State Law: Legal Amounts of Homemade Wine
California laws regarding homemade wine are pursuant to the federal law which states the following:
The aggregate amount of wine exempt from tax under this subsection with respect to any household shall not exceed – (1) 200 gallons per calendar year if there are 2 or more adults in such household, or (2) 100 gallons per calendar year if there is only 1 adult in such household.
State Alcoholic Beverages Control Agency
Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control
ABC Headquarters
3927 Lennane Drive, Suite 100
Sacramento, CA 95834
Phone: 916.419.2500
Northern Division
3780 Rosin Court, Suite 260
Sacramento, CA 95834
(916) 263-6882
Southern Division
12750 Center Court Drive, Suite 700
Cerritos, CA 90703
(562) 402-0659
Statute Title & Description
DIVISION 9. ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES
CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS AND DEFINITIONS
23003. “Alcohol” means ethyl alcohol, hydrated oxide of ethyl, or
spirits of wine, from whatever source or by whatever process
produced.
23004. “Alcoholic beverage” includes alcohol, spirits, liquor,
wine, beer, and every liquid or solid containing alcohol, spirits,
wine, or beer, and which contains one-half of 1 percent or more of
alcohol by volume and which is fit for beverage purposes either alone
or when diluted, mixed, or combined with other substances.
23007. “Wine” means the product obtained from normal alcoholic
fermentation of the juice of sound ripe grapes or other agricultural
products containing natural or added sugar or any such alcoholic
beverage to which is added grape brandy, fruit brandy, or spirits of
wine, which is distilled from the particular agricultural product or
products of which the wine is made and other rectified wine products
and by whatever name and which does not contain more than 15 percent
added flavoring, coloring, and blending material and which contains
not more than 24 percent of alcohol by volume, and includes vermouth
and sake, known as Japanese rice wine.
Nothing contained in this section affects or limits the power,
authority, or duty of the State Department of Health Services in the
enforcement of the laws directed toward preventing the manufacture,
production, sale, or transportation of adulterated, misbranded, or
mislabeled alcoholic beverages, and the definition of “wine”
contained in this section is limited strictly to the purposes of this
division and does not extend to, or repeal by implication, any law
preventing the production, manufacture, sale, or transportation of
adulterated, misbranded, or mislabeled alcoholic beverages.
23008. “Person” includes any individual, firm, copartnership, joint
adventure, association, corporation, estate, trust, business trust,
receiver, syndicate, or any other group or combination acting as a
unit, and the plural as well as the singular number.
23025. “Sell” or “sale” and “to sell” includes any transaction
whereby, for any consideration, title to alcoholic beverages is
transferred from one person to another, and includes the delivery of
alcoholic beverages pursuant to an order placed for the purchase of
such beverages and soliciting or receiving an order for such
beverages, but does not include the return of alcoholic beverages by
a licensee to the licensee from whom such beverages were purchased.
Article 3 Rights and Obligations of Licensees
23356.2. (b) No license or permit shall be required for the manufacture of
wine for personal or family use, and not for sale, by a person over
21 years of age. The aggregate amount of wine with respect to any
household shall not exceed (1) 200 gallons per calendar year if there
are two or more adults in the household or (2) 100 gallons per
calendar year if there is only one adult in the household.
(d) Any wine made pursuant to this section may be removed from the
premises where made for personal or family use, including use at
organized affairs, exhibitions, or competitions, such as homemakers’
contests, tastings, or judgings. Wine used under this section shall
not be sold or offered for sale.
(e) Except as provided herein, nothing in this section authorizes
any activity in violation of Section 23300, 23355, or 23399.1.
NOTE: The information presented here is not a substitute for legal advice. For detailed information regarding the laws of your state please contact the state’s governing agency and/or a lawyer licensed to practice in your state.
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