Utah Alcohol Regulations

Hi Tony.

I arrived in NV at the end of February but did not get to ski because of some minor surgery on my right ankle. I did take a drive up to the "Las Vegas Ski Resort." It is about 40 minutes northwest of the city. It seems like a pretty decent place to get in some turns for a good workout. What it loses in latitude it compensates for with altitude and does get significant snow totals. Of course, it is also a "mere" 423 miles up to Alta. Most of I-15 south of Provo has an 80 mph limit, and NV is also 70 mph. That makes for a fairly easy run either way.

I never had a problem ordering drinks in restaurants in UT either, but they tended to be rather skimpy (I once actually sent back a Martini for being laughably small at Biaggi's in Salt Lake.) and usually a bit pricey. It amused me to see the silly per/drink restrictions while at the same time, we were able to BYOB and pour whatever we wanted. I have close friends in San Diego, and my Naval Officer son also lived there for several years so my Subie Outback got nick-named "The Wine Wagon" for the booze we carted back after our visits.
 
I drive a wine wagon to Iron Blosam every year.

I assume Ski Las Vegas (first place I ever skied by the way) was bad this year, judging by Brian Head and Arizona Snowbowl getting less than half normal snowfall.
 
For all those singling out Utah as *the* state with strange liquor laws (as if it were the only one):

1.Alabama
A law passed in 2012 finally allowed the sale of beer bottles larger than 16 ounces. The new limit: 25.4 ounces, a.k.a. 750 milliliters, meaning 40oz-ers and growlers are still illegal.


2. Florida
Beer must be sold in containers either smaller than 32 ounces or larger than 128 ounces, meaning the industry-standard growler size of 64 ounces is illegal.

3. Indiana
A legal fight is under way challenging a current state law that forces grocery stores, convenience stores and pharmacies to only sell beer warm. Oddly enough, selling cold beer at a liquor store is fine.

4. Oklahoma
Also restricts beer greater than 3.2% ABW to being sold warm.

5. Massachusetts
The state banned happy hours in 1984. The law doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon, either. Other states take similar stances on drink promotions including Illinois, North Carolina, Oklahoma,Utah, and, until 2012, Kansas.

6. Colorado
Supermarkets and convenience stores can only sell beer that is 3.2 percent ABW (alcohol by weight) or lower. That is the same strength as the beer sold in Utah in those types of stores.
 
tirolerpeter":2si04cup said:
It amused me to see the silly per/drink restrictions while at the same time, we were able to BYOB and pour whatever we wanted.
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I meant to comment on this back when it was posted.
Remember that while BYOB is legal in Utah, whether you are allowed to do so is solely at the discretion of the establishment, and almost never includes spirits - just wine or beer.
 
Just bought a new house in Las Vegas. The Mrs. couldn't tolerate the "Polar Vortex" in Upstate NY. I'm always amused when I see a new posting on this topic. I was in LV just a few days (Last March) when I participated in a "Wine Tasting" at my local Albertson's supermarket at 11AM on a Sunday morning \:D/ I wonder when the "Elders" will allow their followers to grow up and make adult decisions?
 
If you're going to keep slamming Mormons go right ahead but at least remember:
1. Vegas was settled by Mormons. (Have you visited the Vegas temple grounds yet?). Currently about 5.7% of the Vegas population is Mormon. This is a +40% change from 1990. It is the 2nd largest Christian Denomination in Vegas (same for LA and Phoenix).
2. "Elders" are what the 19 year old missionaries are called, so Elders are certainly not deciding what to allow their followers to do. You're thinking of the Presidency of the church.
3. I can think of at least 30 other states that would not allow a wine tasting in a supermarket, and certainly not on a Sunday, and most not before noon. Right off are most (but not all) of the 18 control states where it is illegal to sell wine anywhere other than a state liquor store.
4. Stop comparing Nevada liquor laws to anywhere else. They are outliers on the relaxed side of things although by no means the least restrictive.
5. Let's look at the state you come from - New York:
* In some counties it is illegal to sell any alcohol before noon.
* There are 9 municipalities that do not allow on-premise consumption - meaning no bars and no wine with your dinner.
* There was a proposal to allow wine sales in supermarkets a few years ago; it was defeated, in no small part due to strong opposition by liquor stores.
* BYOB is illegal in NY.

Denigrate all you like, but at least do so from a fact based position.
 
BYOB is illegal in Colorado. I brought a prized cabernet to Vail, which I knew Richard and his wife Elda would enjoy. We could not find a restaurant that would allow us to bring it, even one where our local connection knew the chef.
 
There are still a lot of locations in the country where you can't get a drink. Utah isn't one of them.
Blue = alcohol sales permitted
Red = alcohol sales prohibited
Yellow = alcohol partially prohibited (either wet communities in dry counties or vice versa)

prohibition_map.jpg
 
On our trip to CO last week, we stayed at the Ogden Marriott. After driving for 10 hrs, I was as a bit wired. I forgot our flask of whiskey on the counter at home that we usually bring for such occasions, so I headed to the "bar" downstairs for a shot. Well, the only way I could enjoy a shot was to order food. And, even if I did that, I couldn't take it upstairs to my room to finish watching the Ducks/Kings hockey game. Luckily, at intermission I was able to run next door to Brewski's (I think) and was able to get my fix and un-wire.

This is the kind of thing that still drives me nuts about Utah. As I've said before, I think if you live there, you get used to the non-sense and find your ways to deal with it so it's not as big of an issue. But as a visitor, it's still a PIA sometimes to just get a drink.

I will also say that in all my travels, the coffee makers in many hotels around Utah are a joke compared to most places I've stayed.

end rant...
 
