N.Y. ABC Law § 3 — New York Code / Act ABC / Article 1 / Section 3
Definitions
Status: in_force

§ 3. Definitions. Whenever used in this chapter, unless the context\nrequires otherwise:\n  1. "Alcoholic beverage" or "beverage" mean and include alcohol,\nspirits, liquor, wine, beer, cider and every liquid, solid, powder or\ncrystal, patented or not, containing alcohol, spirits, wine or beer and\ncapable of being consumed by a human being, and any warehouse receipt,\ncertificate, contract or other document pertaining thereto; except that\nconfectionery containing alcohol as provided by subdivision twelve of\nsection two hundred of the agriculture and markets law and ice cream and\nother frozen desserts made with liquor, wine, beer or cider as provided\nin subdivision fifteen of section two hundred of the agriculture and\nmarkets law shall not be regulated as an "alcoholic beverage" or\n"beverage" within the meaning of this section where the sale, delivery\nor giving away is to a person aged twenty-one years or older. The sale,\ndelivery or giving away of ice cream or other frozen desserts made with\nliquor, wine, beer or cider to a person under the age of twenty-one\nyears may be prosecuted administratively and/or criminally in accordance\nwith the provisions of this chapter.\n  2. "Alcohol" means ethyl alcohol, hydrated oxide of ethyl or spirit of\nwine from whatever source or by whatever processes produced.\n  3. "Beer" means and includes any fermented beverages of any name or\ndescription manufactured from malt, wholly or in part, or from any\nsubstitute therefor.\n  3-a. "Biomass feedstock" shall mean any substance, other than oil,\nnatural gas, coal, shale or products derived from any of these which is\ncapable of being converted into alcohol, including but not be limited to\nwood and other forest materials, animal manure, municipal wastes, food\ncrops and other agricultural materials.\n  3-b. "Bona fide retailer association" shall mean an association of\nretailers holding licenses under this chapter, organized under the\nnon-profit or not-for-profit laws of this state, and possessing a\nfederal tax exemption under section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code\nof the United States.\n  3-c. "Braggot" shall mean a malt alcoholic beverage made primarily\nfrom honey, water, and malt and/or hops; it may also contain fruits,\nspices, herbs, grain or other agricultural products. Honey shall\nrepresent at least fifty-one percent of the starting fermentable sugars\nby weight of the finished product. For the purposes of this chapter,\nbraggot shall be designated and sold as a beer.\n  4. "Brewery" means and includes any place or premises where beer is\nmanufactured for sale; and all offices, granaries, mashrooms,\ncooling-rooms, vaults, yards, and storerooms connected therewith or\nwhere any part of the process of manufacture of beer is carried on, or\nwhere any apparatus connected with such manufacture is kept or used, or\nwhere any of the products of brewing or fermentation are stored or kept,\nshall be deemed to be included in and to form part of the brewery to\nwhich they are attached or are appurtenant.\n  5. "Brewer" means any person who owns, occupies, carries on, works, or\nconducts any brewery, either by himself or by his agent.\n  6. "Board" or "local board" or "appropriate board" or "board having\njurisdiction" shall mean the state liquor authority.\n  7. "Building containing licensed premises" shall include the licensed\npremises and also any part of a building in which such premises is\ncontained and any part of any other building connected with such\nbuilding by direct access or by a common entrance.\n  7-a. (a) "Catering establishment" means and includes any premises\nowned or operated by any person, firm, association, partnership or\ncorporation who or which regularly and in a bona fide manner furnishes\nfor hire therein one or more ballrooms, reception rooms, dining rooms,\nbanquet halls, dancing halls or similar places of assemblage for a\nparticular function, occasion or event and/or who or which furnishes\nprovisions and service for consumption or use at such function, occasion\nor event. Such premises must have suitable and adequate facilities and\naccommodations to provide food and service for not less than fifty\npersons at any one function, occasion or event and shall in no event be\ndeemed to include any taxi dance hall or any other premises at which\npublic dances are regularly scheduled to be held daily, weekly or\nmonthly and to which the general public is invited.\n  (b) "Off-premises catering establishment" means and includes any\npremises owned or operated by any person, firm, association, partnership\nor corporation who or which regularly and in a bona fide manner\nfurnishes for hire at a site remote from the premises for a particular\nfunction, occasion, or event provisions and service for consumption or\nuse at such function, occasion or event. Such premises must have\nsuitable and adequate facilities to provide food for not less than fifty\npersons. On-premises consumption shall not be allowed at such premises.