With the announcement of Executive Order 20 earlier this week, Governor Eric Holcomb of the great state of Indiana included language regarding the sale of alcohol for carryout from on-premise locations. The vast majority of the time, on-premise typically refers to restaurants, bars, breweries and wineries.
One of my favorite hobbies – taking pics of cocktails at Oak and Alley in Warsaw, Indiana
After the order went out, there was some confusion as to how to interpret it. The Indiana Restaurant and Lodging Association has weighed in. In an email sent to its members yesterday evening, the Association had this to say:
“Yesterday, the governor issued numerous executive orders that we communicated with you all previously. Please note that while he allowed carryout sales of alcohol from restaurants, this only includes alcohol in sealed original containers. Wine in a sealed/unopened bottle; beer in a sealed/unopened bottle/can; liquor in a sealed/unopened container. This does NOT allow mixed drinks/cocktails to be carried out. You can find Advisory Opinion 19-08: Permissible Containers for the Purpose of Carry Out here. Please note if permittees violate this current executive order, the ATC will shut the permittee business down immediately. This will negatively impact your future permit renewals.”
While this isn’t an announcement straight from the folks who can enforce the order, it is from a prominent industry group most likely equipped with the legal manpower to review orders such as this one.
The email goes on to state that they will be hosting a Facebook Live Q&A to address questions from attendees.
“Tomorrow, please join us in what will be a first – a Facebook Live Q&A. We hope to have a full explanation of the “Phase 3″ federal package at that time and will be ready for any and all questions. If we do not have the answer to your individual question – we will get it for you. Please join us at 4 p.m. EST on Wednesday.”
I will update the article as I receive more information.
UPDATE
To put it succinctly, you can most definitely NOT serve pre-mixed cocktails to-go. You can sell your mixers and alcohol in the original bottles but you can’t sell pre-mixed ready-to-drink cocktails. Now you know!
