It’s been a busy couple of days, filled with deadlines and the stomach flu. Finally on the mend and with at least one article filed, it’s time to catch up with what’s going in the beer world. And one article on MS Money was sent to me more than any other in recent memory, entitled “Will Microbrews Kill the King of Beers.” It makes some interesting points, though dwells a bit too much on Blue Moon’s success. But I think it’s a little too early to start predicting A-B’s demise. They still hold a commanding lead, which isn’t going away overnight. Even if the InBev takeover bid is successful, not much will change concerning Bud’s market dominance. And even if the big breweries did disappear, I don’t think it’s entirely fair to blame the good beer segment. The reasons for flat sales of the big beers is more complicated than that. And let’s not forget that the big breweries very easily could make all-malt, well-hopped flavorful beers. They just choose not to for economic reasons. So perhaps they are as much to blame as anyone else, acting like old dinosaurs unwilling to change with the times and provide their customers with the products they really want. Can you really blame craft brewers because they do just that?

Coming soon to a bar in California: more crap you don’t need trying to buy customer loyalty for beer you don’t like! Today, the California state senate GO committee passed AB 1245 (a.k.a. the Trash & Trinkets bill) by a vote of 7-1. It will now move forward toward a rendezvous with the appropriations committee sometime in the next 4-5 weeks. If approved there, it will then move on to the Senate floor, the Assembly Go committee, the Assembly appropriations committee, the Assembly floor and then finally to the Governor’s desk for signature or veto.

The bill, sponsored by Anheuser-Busch, will without question confer yet another economic advantage on large corporations and again make it harder for small breweries to compete. How out-of-touch do our state senators have to be, to think that’s a good idea? Or is it simply a matter of looking where their campaign financing came from to figure out why they’d vote so obviously against small businesses?

A big thanks to my good friend, John Bryant, from Odell Brewing, who flew out from Colorado to testify on behalf of small brewers, and also to Susan Little, who owns St. Stan’s in Modesto (and where one of the senators on the committee also hails from). Also, thanks to those of you who contacted your senators to help the cause. It’s not over yet, though this is obviously a setback.

Consider this a friendly Monday morning reminder that California bill AB 1245, the “trash and trinkets bill,” will be heard in committee tomorrow June 24, so there’s not much time to let your state Senator know how you feel. To read the full action alert with details about what’s going on how you can help, see my earlier post. Thanks for helping, if you can.

Last night, the beers of Schooner’s of Antioch, California — and brewer Craig Cauwels — were featured at a Beer Chef’s Dinner with the Brewmaster held at the Cathedral Hill Hotel. It was another terrific beer dinner with good food, good company, and, of course, great beer.

Schooner’s brewmaster Craig Cauwels, Brian Yaeger (author of the soon-to-be-published Red, White & Brew), the Beer Chef, Bruce Paton, and me at the Schooner’s beer dinner.

Our dessert of butterscotch bread pudding, with “I Had Dinner With the Beer Chef” written in chocolate around the plate.

For more photos from the Schooner’s Beer Dinner, visit the photo gallery.
 

You know the tide must be finally turning when Time magazine does a long, thorough article on the issues surrounding the drinking age and it’s virtually void of neo-prohibitionist propaganda. I imagine the anti-alcohol lobby must be beside themselves. It’s tempting to believe that the tide may finally be turning against their all-or-nothing approach, but I doubt that. Of course, I can have a dream, too, can’t I? My favorite big galoot, and good friend, Lew Bryson suggested spreading it around on his blog, Seen Through A Glass, and, after reading it, I heartily agree. See what you think.

The first thing you notice about the logo for Seattle’s Brouwer’s Cafe is how cool it is. It’s the rampant lion from Belgium’s coat of arms, The Leo Belgicus, but with the colors’ reversed; black on gold instead of gold on black. And if you think it might make a great tattoo, you’re not alone. On Sunday, May 18, they hosted an Employee Appreciation Day for their three-dozen or so staff. Co-owner Matt Bonney invited his friend, and renowned Tattoo Artist with Seattle’s Anchor Tattoo, John Howel, to the party. He also offered to pay for any Brouwer’s lion tattoo that any of his employees might be interested on getting, figuring at most perhaps a handful would take him up on the offer. But he was wrong, and his employees were far more loyal than even he imagined. Howel began doing Brouwer’s tattoos at eleven in the morning and didn’t finish until just after midnight, doing a total of twelve tattoos in all on employees and friends of the Belgian cafe.

Pastry chef David Albright was among those who went under the needle.

The results on Director of Brewing Operations at Skagit River Brewing, Mike Armstrong’s chest.

For more photos from the Brouwer’s tattoo session, visit the photo gallery.
 

It’s nice to get some good news for a change. I got an e-mail this morning from Mike Altman, owner of Iron Springs Pub & Brewery in Fairfax, California. You may recall that their landlord was trying to raise their rent by 53%, an unreasonable amount in this economy that would have closed down the brewery on August 15, which is when the current lease runs out. There was a scheduled arbitration, but no one was expecting much from it, given the seemingly intractable position of the landlords. But a more modest amount was agreed upon and I’m happy to report that Iron Springs will remain open after August 15, and most likely for at least the next five years. The Marin IJ has the story in today’s paper. According to the article, the Fairfax Town Council also honored Iron Springs on Wednesday, declaring them “one of the town’s top 10 businesses.” Way to go Mike and Anne, that’s fantastic news!