\n  7-b. (a) "Cider" means the partially or fully fermented juice of\nfresh, whole apples or other pome fruits, containing more than three and\ntwo-tenths per centum but not more than eight and one-half per centum\nalcohol by volume: (i) to which nothing has been added to increase the\nalcoholic content produced by natural fermentation; and (ii) with the\nusual cellar treatments and necessary additions to correct defects due\nto climate, saccharine levels and seasonal conditions. Nothing contained\nin this subdivision shall be deemed to preclude the use of such methods\nor materials as may be necessary to encourage a normal alcoholic\nfermentation and to make a product that is free of microbiological\nactivity at the time of sale. Cider may be sweetened or flavored after\nfermentation with fruit juice, fruit juice concentrate, sugar, maple\nsyrup, honey, spices or other agricultural products, separately or in\ncombination. Cider may contain retained or added carbon dioxide.\n  (b) In the event that an alcoholic beverage meets the definition of\nboth a cider, as defined in this subdivision, and a wine, as defined in\nsubdivision thirty-six of this section, the brand or trade name label\nowner of such alcoholic beverage shall designate whether such alcoholic\nbeverage shall be sold as a cider or a wine for all purposes under this\nchapter.\n  7-c. "Cidery" means and includes any place or premises wherein cider\nis manufactured for sale.\n  7-d. "Farm cidery" means and includes any place or premises, located\non a farm in New York state, in which New York state labelled cider is\nmanufactured, stored and sold, or any other place or premises in New\nYork state in which New York state labelled cider is manufactured,\nstored and sold.\n  8. "Convicted" and "conviction" include and mean a finding of guilt\nresulting from a plea of guilty, the decision of a court or magistrate\nor the verdict of a jury, irrespective of the pronouncement of judgment\nor the suspension thereof.\n  9. "Club" shall mean an organization of persons incorporated pursuant\nto the provisions of the not-for-profit corporation law or the\nbenevolent orders law, which is the owner, lessee or occupant of a\nbuilding used exclusively for club purposes, and which does not traffic\nin alcoholic beverages for profit and is operated solely for a\nrecreational, social, patriotic, political, benevolent or athletic\npurpose but not for pecuniary gain; except that where such club is\nlocated in an office or business building, or state armory, it may be\nlicensed as such provided it otherwise qualifies as a "club" within the\nmeaning of this subdivision. A "luncheon club" shall mean a club which\nis open only on week days during the hours between eleven o'clock in the\nmorning and three o'clock in the afternoon. A "member" of a club shall\nmean a person who whether a charter member or admitted in agreement with\nthe by-laws of the club, has become a bona fide member thereof, who\nmaintains his or her membership by the payment of his or her annual dues\nin a bona fide manner in accordance with the by-laws and whose name and\naddress is entered on the list of members; or in the case of a veterans\nclub where a person has in his or her possession an identification card\nindicating his or her membership in the national veterans' organization\nwith which the club at which he or she is present is affiliated. For the\npurposes of this section a veterans club shall include but not be\nlimited to the Grand Army of the Republic, the United Spanish War\nVeterans, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Jewish War Veterans of the\nUnited States, Inc., the Catholic War Veterans, Inc., the Italian\nAmerican War Veterans of the United States, Incorporated, the Polish\nLegion of American Veterans, Inc., the Marine Corps League, the Military\nOrder of the Purple Heart, Inc., the American Legion, the Disabled\nAmerican Veterans, AMVETS, American Veterans of World War II, Masonic\nWar Veterans of the State of New York, Inc., Veterans of World War I of\nthe United States of America Department of New York, Inc.,\nChina-Burma-India Veterans Association, Inc., Polish-American Veterans\nof World War II, the Sons of Union Veterans, Vietnam Veterans of\nAmerica, the Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association, the Sons of the\nAmerican Legion, or the American Legion Auxiliary. In the case of a\nchapter or lodge of a not-for-profit corporation or a benevolent order\nqualifying as an organization described in section 501(c)(8) or\n501(c)(10) of the United States internal revenue code, a member of\nanother chapter or lodge of such not-for-profit corporation or\nbenevolent order who has in his or her possession an identification card\nor other proof of membership shall be deemed to be a member. A club and\na luncheon club shall appoint an alcoholic beverage officer from among\nits members who shall be responsible for filing all applications and\nother documents required to be submitted to the authority. The person\nappointed alcoholic beverage officer shall be subject to approval by the\nauthority.