A new law went into effect at midnight that now lets you buy beer from your favorite local brewery and skip the once-legally-mandated tour.
Thursday night, breweries stayed open late to celebrate. While many were sleeping, customers were saying cheers to the new law. At Second Self Beer Company in NW Atlanta, the celebration lasted well beyond midnight.
Co-founder Jason Santamaria told 11Alive that the new law is great for business and the economy. He has already hired three more part-time employees and plans to add a couple more as the company ramps up production.
"We plan to create 26 new beers between now and October,” Santamaria said.
Find out what has changed | Places to day drink and celebrate new Georgia beer laws
This is expected to give a big boost to the craft beer industry in Georgia - which has grown from a handful of breweries 45-years-ago to a dozen now.
According to the Georgia Craft Brewer's Guild, Georgia is averaging ten to twelve new breweries a year. That number is expected to double to twenty a year for the next few years. In part, because of the new law.
Breweries are also hiring more people because of Senate Bill 85, that allows manufacturers to sell limited quantities of alcohol to customers, adding about two hundred more jobs this year alone.
