ALBANY -- Maybe you like to have a beer. And maybe you like ice cream.
In New York, you soon may be able to have both in one scoop.
The state Senate on Thursday passed legislation that would allow the sale of ice cream made with beer or hard cider.
The measure was put forth at the request of a central New York ice cream maker, said the bill's sponsor, Sen. James Seward, R-Milford, Otsego County.
The bill would let businesses make ice cream that can have beer or hard cider.
New York already has a law that allows wine to be added to ice cream.
“In recent weeks both the dairy and craft beer industries visited the Capitol to showcase their products,” Seward said in a statement.
“Farmers and brewers already enjoy a great symbiotic relationship, and this legislation will clear the way for a new product that will capitalize on homegrown New York ingredients.”
As with wine added to ice cream, the bill would update the law to allow a certain percentage of ice cream to have beer or hard cider.
The bill would limit the alcohol in ice cream to no more than 5 percent by volume.
It would also prohibit its sale to people under 21, and it would require the same product labeling and warning statements similar to wine and other products that contain alcohol.
The bill appears to have a good chance of making it to Gov. Andrew Cuomo's desk for final approval.
It is making its way through the state Assembly in hopes of passage before the legislative session ends next week.