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THE BEER GEEK
Beer Activism	Joe Gherlone
March 2010 The Beer Geek The Beer Activism -– Screw Globally, Brew Locally By Joe Gherlone I’ve written before how much I like beer hunting when I travel. Everywhere I go, which is a fair variety of places, I look for craft beer locations to visit. Even when I’m headed out for an eatery that is not specifically beer related, I look for some specific things. I always look for something I haven’t tried before, I look for local beer, and I look for craft beer. I even do this when simply out around town. And while I am pleased with the growth of craft beer locations locally, there are a few things that bother me. A good example is a small Irish restaurant near Winchester, whose menu includes a house Irish Red Ale. I asked where it was made, assuming it was one of the Virginia or West VA breweries or brewpubs. It was produced by Sierra Nevada, a craft brewery, but a very large one, and it is located in Chico, CA, not Virginia. Similarly, I stopped for lunch at a restaurant near Ft. Belvoir, and their house beer was an amber ale made by Leinenkugel (a Wisconsin-based, SAB-Miller-Coors-owned brand). Why is it that local establishments (these were small, independent restaurants) are getting house beers from these major producers, rather than from local breweries -- like our own Blue & Gray, Starr Hill in Crozet, etc. Something about market share, and volume, volume, volume, probably. The other thing I’ve noticed is the local restaurants with less interesting beer selections than they once had. We went out to a place in Central Park to watch some football. They used to have local beer and a few interesting craft selections, but now they’ve only got a few lackluster selections (that are all distributed nationally by one of the macros), and the locals are gone completely. The same happened at a chain known for their chili -– they once had an excellent beer list, but it can now be considered uninspiring at best. So here’s my pitch about beer activism. Here’s what you can do (and it won’t hurt, I promise): · When you go out – ask about house beers – are they local? Who makes them? · Be a fully aware consumer – e.g., Old Dominion Brewing Co. is no longer a VA brewery – it is just a group of brand names owned and produced in Delaware. · Ask why beer lists are reduced, limited, or not carrying local products. · Ask for beers you like. · Support your local brewery –- if enough folks ask for local beer, it’ll go on tap. If you are in charge of the local brewery/taphouse/restaurant: · Reserve a tap for VA only beers – Capital Ale House deserves applause for their Project Virginia. · Resist the urge to accept a low-cost, macro-produced, “house beer” from your distributor -– partner up with one of the real local breweries instead. Grass roots activism is a hot topic. It is time to apply some of that trend to our favorite beverage in order to maximize our drinking pleasure. Let’s get out there and inspire some change!! Joe Gherlone is still brewing and drinking locally, and whenever possible, local.
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