\n  9-a. "Custom crush facility" means a licensed winery or farm winery\nwhich obtains grapes, fruits and other plants grown exclusively in New\nYork state from, or on behalf of, other licensed wineries or farm\nwineries and crushes, processes, ferments, bottles or conducts any\ncombination of such services for such other licensed wineries or farm\nwineries.\n  10. "Distiller" means any person who owns, occupies, carries on,\nworks, conducts or operates any distillery either by himself or by his\nagent.\n  11. "Distillery" means and includes any place or premises wherein any\nliquors are manufactured for sale.\n  11-a. "Farm distillery" means and includes any place or premises\nlocated on a farm in New York state in which liquor is manufactured and\nsold, or any other place or premises in New York state in which liquor\nis manufactured primarily from farm and food products, as defined in\nsubdivision two of section two hundred eighty-two of the agriculture and\nmarkets law, and such liquor is sold.\n  12. "Drug store" means a place registered by the New York state board\nof pharmacy for the sale of drugs.\n  12-a. "Farm winery" means and includes any place or premises, located\non a farm in New York state, in which wine is manufactured and sold.\n  12-aa. "Farm" means the land, buildings and equipment used to produce,\nprepare and market crops, livestock and livestock products as a\ncommercial enterprise. For the purposes of a farm meadery, farm means\nthe land, buildings and equipment used to prepare and market honey and\napiary products as a commercial enterprise. A farm may consist of one or\nmore parcels of owned or rented land, which parcels may be contiguous or\nnoncontiguous to each other.\n  12-aaa. "Farm brewery" means and includes any place or premises,\nlocated on a farm in New York state, in which New York state labelled\nbeer is manufactured, stored and sold, or any other place or premises in\nNew York state in which New York state labelled beer is manufactured,\nstored and sold.\n  12-aaaa. "Farm meadery" means and includes any place or premises,\nlocated on a farm in New York state, in which New York state labelled\nmead or New York state labelled braggot is manufactured, stored and\nsold, or any other place or premises in New York state in which New York\nstate labelled mead or New York state labelled braggot is manufactured,\nstored and sold.\n  12-b. "Felony" shall mean any criminal offense classified as a felony\nunder the laws of this state or any criminal offense committed in any\nother state, district, or territory of the United States and classified\nas a felony therein which if committed within this state, would\nconstitute a felony in this state.\n  12-c. "Government agency" means any department, division, board,\nbureau, commission, office, agency, authority or public corporation of\nthe state or federal government or a county, city, town or village\ngovernment within the state.\n  13. "Grocery store" means any retail establishment where foodstuffs\nare regularly and customarily sold in a bona fide manner for the\nconsumption off the premises.\n  14. "Hotel" shall mean a building which is regularly used and kept\nopen as such in bona fide manner for the feeding and lodging of guests,\nwhere all who conduct themselves properly and who are able and ready to\npay for such services are received if there be accommodations for them.\nThe term "hotel" shall also include an apartment hotel wherein\napartments are rented for fixed periods of time, either furnished or\nunfurnished, where the keeper of such hotel regularly supplies food to\nthe occupants thereof in a premises which serves food in compliance with\nsection sixty-four-a of this chapter, or a restaurant located in such\nhotel.  "Hotel" shall also mean and include buildings (commonly called a\nmotel) upon the same lot of land and owned or in possession under a\nlease in writing by the same person or firm who maintains such buildings\nfor the lodging of guests and supplies them with food from a premises\nwhich serves food in compliance with section sixty-four-a of this\nchapter, or restaurant located upon the same premises.\n  14-a. "Custom beermakers' center" means a facility that provides one\nor more individuals with rental space, the use of equipment and storage\nfacilities, and/or beer making supplies to manufacture beer for personal\nhousehold use and not for resale in accordance with state and federal\nlaws, rules, and regulations.\n  14-b. "Custom cidermakers' center" means a facility that provides one\nor more individuals with rental space, the use of equipment and storage\nfacilities, and/or fruit to manufacture cider for personal household use\nand not for resale in accordance with state and federal laws, rules and\nregulations.