In a bid to ensure the quality and safety of craft beer served in the capital, Delhi’s Excise Department has issued fresh directives requiring hotels, cafes and restaurants with microbreweries to submit monthly samples for laboratory testing.
Establishments holding an L-11 licence, which permits them to brew and sell beer on-site, must now send samples to the government’s excise laboratory every month for analysis. The department has also mandated that these businesses display the lab’s certification report prominently on their premises.
Currently, Delhi has around six to 10 microbreweries, primarily located in areas such as Saket and Connaught Place, according to reports from The Indian Express and Times of India.
As per the Excise Department order, microbreweries must already have their in-house chemists certify that each batch of beer is “fit for human consumption” before it is served to customers. The new rules reinforce this by adding a monthly external check.
“The licensee shall arrange to draw the beer samples once in every month and forward the same to the excise laboratory for analysis,” stated the department’s directive. The reports must then be displayed at the brewery premises.
Additionally, breweries must submit the chemical examiner’s certificate for each batch to the Excise Department, as per The Times of India.
The step appears aimed at tightening quality control in Delhi’s growing craft beer market, ensuring that patrons receive safe and standardised products. While microbreweries are still relatively few in the capital, their popularity has been rising, prompting closer regulatory scrutiny.
The Excise Department has warned that strict adherence to the L-11 licence conditions is mandatory, though penalties for non-compliance were not specified in the order.
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