You experienced the difference between a restaurant license and a bar license.
 
yes, I understand that now, Admin... However, the average visitor (and my nerves and liver) could probably care less about what the gov't of Utah designates it as . :wink:
 
My point was that virtually every state issues different types of liquor licenses, each with their own quirks and limitations.
 
I get that... My point is, Utah takes the cake for making it inconvenient for the avg visitor to get a drink. (at least in the 40+ states I have visited).
 
snowave":1gn0954o said:
On our trip to CO last week, we stayed at the Ogden Marriott. After driving for 10 hrs, I was as a bit wired. I forgot our flask of whiskey on the counter at home that we usually bring for such occasions, so I headed to the "bar" downstairs for a shot. Well, the only way I could enjoy a shot was to order food. And, even if I did that, I couldn't take it upstairs to my room to finish watching the Ducks/Kings hockey game. Luckily, at intermission I was able to run next door to Brewski's (I think) and was able to get my fix and un-wire.

This is the kind of thing that still drives me nuts about Utah. As I've said before, I think if you live there, you get used to the non-sense and find your ways to deal with it so it's not as big of an issue. But as a visitor, it's still a PIA sometimes to just get a drink.

I will also say that in all my travels, the coffee makers in many hotels around Utah are a joke compared to most places I've stayed.

end rant...
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It has to do with the kind of liquor license the hotel bar has, obviously a restaurant and not tavern license, but here's just a few examples to keep things in perspective: you couldn't have taken that drink back to your room in Connecticut, either, as CT prohibits bar sales for off premise consumption after 8pm.
Regarding that license thing - I've stayed at hotels in both Colorado and Idaho where the hotel bar had only a wine and beer license, no liquor.

Recall that until sometime in the 2000's you couldn't have more than one drink at a time in Vermont. If you ordered a beer and a shot, you had to consume one of them first before the bartender would give you the other. It is still illegal in VT to have a drink in your hand on a dance floor. In Maine, until 1997, you couldn't take home an unfinished bottle of wine.
There are many, many state liquor laws that are just as odd and restrictive as Utah's. Yes, we do have a couple of truly bizarre ones, but mostly it seems we just have more than the other states.
Your rant is misguided, IMO.

Regarding the coffee makers in hotel rooms - I've never seen a difference based on location; they all kinda suck. The quality of the coffee maker depends far more on the price point/luxury level of the hotel.
 
I know you and Admin do your best to insist Utah's liquor laws are not all that different than many other states. However, I still respectfully disagree.

Anyway, Cheers.
 
snowave":hxs96i9z said:
I know you and Admin do your best to insist Utah's liquor laws are not all that different than many other states. However, I still respectfully disagree.
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Oh, don't get me wrong - there are quite a few of our laws that are nothing but bizarre, punitive, and not based in reality and are quite unlike those in other states; the Zion curtain, a waitstaff must carry your drink for you when moving from bar to table, the hard limit on how much alcohol a drink can contain, crap like that.
What happens though is that visitor's often complain about the ones that have more in common with other states - your experience with wanting to take a drink out of the Utah bar and the similarity of Connecticut laws being a great example - which then morphs into the stereotype of "Utah laws are so much more restrictive" and, especially, "you can't get a drink in Utah". It's the incorrect stereotypes that Admin and I take issue with.

At least we don't have dry counties like a dozen other states.
 
Until this week, drinking a Bloody Mary with your eggs in NYC on a Sunday morning wasn’t something you could legally do, thanks to an archaic Prohibition-era law forbidding the practice. The New York Daily News reports that this week, New York's governor Andrew Cuomo signed into law the "Brunch Bill," which will now allow the sale of alcohol at restaurants and bars beginning at 10AM on Sundays. Additionally, restaurants will be able to apply for “special occasion” permits 12 times a year that would allow them to begin selling the hard stuff at 8AM.

Also, in Massachusetts, happy hours and drink specials of all kinds are still completely banned. In Pennsylvania you still can’t buy more than 192 ounces of beer (aka roughly two six-packs) at a time. In Idaho only one liquor license per 1,500 residents may be issued. In New York, liquor and wine stores can't also sell beer, and grocery stores that sell beer can't also sell liquor.
 
Marc_C":2506smgo said:
In Pennsylvania you still can’t buy more than 192 ounces of beer (aka roughly two six-packs) at a time.
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Huh? I lived in PA for 20 years growing up. They sell Kegs, cases, 30 packs, etc.
 
socal":17p8c31n said:
Marc_C":17p8c31n said:
In Pennsylvania you still can’t buy more than 192 ounces of beer (aka roughly two six-packs) at a time.
Click to expand...

Huh? I lived in PA for 20 years growing up. They sell Kegs, cases, 30 packs, etc.
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That's because PA, as one of the 17 control states, has as confusing a set of laws as many others, including Utah.
In short, it depends where you purchase the beer.
From Wikipedia:

Beer may only be purchased from a restaurant, bar, licensed beer store, or distributor. Beer distributors mainly sell kegs of beer and cases. A beer distributor is also allowed to sell any package intended for resale by a PLCB-approved brewery containing any variety of bottle/can arrangements greater than or equal to 128 ounces. Six and twelve packs, along with individual bottles such as 40 ounce or 24 ounce beers, are sold at bars, restaurants, and licensed retailers. A license granted to a bar or restaurant permits the licensee to sell up to 192 fluid ounces of beer per purchase. For larger quantities one must go to a beverage distributor which sells beer only by the 12-pack, case or keg. Beverage distributors (which also sell soft drinks) may sell beer and malt liquor, but not wine or hard liquor.
 
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