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MONTGOMERY — Brewing beer and wine in your basement for your own pleasure is illegal in Alabama.

If law enforcement officers bust you doing it, you could spend up to a year in jail and be hit with as much as $2,000 in fines.

But it's a popular pastime in Alabama, and do-it-yourself brewers say it's time to make it legal.

A bill now in the Legislature would do just that, but it could meet some resistance in the Senate if that body's Tourism and Marketing Committee is any gauge.

John Little, an attorney and founder of the Auburn Homebrew Club, said the bill would legalize the homebrewing of beer, mead, cider and wine for personal use.

"We're not asking for a budget appropriation," he said, during a public hearing Wednesday. "We're asking for freedom. We're doing this on our own dime and our own time."

Little said there are homebrew clubs all over the state of Alabama that are dedicated to the craft of homebrewing, and they simply want the freedom to do that without the threat of prosecution.

They also want the freedom to establish competitions and hold tasting events in Alabama.

Because of existing law, homebrew aficionados who want to compete against other brewers must do so out-of-state.

Sen. Del Marsh, R-Anniston, who serves on the committee, said he was surprised to know that so many people were breaking the law to indulge in the practice of homebrewing.

Little said there are more than 500,000 homebrewers in the United States, and Alabama is hampering the tradition with its antiquated prohibition laws.

Sen. Charles Bishop, R-Jasper, raised the issue of the bill being amended to include the production of whiskey, a sure way to kill it in the Senate.

Little said making beer and whiskey are different processes and the bill only covers beer, cider, mead and wine.

Committee Chairman Sen. Bobby Singleton, D-Greensboro, said he's heard no objections to the bill, and it is possible that it will receive a favorable report when it comes up for a vote in the next committee meeting.

Little urged the committee members to promote the bill beyond the Tourism and Marketing Committee to their colleagues in the Legislature.