\n  14-c. "Custom winemakers' center" means a facility that provides one\nor more individuals with rental space, the use of equipment and storage\nfacilities, and/or fruit to manufacture wine for personal household use\nand not for resale in accordance with state and federal laws, rules and\nregulations.\n  15. "Liquor authority" and "authority" mean the state liquor authority\nprovided for in this chapter.\n  17. "License" means a license issued pursuant to this chapter.\n  17-a. "Seven day license" means a license issued pursuant to this\nchapter and where the off premise retail license holder may remain open\nto the consumer all seven days of the week.\n  18. "Licensee" means any person to whom a license has been issued\npursuant to this chapter.\n  19. "Liquor" means and includes any and all distilled or rectified\nspirits, brandy, whiskey, rum, gin, cordials or similar distilled\nalcoholic beverages, including all dilutions and mixtures of one or more\nof the foregoing.\n  19-a. "Mead" shall mean a wine made primarily from honey and water; it\nmay also contain hops, fruits, spices, herbs, grain, or other\nagricultural products. Honey shall represent at least fifty-one percent\nof the starting fermentable sugars by weight of the finished product.\nThe brand or trade label owner of such alcoholic beverage shall\ndesignate whether such alcoholic beverage shall be sold as and treated\nin the same manner as wine or mead for all purposes under this chapter.\nProvided, however, any mead containing more than eight and one-half per\ncentum alcohol by volume shall be designated, sold as, and treated in\nthe same manner as wine.\n  20. "Manufacturer" means and includes a distiller, brewer, vintner and\nrectifier; "Manufacture" means and includes distilling, rectifying,\nbrewing and operating a winery.\n  20-a. "New York state labelled wine" means wine made from grapes or\nother fruits, at least seventy-five percent the volume of which were\ngrown in New York state.\n  20-b. "Micro-winery" means and includes any place or premises located\non a farm in New York state in which wine or cider is manufactured and\nsold.\n  20-c. "New York state labelled liquor" means liquors made from fruit,\nvegetables, grain and grain products, honey, maple sap or other\nagricultural products, at least seventy-five percent the volume of which\nwere grown or produced in New York state.\n  20-d. "New York state labelled beer" means:\n  (a) from the effective date of this subdivision until December\nthirty-first, two thousand eighteen, beer made with no less than twenty\npercent, by weight, of its hops grown in New York state and no less than\ntwenty percent, by weight, of all of its other ingredients, excluding\nwater, grown in New York state;\n  (b) from January first, two thousand nineteen until December\nthirty-first, two thousand twenty-eight, beer made with no less than\nsixty percent, by weight, of its hops grown in New York state and no\nless than sixty percent, by weight, of all of its other ingredients,\nexcluding water, grown in New York state; and\n  (c) from January first, two thousand twenty-nine and thereafter, beer\nmade with no less than ninety percent, by weight, of its hops grown in\nNew York state and no less than ninety percent, by weight, of all of its\nother ingredients, excluding water, grown in New York state.\n  20-e. "New York state labelled cider" means cider made exclusively\nfrom apples or other pome fruits grown in New York state.\n  20-f. "New York state labelled braggot" means braggot made exclusively\nfrom honey produced in New York state.\n  20-g. "New York state labelled mead" means mead made exclusively from\nhoney produced in New York state.\n  21. "Permittee" means any person to whom a permit has been issued\npursuant to this chapter.\n  22. "Person" includes an individual, copartnership, corporations,\nsociety, joint stock company, alcoholic beverage officer appointed by a\nclub or a luncheon club or limited liability company.\n  23. "Population" means the number of inhabitants as determined by the\nlast preceding federal census.\n  24. "Rectifier" means and includes any person who rectifies, purifies\nor refines distilled spirits or wines by any process other than as\nprovided for on distillery premises and every person who, without\nrectifying, purifying or refining distilled spirits, shall, by mixing\nsuch spirits, wine or other liquor with water or any materials,\nmanufactures any imitation of or compounds liquors for sale under the\nname of whiskey, brandy, gin, rum, wine, spirits, cordials, bitters or\nany other name.\n  25. "Retail sale" or "sale at retail" means a sale to a consumer or to\nany person for any purpose other than for resale.\n  26. "Retailer" means any person who sells at retail any beverage for\nthe sale of which a license is required under the provisions of this\nchapter.