This week, in The Brew! We talk about the good, the bad and the ugly side of politics and how it effects local brewers, We see what brewpub is evolving and is doing business under a new name, we talk about a week long celebration towards beers and lastly, we give you the heads up about some great events coming up. We are taking a little vacation this weekend which is well overdue so there will not be an edition of The Brew! next week. We will be back with a new edition of The Brew! on April 1st so until then, keep drinking local, cheers!
Texas – In the midst of a rapidly expanding craft beer industry in Texas, brewers are working hard to get their name out there and to push their products to the public. Currently, Texas craft brewers are allowed to self-distribute up 40,000 barrels a year but the new proposed House Bill 3389 filed by Texas Rep. Senfronia Thompson is looking to reduce that amount to only 5,000 barrels. It is without saying, local brewers are not happy to hear about the proposed bill. It has been reported that Thompson has received many donations for Texas distributors in the past and it adds speculation to the reason for such a bill. This bill would force small breweries to depend on a distributor to handle the sales of their products. To make a bad situation even worse, breweries that use a distributors do not have control of territorial distribution rights but the distribution companies have the right to sell territorial rights to other distributors for a profit. A lawsuit filed back in December by Live Oak, Peticolas and Revolver brewing against the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission is looking to change the distribution rights and regulations. Just last week, State Sen. Kevin Eltife introduced Senate Bill 1386 which would give breweries the right to sell beer to brewery visitors for off-site consumption. While it has not been confirmed, reports on social media have stated that Thompson has planning on backing off of her bill. We will have to stay tuned for any updated. There is a battle between good and evil in Texas and we can only hope to see bills passed that will only progress the sales and distribution of Texas craft beer.
Fort Worth – Big changes are brewing at Zio Carlo Magnolia Brew Pub. The Ft. Worth brewpub has been dropping hints of a big change coming on their Facebook page with a Transformation Complete event coming up on March 21st. On March 9th, co-owner Adam Gonzales posted on the Cap and Hare message board about the upcoming change and invited everyone out to join them as they transition into something new. On March 13th, co-owner Carlo Galotto announced on his personal Facebook page that it was the last official day could be legally known as Zio Carlo Magnolia Brew Pub and then it all came together, Zio Carlo had officially been changed to Chimera Brewing Company. The third partner of Zio Carlo, Austin Jones left the business at the end of 2014 which was a big reason according to Gonzales’ post that they found it “fitting and reflective to move forward under a new name”. We are very excited to see Adam and Carlo continue to grow and wish them continued success.
San Antonio – It is that time of year again for the San Antonio Beer Week. The weeklong celebration of craft beer kicks off this Saturday at the history Main Plaza in downtown San Antonio with events happening at the local bars and breweries all across town. The SABW will end on the 29th with closing ceremonies on the grounds of the Pearl Brewery in the style of a small beer festival featuring San Antonio and nearby breweries bringing out some great beers. VIP ticket holders will get a chance to check out the new Southerleigh Fine Food & Brewery which is slated to be opening soon. If you are heading to San Antonio be sure to check their website for all of the great events. Also, don’t forget to stop by all of the San Antonio breweries Branchline, Busted Sandal, Ranger Creek, Alamo Beer Co, Freetail, The Granary and Blue Star which will host open houses and special events during this week long event.
Events – With warmer temps comes spring events. It is time to mark your calendars because there are a lot of great events going on over the next week. Don’t forget you can always shoot us an email and we will be sure to add your events to the weekly list.
March 21st: Real Ale Tenabrae Aeterna Release Party
March 21st: 8th Wonder Brewery’s 2nd Anniversary Celebr8ion
March 28th: Southern Star Brewing’s 7th Anniversary Party
March 28th: Infamous Brewing’s 2yr Anniversary Extravaganza
March 28th: Houston Firkin Fest
March 28th: Craft Pride Hot Pepper Beer Party
March 29th: Historical Katy Crawfish Festival @ No Label Brewing
As always, if you’re looking to get out this weekend we suggest you visit a local brewery, don’t forget that we have a list of all of the breweries near you so head over to the Breweries and Brewpubs page and go support your local brewers.
