Some great things happened this year and some old blue laws remain in place. Here is how things went down: - Several changes to Wineries, including limited off-sale capabilities at festivals, the importing of "bulk wine," and the creation of a "wine educator license." - Beer sales will be allowed at TCF Bank Stadium, located on the University of Minnesota campus. Beer sales will be allowed through halftime and at least one locally brewed beer must be available. - Beer & Liquor stores will now be allowed to sell self branded apparel, something grocers fought in the past. -The City of Winnebago was granted special permission to import beer from out of state from breweries that produced less than 5,000 barrels last year, as long as they meet all standard licensing and branding prerequisites. This law expires at the end of 2012. - A special provision was made for Kick's/Broadway Liquor in North Minneapolis. The store was damaged beyond repair and looted during the days that followed a tornado last summer. They ran into trouble with Minneapolis zoning laws and were granted special exemption. - The ban on off-sale Sunday liquor and beer sales did not pass. As expected, the amendment wasn't heard in committee, but Rep John Kriesel (R) 57A, brought it to the House floor for a vote and the amendment did not pass. We previously published a breakdown of the votes here. - A bill to allow the sale of growlers at liquor stores was introduced, but never gained support. Many people thought the bill was too restrictive, not allowing enough brews to be sold. The measure would have allowed growlers of beer not already available in bottles and cans. There was also concern that repackaging could harm the quality of the beer and create tracking issues in the case of a recall. |