\n  27. "Restaurant" shall mean a place which is regularly and in a bona\nfide manner used and kept open for the serving of meals to guests for\ncompensation and which has suitable kitchen facilities connected\ntherewith, containing conveniences for cooking an assortment of foods,\nwhich may be required for ordinary meals, the kitchen of which must, at\nall times, be in charge of a chef with the necessary help, and kept in a\nsanitary condition with the proper amount of refrigeration for keeping\nof food on said premises and must comply with all the regulations of the\nlocal department of health. Restaurant shall include a motion picture\ntheatre, movie theatre or other venue that shows motion pictures that\nmeet the definitions of restaurant and meals, and all seating is at\ntables where meals are served. "Meals" shall mean the usual assortment\nof foods commonly ordered at various hours of the day; the service of\nsuch food and victuals only as sandwiches or salads shall not be deemed\na compliance with this requirement. "Guests" shall mean persons who,\nduring the hours when meals are regularly served therein, come to a\nrestaurant for the purpose of obtaining, and actually order and obtain\nat such time, in good faith, a meal therein. Nothing in this subdivision\ncontained, however, shall be construed to require that any food be sold\nor purchased with any beverage.\n  27-a. "Roadside farm market" means any retailer authorized to sell New\nYork state labelled wine pursuant to section seventy-six-f of this\nchapter.\n  28. "Sale" means any transfer, exchange or barter in any manner or by\nany means whatsoever for a consideration, and includes and means all\nsales made by any person, whether principal, proprietor, agent, servant\nor employee of any alcoholic beverage and/or a warehouse receipt\npertaining thereto. "To sell" includes to solicit or receive an order\nfor, to keep or expose for sale, and to keep with intent to sell and\nshall include the delivery of any alcoholic beverage in the state.\n  29. "Spirits" means any beverage which contains alcohol obtained by\ndistillation mixed with drinkable water and other substances in\nsolution.\n  30. "Traffic in" includes to manufacture and sell any alcoholic\nbeverage at wholesale or retail.\n  30-a. "Transfer" means the administrative processes involved in\nissuing a license to a new applicant for an existing licensed business.\nTransfer applicants shall be under contract with the existing licensee\nfor purchase of the existing licensed business.\n  31. "Vehicle" shall include any device in, upon or by which any person\nor property is or may be transported or drawn upon a public highway,\nroad, street or public place.\n  32. "Vessel" includes any ship or boat of any kind whatsoever, whether\npropelled by steam or otherwise and whether used as a sea-going vessel\nor on inland waters which is properly equipped for the service of\nalcoholic beverages.\n  33. "Vintner" means any person who owns, occupies, carries on, works,\nconducts or operates any winery either by himself or by his agent.\n  34. "Wholesale sale" or "sale at wholesale" means a sale to any person\nfor purposes of resale.\n  35. "Wholesaler" means any person who sells at wholesale any beverage\nfor the sale of which a license is required under the provisions of this\nchapter.\n  36. "Wine" means the product of the normal alcoholic fermentation of\nthe juice of fresh, sound, ripe grapes, or other fruits or plants with\nthe usual cellar treatment and necessary additions to correct defects\ndue to climatic, saccharine and seasonal conditions, including\nchampagne, sparkling and fortified wine of an alcoholic content not to\nexceed twenty-four per centum by volume. Wine produced from fruits or\nplants other than grapes shall include appropriate prefixes descriptive\nof the fruit or the product from which such wine was predominantly\nproduced, and no other product shall be called "wine" unless designated\nas artificial or imitation wine.\n  36-a. "Wine product" means a beverage containing wine to which is\nadded concentrated or unconcentrated juice, flavoring material, water,\ncitric acid, sugar and carbon dioxide and containing not more than six\nper centum alcohol by volume, to which nothing other than such wine has\nbeen added to increase the alcoholic content of such beverage.\n  37. "Winery" means and includes any place or premises wherein wines\nare manufactured from any fruit or brandies distilled as the by-product\nof wine or other fruit or cordials compounded and also includes a winery\nfor the manufacture of wine in any state other than New York state and\nwhich has and maintains a branch factory, office or storeroom within the\nstate of New York and receives wine in this state consigned to a United\nStates government bonded winery, warehouse or storeroom located within\nthe state.\n  38. "Warehouse" means and includes a place in which alcoholic\nbeverages are housed or stored.\n