The infamous ‘3.2 Beer,’ that low alcohol relic of a post-prohibition mentality and state laws that prohibit anything but beer with drastically reduced alcohol levels to be sold in grocery and convenience stores might finally be coming to an end in Utah….

On Tuesday the Utah State Senate passed SB132, a bill which would allow stronger brews to be sold in grocery and convenience stores, in a decisive 27-2 vote with almost no debate.

Introduced by Sen. Jerry Stevenson, R-Layton, The passage of SB132 raises the alcohol content from 3.2 percent to 4.8 percent for beer in stores, a cap that Utah Brewer’s Guild’s executive director Nicole Dicou, told Fox 13 that the bill did not go far enough and favored big beer mass marketers over smaller craft brewers….

“The proposed 4.8 ABW for grocery store beer is an arbitrary limit. If passed, it would make Utah only one of two states with that cap…The local craft brewers of the Utah Brewers Guild look forward to working with the bill sponsor to address our concerns.”

But don’t be confused by those numbers…

3.2 beer actually refers to “alcohol by weight” rather than the more commonly use alcohol by volume, ABV designation, which has become the industry standard when referencing the strength of a beer.

The reality is that a 3.2% beer is a 4% brew when referenced by volume but still, it’s an increasingly rare commodity…

The bill now goes to Utah’s house where its passage is still in question. Utah politics are dominated by the Mormon community, who in keeping with the church, abstain from alcohol…

According to the Desert News, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has, not surprisingly, come out against the bill….

“The church opposes SB132 in its current form. We, along with other community groups, oppose legislation which represents a 50 percent increase in alcohol content for beer sold in grocery and convenience stores,” Marty Stephens, director of government relations for the church, said in a statement.

But whether the bill passes in Utah’s House or not, the whole 3.2 beer concept is going away…

Oklahoma, the nation’s largest consumer of these low-buzz remnants, recently abandoned them. So have Kansas and Colorado, leaving Utah (along with Minnesota) as one of the last holdouts.

Only 1.8 percent of all beer brewed in the United States is 3.2 beer. Big brewers like Budweiser and Coors view the 3.2 beer as niche items nowadays and are producing less of it than ever before…