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Utahns can soon buy beer without leaving their cars

Gov. Spencer Cox signed the annual liquor bill, which includes the “straw test” for bartenders.

(Sang Tan | Associated Press file photo) Utahns will soon be able to buy beer from the grocery store without getting out of their car, under a bill signed into law by Gov. Spencer Cox on Monday, March 24, 2025.

(Sang Tan | Associated Press file photo) Utahns will soon be able to buy beer from the grocery store without getting out of their car, under a bill signed into law by Gov. Spencer Cox on Monday, March 24, 2025.

  | March 24, 2025, 11:20 p.m.

Utahns will soon be able to buy beer from the grocery store without leaving their car.

Gov. Spencer Cox on Monday signed SB328, the annual update of Utah liquor laws, which would permit people buying groceries online to add beer to their order and have it delivered to them in the parking lot. Under the current law, a customer would have to go into the store to get their alcoholic beverages.

The new law, which will take effect May 7, also allows a so-called “straw test” in bars or restaurants — a common practice that typically involves mixologists dipping a small straw into a cocktail, pulling it out and tasting the tiny amount of drink in the straw to ensure quality.

The law will exempt the state’s land at Point of the Mountain from rules barring businesses from getting a liquor license if the entrance is within 600 feet of a school, park or house of worship. A similar exemption was given last year to the “entertainment district” between the Delta Center and City Creek Center in downtown Salt Lake City.

Also, the new law clarifies that the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Services’ liquor commission can deny a license to a business if the applicant’s violation history warrants it. The change fixes part of the 2024 liquor bill, which took that discretion away from the commission.

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