musing

As promised yesterday, some things to think about when we are talking local.

You won’t see the word beer, but that doesn’t mean the lessons aren’t relevant.

First, this comes from a conversation back in Sitka, Alaska, last summer. A local (of course) and I began talking in a locally owned coffee shop and finished in the connected locally owned bookstore. He explained to me that the coffee shop used to be on the main street, but had to move when a T-shirt vendor offered to pay a higher rent. Thing is the T-shirt shop catering to tourists wasn’t locally owned and wouldn’t be open all year round.

This is when I learned that for every dollar spent at a locally owned business 45 cents stays in the community. For every dollar spent at a business owned by outsiders only 14 cents stays.

Second, a lesson from newspapers. You might recall I’m a newspaper junkie (or was, when you could buy more newspapers), and I found “The imperative of localism and local news” long . . . so I can appreciate your apprehension.

Here’s a takeaway. Newspaper readership began to decline long, long before the advent of the Internet. They quit serving the local community as they once had, not all at once but bit by bit. They quit being as local.

Not a good idea. Not for newspaper owners. Not for brewers.

A quick tip of the cap to Andy Crouch for a bit of looking behind the curtain, otherwise known as first-rate beer journalism. (And, as Alan will tell you, I’m a curmudgeon who doesn’t rush to such judgment.)

OK, Crouch doesn’t get an “A” for headline writing — “The Brewers Association’s Quiet War On Blue Moon, Leinenkugels, Goose Island, and Maybe Even Elysian, New Belgium, and Your Brewery …” is a mouthful — but please go read the post.

You and I might feel like we’ve beaten the “what is craft beer?” horse to death, but I’m big on knowing about the place where a beer is brewed. Of course, then I get to decide whether to call it a craft beer.

When I read stories about beer and when I talk to brewers and brewery types I have I have this little list of personal hot button topics. (It’s me; you may not care.)

One is what’s local about beer and does it matter? Another is the danger that beer could become an elitist drink ala some wine. I won’t bore you with all of them.

Tomorrow a link about local. Today I suggest you read Pubs and Class from Boak and Bailey. Interesting on many levels, including why people would go to pubs, the importance of community, etc., and comments that certainly add to the conversation.

But don’t overlook item No. 1: “It costs too much.” Goodness knows I’ve typed enough words here explaining why I think you should be willing to pay “more” for beer. Defining “more” being the challenge, of course.

The fact is that the price of beer, again depending on how you define “more,” makes a difference to many drinkers. And you are being a snob if you discount that.

. . . and do you remember when GABF had only twelve (12!) style categories?

I’m doing a lot more reading of blogs than writing of blogs these days (when not being amazed by what a terrific climate Asheville has for all things local). Two topics I suggest you chime in on:

– Should we be as excited about the screening of Beer Wars on April 16 as the next episode of 24? Start with what Andy Crouch has to write.

– The proliferation of designated beer styles. Start with Jack Curtin, but also check in with Jeff Alworth, Tom Cizauskas and Ron Pattinson.

I have one thought to add to Topic #2. In 1987 they began judging beers “by style” at the Great American Beer Festival. Got by with twelve of them, they did. Interesting to see what the 12 were:

Ales
Alts
American Cream Ales
American Lagers
American Light Lagers
Bocks/Dopplebocks
Continental Amber Lagers
Continental Pilsners
Porters
Stouts
Vienna Style Lagers
Wheat Beers

And the winners were . . .

A bunch of beer and alcohol legislation by states in the headlines these days, well reported elsewhere and with plenty of commentary, so I’m mostly leaving that to others.

But . . .

In Utah, the Senate killed a measure that would have allowed bars (including brewpubs) and restaurants to sell draft beer stronger than 4% alcohol by volume (3.2% by weight). A bill to lift the cap was approved 58-2 in the House. But on Thursday, the last day of the session, the Senate decided not to debate the measure and to go home early instead.

Bars and restaurants are already allowed to serve full-strength beer if they buy it in bottles from the state liquor store at the same 86 percent markup paid by the general public. That means brewpubs can brew stronger beer, bottle it, sell it to the state and then buy it back to serve it. Makes a lot of sense, don’t you think?

I comment here often that despite this law Utah’s breweries make outstanding beers full of flavor. However, our travels in states (Georgia and the Carolinas) where the alcohol cap on beer recently was boosted makes it apparent how that changes the beer culture for the better. Yes, much of the excitement is about “bigger” beers but when people are talking about flavor all beers with flavor benefit.