New bill allows craft distillers to ship to California
California has been granted a one-year extension of the direct-to-consumer (DTC) spirits shipping bill, which will also benefit out-of-state craft distilleries.
Legislators have passed Assembly Bill (AB) 1246, a DTC shipping bill that allows local craft distilleries to continue shipping in California and will enable out-of-state craft distilleries to ship into the market by obtaining a permit. This will be effective from 1 January 2026.
The bill was temporarily passed in January 2022 (SB 620) in response to the Covid‐19 pandemic and will now be extended for one year until 31 December 2026.
The California Distillers Association (CDA) has spearheaded the push to see the bill become permanent following the exit of distributor Republic National Distributing Company (RNDC) from the state in September this year. Many small spirits producers were left scrambling to find distribution in the state after RNDC’s departure.
The president of the CDA, Alex Villicana, said the extension of the bill was critical to the survival of local craft producers in the state.
AB 1246 will also permanently increase the daily sales limit for licensed craft distilleries from 2.25 litres per customer each day to 4.5 litres.
In addition, the legislation will introduce a new licence category and reporting obligations, which are currently in development and will be announced soon.
“This is a major step forward for California craft distillers,” said Villicana.
“Today, we toast to the result of strong collaboration and advocacy, which would not have been made possible without the leadership and support of assemblyman Josh Hoover, who authored the bill.”
The CDA-sponsored bill has been supported by fellow trade body the American Craft Spirits Association (ACSA), which recently revealed that 67% of legal-drinking-age Americans want to see laws change to expand DTC spirits shipping.
The 2025 Direct-to-Consumer Spirits Shipping Report, conducted by The Harris Poll and commissioned by Sovos ShipCompliant and the ACSA, found 84% of regular craft spirits drinkers want the ability to legally purchase their favourite craft spirits through DTC channels, while 82% want to see laws change to expand DTC spirits shipping.
The ACSA will work with the CDA and the Californian department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) to set regulations, establish any related fees, and generate the forms to allow importation into the state.
Margie AS Lehrman, CEO of the ACSA, added: “It’s no secret that 2025 has been the most challenging year yet for craft spirits producers, who are faced with the economic slowdown, the tariff war, an antiquated regulatory structure, and now, another government shutdown.
“This new law creates a much-needed opportunity for craft distillers to reach consumers who are demanding their products.”
The law is applicable to producers that manufacture a maximum of 150,000 gallons of spirits per fiscal year and sell no more than 2.25 litres of containers of spirits per consumer each day at its premises.
California joins nine other states and the District of Columbia in allowing craft distilleries to ship to consumers in some form.
It is also the US state with the greatest number of craft distillers – 378 as of August 2024 (up by 55% on August 2023), according to ACSA’s Craft Spirits Data Project released last year.
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