NORTHAMPTON — Andrew Brow, the owner of HighBrow Wood Fired Kitchen + Bar, wants to expand his drink offerings.
Currently, he has a license to serve beer and wine, he told City Council earlier this month, but he’d like to be able to sell drinks like an Irish Coffee or amaro, an Italian herbal liqueur. “Something new and different,” he said.
A section of state law accepted by City Council on Thursday would allow him to do so.
According to a section of Massachusetts law, a city can vote to allow restaurants with a license to serve wine and malt beverages to apply for approval to sell liqueurs and cordials — sweet, flavored spirits such as Baileys Irish Cream.
“I actually didn’t really know about this section of the law,” Mayor David Narkewicz said at a Dec. 5 City Council meeting. “Apparently it’s common in some other communities, including in Boston.” He said Brow, whose restaurant is near City Hall, brought the idea to him.
City Council voted to accept the section of state law on Dec. 5 and again on Dec. 19.
“This would serve, essentially, as an enhancement to a beer and wine license and would provide more options for restaurateurs,” Councilor William Dwight said at the Dec. 5 meeting.
The city’s License Commission will need to develop a licensing procedure, and businesses will still have to apply to sell liqueurs and cordials, Narkewicz said at the Dec. 5 City Council meeting. “It’s not automatic,” he said.
Currently, the city is at its maximum capacity on liquor licenses under quotas set by state law, Narkewicz said, and accepting the section of state law gives restaurants expanded options.
Greta Jochem can be reached at gjochem@gazettenet.com.