An overlooked, 80-year-old statute that says Oregon home-brewed beer can't leave the home has forced fair organizers to cancel the competition, which had 335 entrants last year, says Oregon Liquor Control Commission spokeswoman Christie Scott.
Brewers were reminded of the statute after the Oregon Department of Justice clarified the law for a pub seeking to serve home brew at an event, Scott says. "As long as this is the law, we have to enforce it," she says, adding that the commission hopes to see the statute changed in time for the 2011 fair.
Amateur brewers in several states are encountering laws that limit how they can share their recipes. A review similar to the one in Oregon took place this year in Michigan, says Chris Frey, chairman of the American Homebrewers Association.
Michigan law says homemade beer can travel, but not into the bars where clubs often meet. Frey, of Saline, Mich., says the licensed bars that host such meetings, for now, can no longer host them.
"We realized we have put our hosts at risk," he said.
Frey says state Reps. Douglas Geiss and Deb Kennedy, both Democrats, proposed a change that would have made tastings and competitions in bars legal. It died in committee this year after the liquor commission expressed opposition.
Most states permit home brewing by defaulting to federal law, which permits people 21 and older to brew 100 gallons per calendar year without a license and prohibits them from selling it, says Gary Glass, director of the American Homebrewers Association.
This year, Oklahoma legalized home brewing, leaving Mississippi and Alabama as the only states that outlaw it, he says.
Republican state Rep. Colby Schwartz wrote the measure that made home-brewed beer legal in Oklahoma. "Most people didn't know it was against the law. You can walk into almost any store and buy a home-brew kit."
Chris Hummert, competition chairman of the Oregon Brew Crew, a Portland-based group dedicated to home-brewing education,says the newly unearthed statute in his state could stifle growth of brewing entrepreneurship. "Competitions provide an outlet where home brewers can perfect their craft and refine their beers and recipes and eventually become professional brewers."