George Dickel, say it ain’t so!
(cue Weezer)
At least there’s still locally brewed craft beer–for now, at least. I guess we’d better drink up while we can.
The whiskey still in my basement says otherwise.
I don’t drink . . . but if I did, I could Drink Local. Oregon has LOTS of indie brewers and distillers!
This is literally a list of my least favorite alcohols. I drink local with beer, but it appears the hard stuff I like comes from another massive corporation.
Brown-Forman, Beam Suntory, and SPI Group are where my faves are. Well… outside of local brands like Saint Arnold.
Someone correct me if this is wrong, but my understanding is that in the States, this is mostly down to industry regulation.
It’s widely legal to brew your own beer, and a few (sub-millionaire) friends can get together and set up a licensed, production-scale brewery.
It’s not legal to distill your own liquor, though. A bad batch of beer will taste gross; a bad batch of hooch will make you blind, or worse.
In Canada they are being bought up by the brewing giants at an alarming rate. They love the margins that authenticity brings.
Enjoy them while they last!
There are plenty of local small-batch beers and spirits in the US.
The regulation you’re referring to is that you can brew beer in your own home, but not spirits, and that’s true, but when people are referring to local microbrews they aren’t referring to beer made in people’s basements.
If you’re selling commercially, you have to get a license regardless. Both spirits and beer licenses are regulated by the TTB, and I doubt that there are significant differences in the barriers to entry (although spirits are by nature more complicated to produce, and so require more capital).
This doesn’t mean you have to drink it. There are plenty of small brewers today that offer a vastly more flavorful alternative.
maybe all YOURS does, but mine doesn’t. local brewers and distillers FTW!
So, the booze that you can buy globally is made by global companies?
Late stage capitalism
My beloved Unibroue was bought out by InBev years back. My carefully conducted independent periodic analysis of their product has yet to show a lapse in quality to date.
That said, this whole “late stage capitalism” thing leaves me conflicted; on the on hand, I am able to access more diversity of product at cheaper prices than ever before, but in the other, I resent the feeling of being nothing more than grist for the ever-growing corporate mills.
I think you’re right that licensing is the same for brewing and distilling. The barrier to entry is more than just the license, though.
Why would you go to the trouble and expense to get a license, unless you’re confident you can produce something people will buy? And how can you know that until you try?
I don’t think so - Balvenie, Hendricks and Blue Coat are my usual suspects. And toilet toilet wine, 'natch.
Unibroe is a national treasure!
I’m convinced that Creemore went downhill after the buyout.
Maybe there’s a difference in the exported version or a subconscious bias, but the Fin Du Mond sold here in the US nowadays isn’t up to the same standards as it once was.
Still hoping to find Sapporo/Sleemans here!
Man, I hope Stone Brewing stays independent.
♪♫♫♪ It’s la Fin du Monde as we know it.
It’s la Fin du Monde as we know it.
It’s la Fin du Monde as we know it.
And I feel fine… ♪♫♫♪♫
