reason via Instapundit
A brewing company in Hawaii is being investigated by a liquor board for giving away hand sanitizer during the COVID-19 outbreak with alcohol purchases.
With the temporary death of the bar scene across the country due to stay-at-home orders, brewers and distillers large and small have adjusted on the fly and have started converting to the production of sanitizer instead of beer or liquor, for now.
Maui Brewing Co. in Hawaii began manufacturing hand sanitizer late in March after shutting down its restaurants and brewery to anything but takeout sales. They've been giving away hand sanitizer with purchases at their Kihei location, and they've also donated more than 1,000 gallons of hand sanitizer to local first responders.
According to media outlets in Hawaii, the company is now in trouble with the Maui County Department of Liquor Control and its overseeing Liquor Control Commission. Maui's extensive liquor regulations forbid anybody with a liquor license from giving "any free goods of intoxicating liquor or other merchandise in the connection with the sale of any intoxicating liquor; or to provide any premium or free goods of intoxicating liquor in connection with the sale of other merchandise."
In other words: It's against the law in Maui to give away hand sanitizer to people who buy liquor from you. And it's also against the law to give liquor away to people who buy hand sanitizer from you. |