(a) (1) For the purposes of this section, a "small farm winery" means a manufacturer of table wine licensed by the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, which produces fewer than 50,000 gallons of table wine per year, and meets one of the following criteria:
a. Produces at least 50 percent of its total production of table wine from fruit that is grown in this state.
b. Produces all of its total production of table wine within this state and owns not less than eight acres of vineyards in this state.
(2) For the purposes of this section, table wine that has been produced by a manufacturer, or a subsidiary or affiliate or other related entity of the manufacturer, and table wine produced exclusively for the winery by another manufacturer shall be considered to be produced by the winery and shall be included in the 50,000 gallon limit provided in subdivision (1).
(b) A catastrophic loss to produce grown in this state, including, but not limited to, one caused by drought or frost, may not disqualify a small farm winery if the winery qualified as a small farm winery prior to the catastrophic loss.
(c) Notwithstanding any provision of this title to the contrary, a small farm winery may do all of the following:
(1) Sell its table wines produced on its licensed premises directly from its licensed premises at retail to consumers physically present at the licensed premises, either for on-premises or off-premises consumption, for personal use and not for resale; provided, the winery collects and remits all state and local sales or use taxes and excise taxes due on the sale of table wine to consumers, packages and labels the wine in accordance with state and federal law, and reports its annual production of table wine to the board.
(2)a. Either of the following, provided that transportation of wine under this subdivision is made by the winery's employees in a vehicle owned or leased by the winery:
1. Sell and transport up to 10,000 gallons of its table wine produced on its licensed premises directly to licensed retailers each year.
2. Sell and transport up to 20,000 gallons of its table wine produced on its licensed premises directly to licensed retailers each year, if the winery provides to the board proof that the winery's table wine has been declined to be distributed by two separate wholesalers of table wine. If the winery's table wine has been accepted for distribution by any wholesaler of table wine, then the winery may not sell its table wine directly to retailers under this paragraph.
b. For purposes of this subdivision, retailers include those that are licensed by the board for on-premises consumption, for off-premises consumption, or for both.
c. If a winery sells and transports 20,000 total gallons of table wine directly to retailers as provided in this subdivision in any one year, that winery may not subsequently sell and transport table wine directly to retailers under this subdivision.
d. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section to the contrary, a small farm winery may only sell and transport table wine that has been approved by the board for sale within the state and for which the small farm winery owns the Certificate of Label Approval issued by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau.
(d) A county or a municipality may not require a small farm winery to pay any fees, including business licensure fees, to make sales or deliveries under this section, or any additional local tax other than the tax described in subdivision (c)(1).
(e)(1) A small farm winery shall maintain records verifying that the winery meets the qualifications under this section, and shall provide those records to the board upon request.
(2) A small farm winery shall report to the board each month the amount of table wine sold directly to each licensed retailer under this section.
(f) The board shall adopt rules to implement this section.
Structure Code of Alabama