HARRISBURG -- The state Senate Law and Justice Committee voted yesterday to send a bill to the full Senate that would give consumers more choice over the quantity of beer they purchase at distributors, restaurants and taverns.

Senate Bill 674 would allow distributors, for the first time since Prohibition, to sell beer in six-packs, 12-packs, 15-packs and a new package of 18 cans or bottles, as well as the traditional 24- and 30-can cases. Restaurants or taverns with a beer license would be allowed to sell three six-packs of beer or an 18-pack.

Currently they can only sell one or two six-packs at a time.

The chairman of the committee, Sen. John Rafferty, R-Montgomery, said the decision was "a long overdue change to antiquated provisions in the state's beer sales law. This is a change that the public has requested for decades."

Action on the bill by the full Senate and House may not come until the fall. Mark Meyer, executive director of the committee, said if the bill passed, Pennsylvania would no longer have the most restrictive alcohol laws in the country.

"For the first time ever, Pennsylvania consumers will get what they want like the rest of the country," he said.

Microbreweries would benefit also, according to Mr. Rafferty. He said consumers often are unwilling to try lesser-known beers if they have to buy a full case because it's too expensive.

Grocery stores also might be among the biggest beneficiaries. Although the stores themselves cannot apply for beer licenses, some have recently started to set up restaurants within their stores, which can apply. Consumers would have to pay for the beer at a separate register, but would be able to buy an 18-pack or three six-packs in the same place they buy their milk and eggs.

The boon to grocery stores, however, could be trouble for beer distributors because it breaks up their monopoly over selling large volumes of beer.

Mr. Meyer said he was unsure if the Senate would vote on the bill before the summer recess starting June 30 because of other pressing issues, including the budget, facing the Legislature.

The bill still has several hurdles to clear before it can become law, including potentially being sent to the Senate Appropriations Committee if it is determined the bill could have an impact on the state budget. It also must win approval in the House and be signed into law by Gov. Ed Rendell.

In another move to liberalize the sale of alcohol in the state, the committee also sent House Bill 896 to the Senate to allow farmers to sell wine at farmers markets.