Intro
This factsheet sets out the licensing requirements for applicants who want a producer’s liquor licence so that they can sell alcohol they have made.
Under the Liquor Control Act 1988 (LC Act) a person has produced wine if the grapes were fermented by, or under the direction of that person, or produced by blending wine fermented from grapes grown in Australia. It is also considered that a person has produced wine if they have produced alcohol from something other than grapes,1 such as honey, apples, other fruits, vegetables or berries. This is because the LC Act defines ‘wine’ very broadly to include alcohols such as mead, cider, an apple-honey blend called cider and perry, which is made from pears.2 A person is taken to have produced spirits if they distilled it, and beer if they brewed it.3
The grant of a producer’s licence authorises the licensee to sell or supply alcohol they have produced themselves, during permitted hours. This can be for consumption on an approved part of the licensed premises, or off the premises.4
The licensee may also supply alcohol which they did not produce themselves, but only if it is consumed ancillary to a meal on the licensed premises, or for the purposes of tasting.5 A meal refers to food of sufficient substance to ordinarily be accepted as a meal, eaten by a person seated at a dining table.6
An applicant for a producer’s licence must nominate the type of alcohol they intend to produce, then satisfy the DLL that within 12 months they will produce that alcohol in a quantity sufficient to carry out a genuine business selling it.7 Every producer’s licence will be subject to the condition that, unless the DLL approves otherwise, the licensee must produce a sufficient quantity of the relevant liquor to be able to carry on a genuine business.8
The applicant must have a premises suitable for the proposed purpose. Where the applicant does not have alcohol production facilities on the premises to be licensed, they must have access to such facilities and be the sole occupier of the vineyard, orchard or apiary to which the application relates.9
Where alcohol is produced at a facility on the specified premises, the producer is authorised to sell from these premises. If the site of the production facility is not in a convenient location for sales, the producer may sell from another premises in reasonable proximity to where the alcohol was produced.10
The holder of a producer’s licence may apply to alter or redefine the licensed premises to include an area that is not connected to the original licenced premises.11
The grant of a producer’s licence also authorises the sale of alcohol produced by the licensee from any place if the sale is made by telephone or the internet. The alcohol once sold, must be delivered to the purchaser and dispatched from the licensed premises.12 For sale of alcohol into Banned Drinker Areas (BDAs) (Kimberley, Pilbara, Goldfields Electorate and Carnarvon/Gascoyne Junction), licensees are required to check the Banned Drinker Register (BDR) in the Racing, Gaming and Liquor (RGL) Portal. Licensees may not sell or ship alcohol to a person on the BDR within a BDA.
Where the licensee is a body corporate which produces wine or spirits, wine or spirits produced by a related body corporate will be deemed to have been produced by the licensee.13
Where a producer’s licence is transferred, the new holder of the licence may sell alcohol produced before the transfer as if it had been produced by themselves.14
If the holder of a producer’s licence produces wine by blending, at least 50% of the wine must be fermented by, or under the direction of, the licensee, so that the wine is uniquely that person’s own produce.15
The permitted hours of trading for holders of a producer’s licence are:
An extended trading permit (ETP) may be issued to a dining area in a premises to which a producer’s licence applies. This ETP authorises the producer to sell alcohol ancillary to a meal being supplied in the dining area on the premises, or a reception area on or adjacent to the licensed premises. The DLL must be satisfied that alcohol served was ancillary to a meal.17
A cellar door ETP may also be issued, which authorises the licensee to sell alcohol on specified premises which would not otherwise be authorised.18 This allows a licensee to establish, either individually or with other producers, a cellar door operation away from their usual licensed premises.
Further information on the ETP that may be granted for producer’s licences can be found in the DLL policy, Extended trading permits.
The holder of a producer's licence may apply to the DLL for approval to enter into an arrangement with a person acting as an unlicensed agent, where payment is based on the amount of alcohol sold by them. The DLL is to be satisfied that the agent is a fit and proper person to act in this way,19 before approving this arrangement. More information can be found on the profit sharing agreements factsheet.
Alcohol can also be sold from somewhere other than the licensed premises (such as an office) provided that the sale takes place by way of telephone or the internet and the alcohol is delivered from the licensed premises or an approved off-site storage facility. More information can be found on the mandatory website information factsheet.
The holders of a producer’s licence must make and maintain a record of all transactions entered into by or on behalf of the licensee involving the sale or purchase or other disposal or acquisition of alcohol.20
Specific records must be made and maintained by the holder of a producer’s licence in relation to:
Failing to keep and maintain a record, to share the record with an authorised officer or recording misleading or false information is an offence subject to a fine of $10,000.22
Further information on licence requirements is available, or contact 61 8 6551 4888.
The factsheet on this subject is general information and is not professional advice or a legal opinion. The information is provided on the understanding that any person reading it must take responsibility for assessing its relevance and accuracy.