Senate passes Free the Hops bill; higher-alcohol beer could be on the wayPosted by Brian Lyman, Capitol BureauMay 14, 2009 2:51 PMCategories: Breaking NewsMONTGOMERY -- The state Senate today passed a bill allowing the sale of gourmet beers in Alabama.The legislation, sponsored by state Rep. Thomas Jackson, D-Thomasville, allows the sale of beer with an alcohol content of 13.9 percent by volume. Previously the limit was five percent by volume.The bill passed the Senate 22-9 and now goes to the governor. If signed, retailers would be allowed the sale of certain gourmet and imported beers in Alabama. Free the Hops, an organization which lobbied for the bill, says the beverages cost an average of $5 to $6 a bottle. The bill came up for consideration earlier in the session but was filibustered by state Sen. Hank Erwin, R-Montevallo, who cited his personal opposition to alcohol consumption in blocking the legislation. Erwin was not in the Senate chamber for Thursday's vote; however, the Senate approved the bill by using a previous vote total. Erwin was on that roll as voting aye.
At the University of Mississippi's Potency Monitoring Project, where thousands of samples of seized marijuana are tested every year, project director Mahmoud ElSohly said some samples have THC levels exceeding 30 percent.
From Danner:Just before 3:00pm Thursday, the Alabama Senate passed HB373. Success. Vindication. The blood, sweat, and tears of all of our many supporters paid off.BUT. We are at a point where we must have the Governor’s signature for our bill to become law.We need to do everything we can to encourage the Governor to sign our bill. That’s why we’re asking everyone in the state who values personal freedom and who thinks the Alabama government should stop telling us which beers are ok to drink and which ones we can’t handle to contact Governor Riley immediately. By phone, fax, or email, whatever works best for you.We’ve even had one of his former staffers give us some tips on how best to go about this:The volume of letters and phone calls that he receives on a particular issue is reported to him every morning, and he takes them seriously. … A couple quick points:* They have a pretty sophisticated constituent database, so multiple calls/mail from the same person won’t accomplish much. They report to him the number of persons, not the number of communications.* Any arguments that sounds like something the gambling folks would say should be avoided (”People go over state lines to do it anyway…”). You don’t want to equate yourself with those guys in his mind.* Arguments about personal liberty and economic development will probably have more sway.Pointing out the surrounding states that allow it will also be helpful. The fact that GA, NC, SC, and WV have passed these bills in the past couple years is persuasive.Just keep it short and to the point. Let him know you support the bill and why.Here’s contact information for the Governor’s office:Switchboard: (334) 242-7100Fax: (334) 353-0004Email form: http://www.governor.alabama.gov/contact/contact_form.aspxDon’t hesitate! We haven’t come this far only to suffer a veto now. Make sure Gov. Riley knows the people of Alabama want him to sign HB373 into law.Thank you to everyone who has gotten us to this point. Time to seal the deal.
Hops freed, beer to flow like wineBy Madison UnderwoodJust before 10 a.m., Alabama Governor Bob Riley signed into law HB373, the Gourmet Beer Bill, which will raise the limit on alcohol content in beer sold in Alabama.The bill’s passage follows a five-year struggle by Alabama-based grassroots gourmet beer advocacy group Free the Hops.After the bill was passed last Thursday by Alabama’s Senate, Free the Hops mobilized its followers. The organizations urged its members and followers to call Gov. Riley’s office, and just this morning announced a final push for calls.“I have been informed that our phone calls made the difference,” said a post on the FreeTheHops Twitter account after Riley signed the bill. “Everyone who called the Gov deserves credit for getting this done.” What happens next? Well, first, we celebrate. J. Clyde will host a celebratory party tonight at 5 p.m. featuring cask ale from Birmingham brewer Good People. In Huntsville, a similar party will commence at The Nook at 5 p.m.After that, Free the Hops might look to further limits on Alabama’s beer and brewing, such as Alabama’s container size limit for beer, or concessions on current homebrewing laws.
I don't where I'd be without my high gravity beers.
Sober enough to form a complete sentence???
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