All about LIBA's Louisville Brewfest, returning Friday to Louisville Slugger Field.

Look at it as your sole chance each year to drink a range of local beers inside Louisville KY Slugger Field.

Thank you, AB-InBev and Bats management. May I have another Bud Light Lime?

Louisville KY Brewfest 2016 to feature plenty of regional breweries, ‘Beer-oes’ beers, by Kevin Gibson (Insider Louisville KY)

The Louisville KY Independent Business Alliance has to be happy with the way the city’s – and the state of Kentucky’s – brewing industry is growing. Now in its eight year, LIBA’s annual Louisville KY Brewfest, set for Friday, Sept. 23, is growing right along with the number of breweries.

This year, the festival will feature 20 different local and regional breweries; last year, Monnik Beer Co. made its first appearance, while this year those who haven’t yet made it to the recently opened Old Louisville KY Brewery and 3rd Turn Brewing will get a chance to taste a couple of their beers.

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The PC: No worth without principle.

(Published at LouisvilleBeer.com on September 1, 2013)

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My career has been riddled with controversy, which I never fully understand.
– Liz Phair

Louisville’s annual Brew at the Zoo (BATZ) has come and gone, and while by most accounts it was bigger than ever in 2013, fair-minded observers can (and will) differ as to whether it was “better” this time around. So it goes, and I can’t offer a valid opinion, seeing as my weekend was spent in Lafayette, Indiana. NABC participated in the 2nd annual, Indiana-craft-only Beers Across the Wabash festival, and a wonderful time was had by all.

At this juncture some might ask, and plausibly: But Roger, you always claim to be a localist, and Lafayette is three hours away – so exactly how is that local?

There are different answers for that sort of question, some serious and others more light-hearted, as in “local is anywhere I happen to be drinking.”

It remains that we’re a brewery seeking business in Metro Louisville as well as the entire state of Indiana, and hopefully again in Greater Kentucky once we’ve shed the slothful Soviet-era albatross otherwise known as Heidelberg Distributing.

As a director on the board of the Brewers of Indiana Guild, I’ve become accustomed to thinking and planning in terms of incremental progress, overlapping circles and the overall notion of shift. Consequently, one spends much time engaged in a progress approximating triage, making decisions and prioritizing according to resources, time and guiding principle.

It seems to me that these latter considerations sometimes are misunderstood. In a nutshell, the first two are somewhat negotiable, but the principle … not so much.

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Louisville Craft Beer Week (LCBW) is almost upon us, and it will conclude on September 21 with the annual Louisville Independent Business Alliance (LIBA) Brewfest, as moved from a former date earlier in the summer to provide an exclamation point for an ever-expanding LCBW. Apart from the obvious fact that LIBA’s very essence is intimately linked in a conceptual sense to independent, small-scale brewing, its beer festival operates within a firm local and regional craft beer context, and as such, it’s probably the closest thing we have to a signature beer festival in Metro Louisville.

I suppose the question (if there is one, but you know me) is whether Louisville needs such an event, and if so, how it would be organized … not to mention the best destination coffer for its proceeds.

For quite some time now, I’ve been annoying readers with subversive ruminations on various contradictions inherent to contemporary craft beer culture. Narcissism tops the list. Another centers on the institution of the beer festival as we have come to know it: You pay a price (don’t get me started about VIP tiers), get a souvenir cup, and navigate ever larger crowds in order to ingest as many 2-ounce portions as possible before the equestrian police clear the grounds with truncheons left over from the last World Cup football qualifier.

Okay, okay; it isn’t always that bad. Still, even if all beer festivals are created equal, some are more equal than others. The fundamental truth is that there is a tipping point somewhere on a techno-weenie’s i-Pad graph, illustrating that x number of people occupying y square footage, and given z as a price point, leads almost inevitably to the craft beer equivalent of a cattleman’s feed lot, as opposed to a proper venue for growing and nurturing craft beer.

Brewers caring to speak honestly almost always will offer the same response when asked which sort of gatherings they prefer. We tend to think that smaller is better, especially when organized by fellow brewers, because at an event like Lafayette’s, 27 Indiana breweries and a crowd of 1,100 afforded greater face time and the reasonable chance to educate beer lovers. These conditions are far less achievable at an event on the scale of BATZ, the prime motivation of which (and I’m only repeating what its backers concede both publicly and privately) is making as much money as possible for the chosen cause.

And there’s nothing wrong with that, either, as the same can be said of past LIBA Brewfests (not to mention my own guild’s annual BIG Microfest). It’s just that speaking only for myself, and not denying the efficacy of the institution of a metro zoo in any way, shape or form, monies generated by independent small brewing businesses at the LIBA Brewfest subsequently are reinvested to promote the notion of local independent small businesses overall.

