The hospitality industry is one of the most heavily regulated industries in the New South Wales. For licensed venues, the fines and penalties associated with the service of alcohol can be crippling. It is therefore crucial that the correct quantity and responsible service of alcohol is adhered to.
This article covers the basics around weights and measures legislation and how it affects licensed venues in the alcohol trade.
Guide to the sale of alcohol trade measurement
The National Measurement Institute (NMI) is Australia’s peak measurement organisation, a division of the Department of Innovation, Industry, Science and Research in the Australian Government. The NMI is responsible for maintaining the primary standards of measurement and providing the legal and technical framework for the dissemination of measurement standards. The trade measurement laws administered by the NMI cover:
- the definition of the legal units of measurement in the use of measuring instruments for trade, testing and verification of these measuring instruments.
- transactions by measurement, pre-packed articles (or prepackages).
- licensing of the businesses that verify trade measuring instruments (these are known as servicing licensees).
- licensing of public weighbridges.
Selling alcohol by measure
Under the trade measurement laws, the retail sale of beer, stout, ale, brandy, gin, rum, vodka, and whisky (including whiskey) must be sold by a volume measure. Alcohol sold in bottles, cans or casks comes under the regulations for pre-packaged goods.
Beer, Stout and Ale
The sale of beer, stout and ale dispensed from taps must be made by a volume measurement in metric units. Beer, ale and stout must be sold in approved, batch-tested glassware or batch-tested acrylic containers marked in millilitres (ml), or litres (L).
This includes glass and plastic jugs (note that ‘glass’ includes other approved materials). All batch-tested products have been checked by a servicing licensee, verified using NMI national test procedures and permanently marked or moulded with the manufacturer’s identification, the capacity, and the batch testing mark. For more on approved measuring instruments, verification and servicing licensees see the NMI website.
Other requirements include:
- the glass or jug must be of a design or ‘pattern’ approved by the NMI under approval category 4/1/0D (the capacity of a beer glass can be defined by either the brim or a capacity ‘Plimsol’ line).
- the capacity of a beer jug must be defined by a capacity (‘Plimsol’) line; beverage measures must be marked with the capacity in millilitres (mL).
- beverage measures must be made of a rigid or semirigid material.
- There are no prescribed sizes for beverage measures for the sale of beer, ale and stout. Terms such as ‘middy’, ‘pot’ or ‘schooner’ do not legally specify a particular size.
What this means for the hospitality venue:
- Make sure your tap beer glasses have the weights and measures marked on them.
- You are under no legal obligation to serve tap beer at specific volumes, although we recommend sticking to conventional glass sizes (285mL, 425mL, 570mL) as these glasses have been weighed and measured and labelled accordingly.
- If you wish to use glasses that have not been certified for tap beer, please contact us on (02) 9052 9111 for certification solutions.
- If you are serving bottled beer with a glass, that glass does not need to be weighed and measured.
- If you serve beer in jugs, those jugs also need a weights and measures mark. We highly recommend the Global Wombat pitcher.
Spirits
The sale of brandy (including cognac and armagnac), gin, rum, vodka or whisky (whiskey) must be made using an NMI-approved spirit measure. Approved spirit measures include simple measures commonly referred to as thimble measures, ‘egg cups’ or ‘jiggers’, or more complex dispensers that require verification by servicing licensees.
Simple spirit measures must be:
- in capacities of 15mL, 30mL or 60mL.
- in the prescribed units of millilitres (mL).
- marked with either batch-testing markings or a verification mark.
- made of a rigid or semi-rigid material.
Measurement requirements continue to apply when brandy (including cognac and armagnac), gin, rum, vodka, whisky (or whiskey) are served with or without a mixer such as soft drink (eg vodka and orange, rum and cola), milk or water. Non-approved bottle-top or wall-mounted pourers may be used to dispense products other than the specified spirits, providing a measurement statement is not made or implied.
However, it is an offence to keep or use non-approved bottle-top or wall-mounted pourers marked with a quantity statement on premises where alcohol is sold.
When you don’t need to use approved measures
The measurement requirements for the specified spirits do not apply:
- when they are mixed with other spirits or with other alcoholic liquors to produce cocktails.
What this means for the hospitality venue:
- Specified spirits need to be measured with an approved device when served neat or with a mixer.
- This does not apply to spirits not on that list (tequila, mezcal, soju, liqueurs).
- Spirits do not need to be measured when being used in cocktails (legally speaking, I’d highly recommend measuring when making cocktails).
- Plastic jiggers are approved measures, stainless steel ones are not.
- Wall mounted spirit dispensers need to be approved.
Wine
Wine (unless it is pre-packaged) does not have to be sold by a volume measure. Therefore, wine may be sold in an unmarked glass or carafe. However, if a person chooses to sell wine by measurement, the measures or instruments must be approved by the NMI and verified by a servicing licensee or inspector. Pre-packaged wine, whether in a bottle or cask, must adhere to all standard packaging requirements. However, the trade measurement regulations do not apply to the position of a measurement marking for standard-sized wine containers.
What this means for the hospitality venue:
- You are under no legal obligation to sell wine by a specific volume, nor are you legally obliged to have plimsol guides on your wine glasses.
- We do however recommend a plimsol guide for the sake of your own stock control.
In Summary
If you sell tap beer, brandy, gin, vodka, rum or whiskey you must use an NMI approved measure.
In the case of beer the approved measure is the glass you pour the beer into.
In the case of the listed spirits the spirits must first be dispensed into an NMI approved measure before going into your glass.
Your advertising needs to advise that you are pouring 30mL of a given spirit or whatever glass size you are using for beer (425mL is a standard schooner in NSW).
If you sell wine, cocktails or other spirits and aperitifs do not mention a volume as you will need to be able to confirm this with NMI verified method of measuring that volume. For example, use the term “by the glass” rather than 150mL when describing your servings of wine.
Hopefully this article has provided a little clarity around your legal obligations while serving alcohol.
If you are keen to read more about the correct measurements for alcohol, please visit the NMI website
If you have any questions about the suitability of your current methods, please contact your Johnson Hospitality Sales Representative or call the office on (02) 9052 9111.