After that, each adult was allowed to brew as much beer and wine for personal use at home as they wanted. You couldn`t sell it, but after 1985 you could brew it and drink it yourself, no license required. We hope that this will one day be the case for the home distillation industry. Let`s all get on board and make it happen! I think the legal limit for beer, mash, wash, etc. is 21.9% ABV. Anything superior is considered distilled or „hard liquor“. Because AGLC is the legal importer of spirits in Alberta, manufacturers (or the agencies they represent) sell spirits products to retailers through AGLC: In Canada, you can legally make any beer, wine or cider, but you can`t legally distill them into spirits! Section 86 Adults 86 (1) An adult may produce wine, cider and beer up to the amount permitted by the regulations in a licensed establishment or in the adult`s home. „I was talking to a friend who is an officer about distilling and he recommended that I call my local department. He assured me that I would not be dragged handcuffed if asked. I have already built my distillery, but I was curious about what legal risks I was actually taking. To be clear, it is illegal to moonshine without a license from the federal government. The following applies to you if you live in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Yukon. The act of making a puree and therefore producing alcohol is not illegal.
However, owning a still for the purpose of distilling your wort is illegal unless you have permission to own that still. That said, it`s perfectly legal to own a stills to make distilled water or essential oils that simply won`t be caught distilling alcohol. If you`re willing to waste the time, money, and pain that comes with getting a federal liquor distiller license, you can legalize your own moonshine all day. It`s just that it`s really expensive and a big effort to get this license. „Your great-grandfather, my great-grandfather, who lived on farms, did this kind of thing,“ he said. „My liquor is like moonlight before the 1940s, because that`s all we have to work with.“ „East of the garlic curtain, from Mundare to Winnipeg, was the moonlit earth,“ de Groot said. „We supplied Chicago. The railroad picked it up and shipped it to Al Capone. It was a way to pay the bills in years when farming was very, very difficult.
Born and raised in Prince George, British Columbia, Mr. de Groot has never been a stranger to Alberta. He travelled regularly to Edmonton for classical music lessons. For years he was a banker and also worked in custom equipment and manufacturing for industry. Regulation § 88 Homemade wine, cider and beer 88 (2) No person may produce wine in the apartment if the quantity of wine to be produced results in a quantity of homemade wine in the apartment exceeding 460 litres. 3. No person may produce beer in his home if the quantity of beer to be produced causes the quantity of craft beer in the dwelling to exceed 460 litres. 4. No person may produce cider at his home if the quantity of cider to be produced causes the quantity of homemade cider in the dwelling to exceed 460 litres.
(GB 143/96 S88;251/2001) RCMP executed a search warrant Wednesday for a house in the 12500 block of 70th Avenue and located five large barrels containing about 200 gallons of „moonlight“ in various stages of fermentation. A Surrey man was arrested after RCMP found „moonlight“ liquor and an illegal distillery in a Newton home. I was a little surprised by his answer. Distillation without a licence is illegal under the federal Excise Tax Act, which is not generally enforced at the provincial level. The Excise Act is a tax act, and the goal is to limit people who cheat on their taxes. He does not know anyone who has ever been accused of distilling alcohol for small amounts of personal consumption, but he wanted me to know that it was entirely possible. Can someone post the rules (1985 amendments) that say it is acceptable to make beer and wine at home for personal consumption? David Tavares, 58, owner of La Rosa`s Bakery on Augusta Avenue in Kensington Market, was charged with selling moonlight in his storefront and is charged under Ontario`s Liquor Licence Act. Undercover agents buy illegally produced alcohol at the bakery.
When police raided the bakery, they confiscated 4 litres of illegal alcohol and $800 in cash. He advised me not to distill alcohol because it`s technically illegal, but above all not to be an idiot. Be careful and responsible. From what I`ve learned from the online community, if you distill at home for your personal consumption, not much will come out of it unless you sell it! To support this theory, I have tried to dig up some cases in Canada where people have been charged or arrested for their moonlight. Here are some examples of cases where someone has been caught moonshining in Canada. „I thought moonlight would be a good way to make money.“ Nestled in a mall behind Vegreville A&W, a trained opera singer is busy making moonlight. The same was true for fermenting beer and wine — it was only legal if you got a federal license before launch. And it was a big effort. Prior to May 1985, a Canadian citizen required a government permit to brew beer and wine at home. In May 1985, the Canadian government amended its laws for the home brewing industry and no longer required people who produce beer and wine at home to apply for a permit. „When the moonlight was made, it wasn`t easy to make money on the farm,“ de Groot said. „Instead of being ashamed of how difficult it is to make money, I celebrate the great men and women she created.“ „The amount of moonlight delivered east of Edmonton until 1960 was incredible.“ In both cases, the people in question sold the moonlight, which is probably the reason for their arrest.
In fact, after several hours of searching, I couldn`t find a single person accused of simply moonshining in his basement with no intention of selling it! If you have found such a case in Canada, please share it in the comments section. Police said moonlight from a basement window of the family home on the property where three adults lived was sold to walk-in customers. De Groot said Vegreville, about 100 kilometres east of Edmonton, is now home to Canada`s first legally produced copper distillery. The law is mainly there to prevent the sale of moonshine, not to disturb people who distill for their personal consumption. In addition, Alberta`s local spirits industry continues to grow. Alberta currently has 179 licensed spirits producers operating in Alberta, including breweries, distilleries, real estate producers (i.e. wineries and meaderies) and soft drink manufacturers (i.e. cooler/cider/ready-to-drink/kombucha). To reduce paranoia, you will need to take a sample for LCBO laboratory testing before applying for a distillation licence in Ontario.
Yes, you must own and use a distillery to obtain permission to own and use a still. New products are easy to introduce in Alberta. The spirits producer or representative registers the product through the AGLC`s Alcohol Agency (LAP) portal. It can take up to two weeks to process an AGLC registration.