You Can Watch the Super Bowl at a NJ Brewery — But There’s a Catch
The good news for New Jersey breweries: locations that are airing the Super Bowl don't have to give the state 10 days' notice. The bad news: the Feb. 12 game will still count toward the breweries' cap on the number of events they can host annually.
More breweries than usual in New Jersey are expected to be interested in broadcasting the big game, with the Philadelphia Eagles being part of the fun.
"I think a lot of these folks are seeing this as an opportunity to attract customers to their location and to market their brand and market their beer," said Eric Orlando, executive director of the Brewers Guild of New Jersey.
But if breweries want to broadcast the game, they may have to scrap some other event that they had planned for 2023.
Among a number of rules that took effect on July 1 for craft breweries is a limit on the amount of on-site (25) and off-site (12) events each year. Also, breweries have to notify the state of an upcoming event at least 10 days in advance.
On-site events include things like trivia night and live music. Also included are televised sporting events such as NFL playoff games, including the Super Bowl, or the World Series.
Ahead of the NFC championship game between the Eagles and the San Francisco 49ers, a special ruling issued by New Jersey waived the 10-day notification for breweries airing that game and the Super Bowl.
Orlando said he's appreciative of the Division of Alcoholic Beverage Control for making that move, but said it just shines a light on the red tape that breweries face on a weekly basis.
"We think that stipulation, along with a lot of other rules that are in place for brewery tasting rooms, should be ended immediately by the Administration," Orlando said.
