Texas Drinkers Can Breathe A Huge Sigh Of Thanks

Thanks to a certain U. S. Judge, an age old ... and, frankly, quite outdated ... Texas law is no longer a road block for amateur distillers all over the lone star state.

Texas has, and always has had, some of the weirdest and strictest alcohol laws on the books. For awhile, the Encyclopedia Britannica was banned in Texas because it, O-M-G ... contained all the info needed to make beer.

That ban was lifted but there are still plenty of other weird laws out there. One old school law just, (finally),  came off the books though.

It's been illegal to distill your own spirits since 1868 and Texas law, at the moment, says nobody can own distillation equipment and nobody can produce any booze without a commercial license.

However, U.S. District Court judge Mark Pittman just ruled that "the 156-year-old ban on at-home distilling is unconstitutional. It's the first victory in years for the spirit lovers pushing for more beverage production freedom". (CHRON)

Specifically, Pittman's ruling gives only active members of the HDA the opportunity to apply for a federal distilling license, as of midnight July 25. - (CHRON)

State laws still apply however and Uncle Sam can appeal his ruling if and when they decide they want to. As noted above, this isn't over, the law just took a big step toward, (finally), possibly being overturned.

As weird as Texas is when it comes to booze, (don't even get me started on marijuana), I'm not going to bet on this happening just yet. We'll see ...