Drew Dixon
More Florida wine producers will likely soon be able to sell their drinks in the state now that the Senate has approved a measure to revise a law requiring “reusable” kegs for wine producers.
The full Senate approved the bill (SB 578), which states that wine produced in Florida “may be sold in recyclable containers of a specified volume.”
Sen. Tom Leek, a St. Augustine Republican, sponsored the legislation. He explained the bill’s key component would amend a Florida law passed in 2023 that allows wine producers in the state to use “recyclable” kegs and other containers instead of requiring “reusable” ones.
The measure drew curiosity when it meandered through the committee process. Many lawmakers were intrigued by the obscure current requirements. But there was no discussion during the bill’s floor hearing Wednesday, when Senators quickly signed off on the bill.
During the committee process, some wondered if the measure was a step toward more Florida wine producers distributing their products in popular wine boxes. Leek denied that wasn’t the bill’s intent; rather, he said, the revisions would allow some wine producers to keep using the same countainers over and over by instituting a “liner” inside so they could simply be reused after being emptied.
The measure mirrors a similar bill in the House (HB 6015) already moving to the floor by Rep. Vanessa Oliver, a Port Charlotte Republican.
Oliver said it may seem like a small adjustment, but for winemakers in Florida, it’s an essential change and can make a difference in the product’s taste.
“This was actually brought to me by one of my constituents who is a blueberry farmer in DeSoto County,” Oliver told Florida Politics in February. “He is part owner of a winery, and they make blueberry wine out of his blueberries and sell it throughout the Southeastern United States.”
That blueberry farmer today can’t distribute the wine in large quantities in Florida because it can only be sold in reusable kegs, which are usually made of metal. Oliver said that negatively impacts the taste of the wine.
While Florida will never be known as a wine region like other states such as California or Washington, there are still about three dozen wine producers in the Sunshine State, according to the American Winery Guide.
