SALEM, Ore. (AP) — Beginning next month, Oregon distilleries can offer a little ice, water or a mixer to their offerings at liquor store tastings.
The Bulletin of Bend ( http://bit.ly/mPMxY6) reports the Oregon Liquor Control Commission is changing its rules in light of the growth of the distillery business in the state.
As the rules stand now, distillers are allowed to do tastings at liquor stores only one way: the sample comes unmixed, at room temperature. That doesn’t give the creators of, say, a pepper vodka a chance to show how it works in a Bloody Mary.
As of Sept. 1, the tastings can use ice, water or a mixer, but the hard alcohol volume can be no more than a quarter ounce.
