NMSA 1978, § 7-17-2 — Definitions

As used in the Liquor Excise Tax Act:

# A.

"alcoholic beverages" means distilled or rectified spirits, potable alcohol, brandy,
whiskey, rum, gin, aromatic bitters or any similar beverage, including blended or
fermented beverages, dilutions or mixtures of one or more of the foregoing containing
more than one-half of one percent alcohol by volume, but "alcoholic beverages" does
not include medicinal bitters;

# B.

"beer" means an alcoholic beverage obtained by the fermentation of any infusion
or decoction of barley, malt and hops or other cereals in water and includes porter,
beer, ale and stout;

# C.

"cider" means an alcoholic beverage made from the normal alcoholic
fermentation of the juice of sound, ripe apples or pears that contains not less than one-
half of one percent of alcohol by volume and not more than eight and one-half percent
of alcohol by volume;

# D.

"department" means the taxation and revenue department, the secretary of
taxation and revenue or any employee of the department exercising authority lawfully
delegated to that employee by the secretary;

# E.

"fortified wine" means wine containing more than fourteen percent alcohol by
volume when bottled or packaged by the manufacturer, but "fortified wine" does not
include:
(1) wine that is sealed or capped by cork closure and aged two years or more;
(2) wine that contains more than fourteen percent alcohol by volume solely as
a result of the natural fermentation process and that has not been produced with the
addition of wine spirits, brandy or alcohol; or
(3) vermouth and sherry;

# F.

"microbrewer" means a person who produces less than two hundred thousand
barrels of beer per year;

# G.

"person" includes, to the extent permitted by law, a federal, state or other
governmental unit or subdivision or an agency, department, institution or instrumentality
thereof;

# H.

"small winegrower" means a winegrower who produces less than one million five
hundred thousand liters of wine in a year;

# I.

"spirituous liquors" means alcoholic beverages, except fermented beverages
such as wine, beer, cider and ale;

# J.

"wholesaler" means a person holding a license issued under Section 60-6A-1
NMSA 1978 or a person selling alcoholic beverages that were not purchased from a
person holding a license issued under Section 60-6A-1 NMSA 1978;

# K.

"wine" means an alcoholic beverage other than cider that is obtained by the
fermentation of the natural sugar contained in fruit or other agricultural products, with or
without the addition of sugar or other products, and that does not contain more than
twenty-one percent alcohol by volume; and

# L.

"winegrower" means a person licensed pursuant to Section 60-6A-11 NMSA
1978.