O F F I C E O F L E G I S L A T I V E R E S E A R C H
P U B L I C A C T S U M M A R Y
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PA 23-49—sHB 6241
General Law Committee
AN ACT CONCERNING FA RM WINERY PERMITTEES
SUMMARY: Existing law generally limits where farm winery permittees may sell,
ship, and offer their products from to a single location, which is the winery’s
principal premises on their permits. This act allows permittees, with prior
Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) approval, to also sell the wine,
brandies, grappa, and eau-de-vie they manufacture at up to three retail outlets on
secondary, winery-related premises. Specifically, the outlets must:
1. be located on land that (a) the permittee uses to grow fruit and produce
alcoholic beverages it exclusively manufactures and (b) is leased or owned
by the permit’s “backer” (i.e., generally, the permittee or proprietor of a
permittee-associated business (CGS § 30-1(4))) and
2. not be located within a “grocery store” (see BACKGROUND ) or any other
retail outlet unless state law allows otherwise.
The act also allows permittees who suffer a significant loss of their winery’s
fruit crop to have their loss be used to satisfy state law’s average crop requirement.
By law, farm winery permittees must generally grow, on land they control, an
average crop of fruit equal to at least 25% of the fruit used to make their wine. An
“average crop” is generally defined each year as the average yield of the permittee’s
two largest annual crops out of the preceding five years.
Under the act, permittees who have a significant fruit crop loss may, by
December 31 of the year in which the loss occurred, certify the loss to the DCP
commissioner as he prescribes. If the commissioner determines that the qualitative
or quantitative reduction in crop yield constitutes a significant loss and the
permittee was not at fault for the loss, then that year’s lost crop is deemed to satisfy
the average crop requirement.
EFFECTIVE DATE: Upon passage
BACKGROUND
Grocery Stores
For purposes of the act, a “grocery store” is any store commonly known as a
delicatessen, food store, grocery store, or supermarket and (1) that is primarily
engaged in the retail sale of various canned goods and dry goods such as coffee,
flour, spices, sugar, and tea, whether packaged or in bulk, regardless of whether the
store sells (a) fresh fruits and vegetables or (b) fresh, prepared, or smoked fish,
meat, and poultry, and (2) does not include any store that is primarily engaged in
the retail sale of bakery products, candy, nuts and confectioneries, dairy products,
eggs and poultry, fruits and vegetables, or seafood (CGS § 30-20(a)). O L R P U B L I C A C T S U M M A R Y
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