# Rushing the growler

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rushing-the-growler/61134>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [April 7, 2001, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rushing-the-growler/61134 "2001-04-07T06:07:47Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Bob\_Scene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Bob\_Scene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bob_Scene)\
**Post date:** [April 7, 2001, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rushing-the-growler/61134/1 "2001-04-07T06:07:47Z")

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A hundred years ago “rushing the growler” meant taking a bucket or a pitcher over to the corner bar to get filled with beer to take home. I always thought this was a luxury from the distant past that I’d never experience in these days of amazingly uptight liquor laws. But the other night I saw an old “All In The Family” where Archie goes to his neighborhood bar and has a brief, hilarious conversation with this guy who’s there getting his pitcher filled up to go.

So, was rushing the growler legal in New York a mere 30 years ago? Is it still legal anywhere in the U.S.?

This is probably really obvious to people in other states, but I only know about alcohol laws in Texas, where they would probably bulldoze the whole bar if something like that happened.

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**Author:** ![samclem](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a9a28c/32.png) [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)\
**Post date:** [April 8, 2001, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rushing-the-growler/61134/2 "2001-04-08T00:10:39Z")

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**Bob** Don’t construe this to be a final answer, only an anechdotal one.

I live in Northern Ohio. We have a world-class brew-pub. They sell gallon jugs of their brew to go. I buy it. There is a fee for the jug. I come back with the jug, and they refill it, I pay them, and go home. This time they don’t charge me a fee for the jug as I brought it back. Did I get the same one(did they refill it?), I don’t know.

This actuallly happens, so, yes, at least in Northern Ohio, one can take in a jug and get it filled and walk out with beer. Did it.

Whether they would fill my pitcher which I brought from home, I don’t know. I doubt it. But I will ask.