New Law Signals Big Beer Changes in Montgomery County

Those who failed to closely read the listing for Republic’s First Annual 4th of July Freedom Fest in Takoma Park may have missed a particularly interesting tidbit beyond the fun sounding event. The press release notes that the barbecue/beer/freedom festival will celebrate the “passage of [a] new law enabling microbreweries to self-distribute in Montgomery County.” Montgomery County is notable not just in the area but nationwide for its stringent alcohol distribution laws, but a new state law that goes into effect July 1 should go a long way toward making some craft breweries’ (and also some wineries’) lives easier.

Maryland House Bill 132 was signed into law by Governor Martin O’Malley on May 15. Far from a maze of legalese, the three page piece of legislation is more or less to the point. Starting July 1, holders of certain licenses and permits (both in- and out-of-state) will be legally allowed to “sell or deliver its own beer to a county liquor dispensary, a restaurant, or any other