen microdistilleries since that 2012 legislation.
