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Type of <br />Brewery <br />Licensing <br />Authority under <br />M.S. § 340A.301 <br />On -Sale? <br />Off -Sale? <br />Taproom <br />Allowed? <br />Brew pub <br />Subd. 6(d) <br />Yes, all liquor per on- <br />sale intoxicating <br />liquor license <br />Yes, growlers only, <br />per "growlers license" <br />Not <br />applicable <br />Micro: < 2,000 <br />barrels per year <br />Subd. 6(i) <br />Yes, malt liquor per <br />taproom license <br />Yes, growlers only, <br />per "growlers license" <br />Yes <br />Micro: 2,000 to <br />3,500 barrels <br />Subd. 6(j) <br />Yes, malt liquor per <br />taproom license <br />Yes, growlers only, <br />per "growlers license" <br />Yes <br />> 3,500 barrels <br />per year <br />Subd. 6(c) <br />Yes, malt liquor per <br />taproom license <br />No <br />Yes <br />Note the following additional limitations: <br />1. Brew pubs and small breweries can off -sale growlers only if they have a so-called <br />"growlers license" that specifically addresses such sales. Currently, the City does not <br />have that type of license as an option. The City's liquor code will have to be modified to <br />provide for it. <br />2. State law does not allow breweries to conduct off -sales of any containers other than <br />growlers. A microbrewery cannot sell its own 12 -pack of bottles, for example, on a retail <br />basis to an individual customer; it can only sell such bottles wholesale to retailers. <br />3. State law severely restricts "tastings" and "complimentary samples." Brewers in <br />Minnesota cannot offer free samples of beer like major breweries do in other states. <br />4. The Surly Bill provided that it does not preclude "the holder of a brewer taproom license <br />from also holding a license to operate a restaurant at the brewery." The "license to <br />operate a restaurant" refers to the license obtained from the State Department of Health; it <br />has nothing to do with liquor sales. Nothing in the Surly Bill allows an attached <br />restaurant to have an intoxicating liquor license, as restaurants often do. In fact, the <br />combination of a brewer's license and an intoxicating liquor license is expressly <br />prohibited (except for brew pubs). So, if a brewery decides to open a restaurant as part of <br />its taproom, the only liquor that can be served there is malt liquor brewed on site. <br />Zoning Ordinance — Micro breweries <br />Definition Clarification — Bottling Plants <br />The definition section of the Zoning Ordinance does not contain a definition pertaining to <br />breweries or any other kind of bottling plants. In the sections relating to the Light and General <br />Industrial (LI and GI) zoning districts, however, there is listed, as a permitted use, "Bottling <br />Establishments to include beverages such as soft drinks, milk etc., but not including hazardous or <br />toxic materials." Staff interprets the term "beverage" to include beer, wine, and spirits, and it is <br />the staff's position the production of such beverages, whether by brewing, distilling or <br />