First Growler at Fat Heads

I was going through some of my writing that I did as editor of the TRASH Can, for the Three Rivers Alliance of Serious Home Brewers. I found this article from June 2001 and thought it would be interesting as growlers have been around Pittsburgh for 10 years now. Has it been that long Glenn?

Headline: All Smiles at Fat Heads

A while back Fat Heads South Shore Saloon on the South Side shut down for a remodel. They have been reopened now for several weeks with an expanded beer list. Going from 20 to just-under 40 taps put a broad smile on my face. They have always been noted for serving good US microbrews and this has not changed but they now expanded the English, German and Belgium offerings. But this is not why I write.

For the first time in Pittsburgh a tavern is selling growlers. Talk about one for the road. Yes, our local brew-pubs have been doing this for a number of years but Fat Heads is the first bar that I know of that is selling draft beer to go. If you think another pubs has or is doing this too please let me know.

It has always been legal for bars to sell draft take-a-way; this is how growlers got their start. The price of the beer is the same as on draft plus the $5 cost of the growler. They bottles hold 48 oz. of beer and the cost usually works out to the price of three 16 oz. pints. The specialty beers have an adjusted price but just remember you are paying for 48 ounces of beer. They will refill the jug if you bring it back for the cost of the beer.

Even if you have just one or two favorites on tap the new happy hour should start you smiling. From 4 to 6 all drafts are half off and not just at the bar. Either in the dining rooms or the new patio everybody can be happy at happy hour. Myself I’m pretty happy at the bar just to have a chat with Amy.

The above story was first published in June 2001 so the growler prices and happy hour ar edifferent at Fat Heads now.

Growlers in a car

Growlers have been around for a very long time in one form or another. In recent years they have gained a new popularity with the coming of brewpubs and bars that offer draft beer to go. A little tweet caught my eye on having growlers in one’s car between pub and home. As the Federal Government has resorted to a form of extortion in mandating the states to impose added restrictions on how you operate your car I felt comments on this were in order. The Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (known as TEA-21) was enacted June 9, 1998 by congress. Although it is no longer in effect its damage continues. One aspect of this was the mandating to prohibit open containers of alcohol in vehicles. In a nut brown shell, it basically states:

Prohibit both possession of any open alcoholic beverage container and consumption of any alcoholic beverage.

Cover the passenger area of any motor vehicle, including unlocked glove compartments and any other areas of the vehicle that are readily accessible to the driver or passengers while in their seats.

Apply to all open alcoholic beverage containers and all alcoholic beverages, including beer, wine, and spirits that contain one-half of one percent or more of alcohol by volume.

Apply to all vehicle occupants except for passengers of vehicles designed, maintained or used primarily for the transportation of people for compensation (such as buses, taxi cabs, and limousines) or the living quarters of motor homes.

Apply to all vehicles on a public highway or the right-of-way (i.e. on the shoulder) of a public highway.

Require primary enforcement of the law, rather than requiring probable cause that another violation had been committed before allowing enforcement of the open container law.

So the question at hand is a growler an open container? I don’t know if this was specifically determined in court but it could be a matter of interpretation between you and the police officer writing you a ticket. In the true sense, an open container has no cap, lid, seal or anything else that would prevent the contents from coming out. No, fixing your mouth to a growler is not sealing it. Also in the true sense, a sealed container is one that was sealed after filling by the manufacturer and as such the seal needs to be broken to open. Twist-off caps usually indicate if it was twisted off. In the case of growlers it cannot be determined if the cap was ever removed other that seeing that the bottle is still full. Still, there is a legal point that can be made that a person has access to the contents more readily in a growler than if it were in a can or regular beer bottle. The fact that a growler can be opened in a car may be legal enough to receive a citation. Actually, the last sentence in this writing does restrict alcohol from a passenger compartment.

Four Sons brewpub in Western Pennsylvania used to sell growlers when they were in business. They applied the letter of the law when selling growlers. They would apply heat-shrink tape to the cap and neck to show that the container was “factory sealed” at the point of sale. This established a president of sorts, as local cops would have known that this was done. Had you been stopped and not had a “sealed” bottle they could argue that you had an open container. Now, I’m no lawyer and maybe I drink too much but I would not take the chance in having one in the passenger compartment of my car. If you are sober and have a short ride home is one thing. Having a few big brews and then taking some more home may be risk.

The actual prohibition to having any alcohol in the passenger compartment of a car comes from the Commonwealth.

http://www.dmv.state.pa.us/pdotforms/vehicle_code/chapter38.pdf

Page 16 of 29 states:

§ 3809. Restriction on alcoholic beverages.

(a) General rule.--Except as set forth in subsection (b), an

individual who is an operator or an occupant in a motor vehicle

may not be in possession of an open alcoholic beverage container

or consume a controlled substance as defined in the act of April

14, 1972 (P.L.233, No.64), known as The Controlled Substance,

Drug, Device and Cosmetic Act, or an alcoholic beverage in a

motor vehicle while the motor vehicle is located on a highway in

this Commonwealth.