Senate bill approving 'ready to drink' cocktail sales moves ahead in committee vote

The bill would finally allow the sale of spirit-based cocktails in grocery stores.

By Erica Cheng, Food Reporter | April 21, 2025

A newly confirmed Senate bill is seeking to shake up alcohol sales in the grocery aisle. KXAN-TV in Austin reported that Senate Bill 2225 moved ahead in a committee vote, moving "ready-to-drink" cocktail sales closer to reality.

In March 2025, Texas lawmakers introduced Senate Bill 2225 and House Bill 4077 into legislation. The sister bills seek to get rid of existing restrictions on spirits-based beverages. Currently, ready-to-drink (RTD) spirits-based beverages cannot be sold where beer and wine-based beverages of similar alcohol content are already available.

On April 17, SB 2225 passed a committee vote and will move to the Senate for consideration, reported KXAN-TV. If passed, State Sen. Kelly Hancock's (R-Fort Worth) bill will head to the state House of Representatives. If the bill again passes and is enacted into law, canned spirit-based cocktails with no more than 17 percent ABV can officially be sold at grocery and convenience stores effective Sept. 1.

For years, liquor sales at grocery and convenience stores had been prohibited in Texas; according to Eater Austin. (Texas is the only state that does not allow publicly traded corporations to obtain liquor licenses.) Similar bills to get around this were introduced in February 2023, according to Eater Austin.

That means customers in Texas could see canned cocktails like On The Rocks, High Noon, certain BuzzBallz cocktails, and even White Claws made with vodka on grocery and convenience store shelves alongside beer and wine.

According to KHOU-TV, around 86 percent of surveyed customers support the bill. The Distilled Spirits Council of the U.S. is also a supporter. The council estimates that around $160 million in new state tax revenues can be made from the expanded RTD sales in the next 3 to 5 years.

RTD cocktails have grown in popularity across the U.S, per industry consultant, BevSource. Spiked by the popularity of hard seltzers and ranch waters, several major liquor companies have already entered the RTD space. Even spirit brands like Absolut and Ketel One, BevSource noted, have introduced vodka-based canned cocktails into the market.

Correction: The Distilled Spirits Council said they are a supporter of SB 2225. A previous version of this article stated they were a co-signer of the bill. This article has also been updated to reflect that publicly traded corporations are not allowed to obtain liquor licenses; a previous version of this article stated that privately traded corporations were not allowed to obtain licenses.