Arizona law allows brewery, winery combo

In some ways, the rise of craft beer aficionados has ties to wine drinkers who take the time to experience their choice drink’s aromas, colors and flavors. Often, this enthusiasm is paired with an interest in how the drink — be it craft beer or wine — was created, in both process and ingredients. It speaks to a higher level of enjoyment, as opposed to slamming back a couple brews. So it makes sense that Megan Haller and Shannon Zouzoulas would want to combine the craft beer and wine experiences. Their dreams of a combination brewery/winery were on hold until a local Southern Arizona law was recently reversed.

Arizona law had banned operation of both a brewery and winery on the same land until Sen. Don Shooter, R-Yuma, championed a legislation that reversed the measure. The Arizona Daily Star reported that Governor Jan Brewer recently signed the bill into law.

The Arizona Daily Star:

[Mark Barnes, a lobbyist who volunteered his time to work on the bill] said Shooter liked the notion of removing a regulation that restricted business.

“There is no public-policy reason why [a man] couldn’t go into a tasting room and try a beer made on the premises while their wife tasted a glass of wine grown on the property,” Barnes said.

While urging support of the bill during a meeting of the House Commerce Committee, Shooter said: “This bill has something for everyone. This is a masterpiece. This bill has beer, has beautiful ladies, it has wine. This is a bill we can all unite on.”

No lawmaker voted against the bill, neither in committee nor on the floor.

The law stipulates that the brewery and winery must be in separate rooms, but that they may share a tasting room. The two sisters opened their winery in March 2012, and they expect to apply for a microbrewery license when the law goes into effect this summer.