Ice Beer - Characteristics and Regulation

Characteristics and Regulation

The ice beers are typically known for their high alcohol-to-dollar ratio. In some areas, a substantial number of ice beer products are considered to often be bought by "street drunks", and are prohibited for sale. For example, most of the products that are explicitly listed as prohibited in the beer and malt liquor category in the Seattle area are ice beers.

Although "icing" increases alcohol content, most of the United States breweries simply add water back into their beer after the icing process to bring the alcohol content back down to nearly the same levels. Otherwise the beer would qualify as a "beer concentrate," which is illegal under ATF rules governing beer production.