Nova Scotia is on the cusp of becoming an in-store brewing friendly jurisdiction.

The province’s Liberal government was planning to introduce legislation in its spring session, which started on March 27, to legalize beer brewing and winemaking at small retailers. The issue has been a toxic one for the government over the past year. In January of 2013, the Crown-owned liquor agency, the Nova Scotia Liquor Commission, filed an injunction against retailers offering the service, saying it was unregulated and unsafe.

But the move backfired. The public viewed the injunction as an example of the government bullying small businesses and the governing party at the time, the New Democratic Party, ordered the Commission to drop the campaign a few weeks later. The NDP lost the provincial election to the Liberal Party in October, and the new government has taken a different tact in dealing with the issue. It has started doing the legwork to make in-store brewing legal.

The legwork included consultations with the brewing industry that began in January and ended on Feb. 10 to help develop regulations and standards for in-store brewing. The proposed legislation was expected to be introduced during the spring session of the Legislative Assembly. If Nova Scotia does make in-store brewing legal, it will be the third Atlantic province to do so. New Brunswick and P.E.I. already allow it and a number of businesses are offering the service in those provinces.