In other words, localism begets localism, the game is worth the flame, and I like those odds.

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Just know that in a typical calendar year, craft breweries like mine are offered dozens of opportunities to donate beer, money and time to perfectly worthy non-profit causes. Solicitations have grown exponentially over the past few years as interest in craft beer has spiked, and we do the best we can to support as many of them as possible.

Accordingly, we’ve come over time to view our potential levels of support in two basic ways: First, when it comes to the beer itself, we’d like to be paid; various laws often require this, and wholesaler discounting schemes also are subject to state control. We think wholesale price isn’t too much to ask, seeing as fundraising event organizers still reap the value added to a keg of beer, whether disbursed as sample size or via full-cup sales.

Moreover, we almost always donate gift certificates, silent auction items and the like to help raise even more money. For many years, I’ve donated personally guided group tasting NABC certificates, and these generally attract good bids. Everyone wins.

Other fest factors sometimes matter on a case by case basis. If the event requires a commute, perks can help (discounted hotel rooms or meals for brewery staff, for instance). They’re not always necessary, although they help with the decision-making triage.

Bear in mind that I’m referring here to an informal policy of NABC’s, and obviously, I cannot authoritatively speak for all breweries. Our working lives in such cases are more complicated than ever before, and much of what we can and cannot do increasingly is subject to control by state authorities. There always will be exceptions, but the number of exceptions cannot be more frequent than the rule itself. After all, we must remain in business, too.

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Is there a need for a signature beer festival in Metro Louisville?

Perhaps we already have one, i.e., the nine delightfully cumulative days of LCBW. Taken as a whole, it’s the best time to be a craft beer fan in these parts, and there’s something for everyone.

Ultimately, comparisons between LIBA Brewfest and BATZ probably are unfair, and yet I sense there is lingering discomfort from the summer’s social media controversies, so allow me to add that while both organizations surely need money to survive, my own personal principles as a small, local, independent businessman bot constitute and are mirrored by LIBA’s everyday mission, and these principles are what guide me when deciding how NABC will make choices among a plethora of admirable non-profit causes.

Contrary to what you may think, I have nothing against BATZ. The point I’ve been trying to make this year is that BATZ is one of many scheduling options, and one of many deserving non-profits. When weighing contingencies, ideological harmony must be considered. Beers Across the Wabash has it, and so does LIBA Brewfest. Given BATZ’s decision to accept AB InBev sponsorship cash in 2013, its bar got lowered, and that is sad.

You’re free to deny reality until the end of time, but Goose Island is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the beer world’s largest extortionate conglomerate, and it contradicts virtually every tenet of my daily business existence. Granted, we’re all free to take whatever money is offered, wherever we find it, and when BATZ accepted AB InBev’s big bucks handshake this year, the result wasn’t just Trojan Goose at the event. It was Stella, too.

Fortunately, the realm of principle operates according to a different unit of currency than the expedient of “for sale to all comers,” and one’s conscience needn’t ever be up for grabs. NABC is delighted to espouse the gospel according to LIBA, and in the future, we’ll be just as happy to actively return to the wonders of the zoological garden – that is, once craft (as opposed to crafty) principle is restored.

Is principle really controversial? I’ve never fully understood why. It’s actually lifeblood, or at least it should be. Enjoy LCBW in 2013, and don’t be afraid to think.

The NABC beer and event weekend ahead.

Here is a collection of headlines hinting at the numerous places where you can drink NABC beers during the next few days while recreating in the great heated outdoors. Note also that the Dubois County Bombers host Springfield on Friday evening, June 22nd. We're there, too.

Live @ Five returns to the 400 block of Bank Street this Friday with Jimmy G and the Sidewinders.

"LIBA kicks off 'Independents Week' a little early with the Louisville Brewfest," coming June 22.

The Public Art Walk is this Saturday (June 23), with accompanying NABC beer garden and live music.

Black & Blue Grass at Iroquois for Counting Crows, June 25.

"LIBA kicks off 'Independents Week' a little early with the Louisville Brewfest," coming June 22.

LIBA listened, and this year's Louisville Brewfest moves to a roomier Slugger Field. This has been a stellar event in the past, and you couldn't ask for better symbolism than Louisville's independent business alliance combining with the metro area's independent breweries to offer a uniquely tasteful evening. For the complete rundown, click here.

This Louisville celebration of local, independent brewers, independent businesses, and independent thinkers will shelve uniformity and celebrate our uniqueness. The Louisville Independent Business Alliance kicks off “Independents Week” a little early with the Louisville Brewfest!

