Bill Lets Underage Brewers Taste Wine, But They Have To Spit It Out

Underage California viticulture students: Your
day of freedom is coming.

The state Assembly recently approved a bill that would allow
brewery students at public universities to taste the fruits of
their labors, even if they haven’t yet turned 21.

The only catch? Students can’t drink the wine. They are required
to sample and spit, according to Campus Reform:

University professors will be tasked with monitoring underage
students and handling any problems that could arise, Adrian Lopez,
state governmental relations director at University of California –
Davis (UC Davis) said.

“This bill is so students can taste the product they’re making
in order to develop their sensory skills early on and become the
best winemakers and the best brewers,” Lopez told Campus
Reform in an interview.

…Last month, the bill passed
on the assembly floor with 73 votes in favor and
only two opposing. Lopez said he remains “cautiously optimistic”
that the bill will continue to keep its momentum as it’s slated to
hit California’s senate on June 24.

“We have a lot of limitations in place so folks understand it’s
not an underage consumption bill,” Lopez said. “It’s for a small
amount of students in a major program.”

Besides having to spit out anything they taste, students will be
monitored by a professor (who must be over the age of 21) and must
be enrolled in an accredited viticulture program at a public
university.

It may be gross, and it may be slight, but progress is
progress.