If, like me, you’re of a philosophical bent, you might enjoy this intriguing essay I came across on a Libertarian blog, Positive Liberty. It’s titled The Metaphor of Beer, though I think the metaphor really is about the brewing process rather than the end product. For a civilian, the author has a pretty good grasp on brewing history and how the process works. After detailing these, he then makes the leap that brewing makes a very good metaphor for politics and specifically about how governments work.

But might the rules for a good society be like the rules of making beer? That is, might they be amazingly complex and never knowable in their entirety, but still reducible — at times — to simple rules, and, at other times, to more complex ones?

As I said, it’s an intriguing idea, and one well worth contemplating, especially during an election year.

The following action alert has been issued by the California Small Brewers Association through the Support Your Local Brewery consumer beer activist network, in the hopes of generating grassroots support from beer lovers in California. Please help if you can.

Dear Beer Activist,

The craft brewers of California need your help!

A bill sponsored by Anheuser-Busch, AB 1245 (Torrico) is being heard in committee this Tuesday, June 24th. This bill would significantly expand the limits on what a brewer can give away to a retailer. Currently, a brewer can only give away small items of minimal value to a retailer or consumer. The law in place now helps create an equal playing field for both small and large breweries. This law has helped the craft brewing industry flourish in California.

Anheuser-Busch wants to increase the limit 1,600% so they can use give-ways as an inducement to gain placements at stores, bars and restaurants. Craft brewers – because we are small, independent businesses which brew with passion and typically do not have large marketing budgets – cannot afford to compete with the big brewers on this level. Passing this bill will allow large corporate brewers to “buy” placements at craft beers expense.

You may thinking to yourself, but don’t I want breweries to give me free stuff? That’s a reasonable initial reaction, but think about it this way. Most of the craft breweries that make the beer you love can’t afford to give away anything and that hasn’t stopped you from buying their beer. You prefer their beer because it tastes good. You didn’t need a free keychain or some other bauble to convince you that their beer is good. So it begs the question, what sort of beer company does need to give away free crap, in effect buying market share instead of earning it? It’s probably the sort of beer that you don’t want to drink in the first place. But by allowing this bill to pass, those beer companies will be able to buy more and more customer loyalty, and that will be mean less and less good beer for you and your friends. So while it may seem counter-intuitive to tell your Senator not to allow you to potentially receive more free stuff, it’s that fact which will make your message that much more powerful. Tell your elected representative that you’d rather support and buy beer from small, local craft beer companies that make the beer you love, than be given free crap by companies whose products are in many cases not made locally and do not support California’s economy or small business community.

The action alert continues:

The craft brewers of California will be at a distinct disadvantage if this bill passes, therefore limiting the choice and availability of craft beers in the marketplace.

There are five Senators who have indicated they haven’t made up their minds and could end up voting against our local breweries. They are:
 

• Senator Wiggins (Mendocino, Humboldt parts of Sonoma County)
• Senator Harman (Huntington Beach area)
• Senator Denham (Central valley Modesto area)
• Senator Yee (parts of San Francisco County)
• Senator Wyland (parts of San Diego County)

 
If you are in one of these areas, we need your help. Please read on. If you are not sure who your Senator is, you can easily and quickly find out here.

If you are in the district of one of the five Senators above, please write a letter to fax or email; or call your Senators office no later than Monday, June 23rd.

Let your Senator know that you are opposed to AB 1245 and that this bill is anti-small business and against the best interests of the craft brewers in California.
 

• Senator Wiggins phone 916.651.4002 / fax 916.323.6958 / e-mail
• Senator Harman phone 916.651.4035 / fax 916.445.9263 / email
• Senator Denhamphone 916.651.4012 / fax 916.445.0773 / email
• Senator Yee phone 916.651.4008 / fax 916.327.2186 / email
• Senator Wyland phone 916.651.4038 / fax 916.446.7382 / email

 
Thanks for supporting your local brewery!

The California Small Brewers Association

Send questions to Tom McCormick.

I finally had a chance to visit Dean Biersch’s new brewpub in Sebastopol, the Hopmonk Tavern. My good friend, Pete Slosberg, invited me to join him to hear Tony Magee, the owner of Lagunitas Brewing, perform there last night, and we met some other friends from Lagunitas for a nice dinner and blues music. The Hopmonk is beautiful and, as expected, Biersch remade the space with a wonderful attention to detail. The new beer garden, the biggest departure from its earlier configuration as Powerhouse Brewing, is the most comfortable new feature. The food was terrific, as was the unfiltered pilsner. Their beer list is quite impressive, too.
 

Outside the new Hopmonk Tavern in Sebastopol, California.

My good friend Tony Magee warms up for his set of blues music.

For more photos from the Hopmonk Tavern, visit the photo gallery.