Video: Touting LIBA's Louisville Brewfest on WHAS-11.

The 3rd annual Louisville Brewfest is at the Mellwood Arts Center is this Friday, July 1. Yesterday, I did a promo for it with Louisville Independent Business Alliance's Summer Auerbach (of Rainbow Blossom) on WHAS news.

See the video: Interview: Louisville Brewfest

For more on the festival, go to Lville Beer.

NABC weekend update.

Friday night (2 July) was the Louisville Independent Business Association's Louisville Brewfest at the Mellwood Arts Center, considered the kick-off for Independents Week. NABC poured along with BBC (both), Browning’s, Cumberland and Kentucky Ale. The arrangement was that LIBA bought the kegs from the breweries via River City Distributing, and charged for beer tickets redeemable for samples and full pours.

We floated all eight kegs – four each Community and Beak’s Best. I was there helping for a bit, but Josh Hill and Tony Beard did it all night, and Richard Atnip helped, too. Good work, guys, and thanks.

On Friday and Saturday (the 2nd and the 3rd) NABC was available at New Albany’s Riverfront Amphitheater, as purchased and resold by Studio’s Grill & Pub. Our first weekend with them was June 25 and 26, and Studio’s sold a 1/6 each of Beak’s and Tafel.

This past weekend, one each was gone by 8 p.m. on Saturday, and another back-up of Tafel was tapped to finish the night. The obvious conclusion is that sales were up. What we're doing with Studio's is relinquishing master catering rights in exchange for selling the beer to them as wholesaler. Everyone benefits, and there is exposure for the brands. We're hopeful that this system will continue, and NABC will be on tap for forthcoming events.

Sunday, July 4, was Growler Independence Day at Bank Street Brewhouse. NABC's three owners, Steve Powell and Josh Hill worked, and my tally of growlers sold was in the vicinity of 85-90, plus some pints, Bloody Marys, burnt weenie sandwiches and Scotch eggs. That’s close to three kegs of growlers. Good traffic, great crowd (one that was good natured about newly institututed mandatory ID carding) and a fun day all the way around.

Local independence in and around New Albany on Independence Day weekend.

At least the weather looks to be marginally more tolerable as we embark upon another frantic national holiday kind of weekend, hereabouts.

Bank Street Brewhouse will open an hour early today (at 10:00 a.m.) if you have wriggled out of work and wish to view Netherlands vs. Brazil in the Wold Cup. NAC's Bluegill is pulling for the Dutch. Note that neither Heineken nor Brahma will be available for consumption -- real beer or no beer, just the way daddy likes it.

In New Albany later tonight, holiday weekend festivities at the Riverfront Amphitheater get underway at 7:30 p.m. with Persuasion, part of the concert series. As was the case last weekend, craft beer drinkers should be aware that NABC and Studio's are collaborating to bring Progressive Pints to the amphitheater for this weekend's performance, including the Riverfront Independence Festival tomorrow starting at 3:00 p.m. with Flathead Screws, Wulfe Brothers, 100% Poly and pre-4th fireworks.

Louisville Independent Business Association's Louisville Brewfest tonight at the Mellwood Arts Center (4:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.) kicks off Independents Week. There'll be local breweries, local food, local music, and also a weekly newspaper owned by a company in Nashville. I'll be helping to man the NABC booth from 4 until around 7, so say hello if you're coming that way.

On Saturday morning, New Albany's Farmers Market is in full session, with produce starting to appear. Also, the friends of the NA-FC Public Library are holding their twice monthly sale in the usual place across the street from the main building. Tomorrow the friends celebrate Franz Kafka's birthday with 50% off classics. But, further up Spring Street, Destinations Booksellers is holding its own sale on new books: 50% off all in-stock merchandise. Randy's recent lessons in business elocution from Councilman Cappuccino must really be paying dividends for the entire city!

Finally, July 4 (Sunday) is Growler Independence Day, the very first day for craft beer carry-out sales from Indiana breweries. Bank Street Brewhouse will be open for special holiday hours of 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. for Progressive Pints, carry-out growlers (two regular-strength growlers for $17.76), the metro area's original Build-Your-Own Bloody Mary Bar, and both Scotch Eggs and our famous Burnt Weenie Sandwiches. Tell 'em Zappa sent you, and listen for the newly unearthed, rare recording of Three Dog Night's "Coffey Told Me Not to Come."

And: When stopping in for growlers, be sure to bring your identification: The do-gooders extracted their pound of flesh by inserting a new law that requires you to show ID each time you buy carry-out alcoholic beverages, irrespective of age. It makes them feel good, even when it does not attack the fundamental problem of underaged drinking.