The City Council, in a 5-2 vote Wednesday, approved a new alcohol ordinance without the two paragraphs that would have made the hobby of beer- or wine-making at home a criminal act.

But hold off on that celebratory drink - the pastime is still illegal under a state law that seldom gets enforced.

"It's a Class B misdemeanor and carries a fine - a licensing issue within the purview of the state," said City Attorney David Carlson about Utah's circular law.

Utah law puts home brewers in the same classification as other manufacturers of alcoholic beverages - and a manufacturer's license, along with associated fees, is costly. Utah law also requires that home brewers get their license from the federal government, which doesn't issue such licenses.

"By putting it on the city's books that home brewing is illegal, it criminalizes the activity and we could enforce it with civil fines," Carlson said.

Carlson, along with Mayor Wes Losser, had hoped for the extra teeth in the city's ordinance to crack down on any crime associated with home brewing, should it crop up. But he acknowledged he had done no research on violence associated with home brewing.

Councilman Bill Anderson asked Carlson if City Council members would have a duty to monitor home brewing if the ordinance kept the verbiage making it illegal.

"If we do enact this, we have a duty to enforce it," Carlson said. "If you become aware of a violation, you have some duty to take action to prevent unlawful behavior."

The majority of the council did not want to go down that road.

Home brewers who attended Wednesday's meeting felt the council did the right thing.

Geoff Fischer, a South Salt Lake resident who likened the hobby of beer-making to gourmet cooking, said the council "did good."

"My fear is if it was criminalized in this city, others could follow suit," Fischer said.

Karen Cramer, a home brewer who lives in Salt Lake City, agreed.

"I'm pleased. It would have served no purpose except to criminalize something that isn't a criminal act," she said.

cmckitrick@sltrib.com