Minibottle critics happy to see them vanish

AIKEN --- For the most part, Tom Sponseller says, the alcohol minibottle is all but gone from South Carolina restaurants.

"Ninety-nine percent of them have changed," said the president of the South Carolina Hospitality Association, which pushed three years ago to change the state law that required South Carolina bars and restaurants to mix drinks using minibottles.

Mr. Sponseller said he believes the change was good because it allowed restaurants to use larger bottles and make mixed drinks with a lower alcohol content. He said it has also made drinks somewhat cheaper and helped restaurants be more competitive with those in bordering states.

"From a statewide perspective, yes, it did reduce the price of some drinks, especially the multi-alcohol drinks where you had to have two, three or four, or in some cases seven, minibottles in the drink," he said. He called the change "very positive. South Carolina was the last state that required the minibottles."

Sam Erb, the owner of Aiken's West Side Bowery Restaurant, also pushed for the change. He said he has seen positive results from the switch.

"The state was promoting larger alcoholic drinks by not allowing big bottles," he said. "Our true Long Island Iced Tea would come in a pitcher, whereas now I can make it in a glass. That's the big difference."

He said the change has helped make drinks somewhat cheaper, and storage is also easier.

"The storage of it was a big issue for us and also a safer drink, a more nationally averaged drink," he said.

Minibottles contain 1.75 milliliters, while the national drink standard for a mixed drink is 1.5 milliliters of alcohol, he said.

Not all Aiken restaurants have made the switch. Up Your Alley, for example, is still using minibottles.

Owner Janny Bijas said a lot of his customers prefer drinks mixed with minibottles and are willing to pay slightly more.

"People like the consistency of a good drink every time," he said.

For wedding receptions or conventions, Mr. Sponseller said, there's a demand for 1.75-liter bottles, which state law doesn't allow in restaurants or hotels. They can't have bottles larger than 1 liter, he said.

Mr. Sponseller said people are wanting to bring the bigger bottles into restaurants and hotels for parties and receptions because it's cheaper than buying two 1-liter bottles.

He said he'll be talking to state legislators about whether an exception should be made to the state law.

Reach Preston Sparks at (803) 648-1395, ext. 110, or preston.sparks@augustachronicle.com.