Working in close cooperation with the Delaware Brewers Guild, the Brewers Association (BA) recently submitted comments to the Office of the Delaware Alcoholic Beverage Control Commissioner (OABCC) to express support for proposed Rule 911 – A Rule Permitting Limited Self-Delivery of Beer, a regulatory change that would allow small Delaware brewers to sell and deliver beer to any person licensed to receive and sell beer.

Access to market has always been a challenge for small brewers and with continued wholesaler consolidation the ability to self-distribute becomes even more critical to the success of small brewery businesses. With some form of self-distribution allowed in all but a handful of states, including all of Delaware’s contiguous neighbors, Diamond State brewers would benefit from joining the ranks of those able to sell and deliver their beer directly to retailers.

While the implementation of Rule 911 would represent a significant positive step, the BA also took the opportunity to point out that it is not, in and of itself, the best solution because it would not extend self-distribution to out-of-state brewers.

Read the BA comments