Louisville Craft Beer Week approaches (September 16 - 24, 2016).

Consider this your advance notice. Get with John, and get it together.

Be a part of Louisville Craft Beer Week. Again!

Thank you so much for supporting LouisvilleBeer.com in the past by hosting LCBW events (or sponsoring)! We, along with the droves of beer nerds in Louisville, appreciate it.

New for #LCBW2016

We're going mobile (and paperless) this year. We've partnered with an app developer to bring LCBW into the 21st Century.

The LCBW app will allow us to send out notifications to users, allow them to check in to your events, share events on their social media channels, and interact with each other...posting photos, chatting about events, etc...

We think this interactivity will make 2016 the best LCBW ever. But we can't do it without your help. Please consider a sponsorship, or at least some events so that your location will be packed out all week!

Thanks again for supporting LouisvilleBeer.com!

Please reach out to John Wurth, 502-807-4871 or john@louisvillebeer.com with any questions.

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A note on Brew at the Zoo, 2013.

With appropriately misplaced fanfare, the organizers of Brew at the Zoo (Louisville edition) have revealed on Facebook that "We're excited to welcome Goose Island Beer Co. as a sponsor of Brew 2013!"

Sigh.

That's too bad, because I'm not excited at all.

This unfortunate move contradicts what the festival has always been about, which is the value of localism in beer, and as a consequence, NABC will not be able to actively participate this year. I fully understand that AB-InBev's predictable shell game puppeteer routine v.v. Goose's sponsorship money does not constitute overall title sponsorship of the zoo event (although it may be only a matter of time). It's just that certain principles genuinely matter, and to myself and NABC, this is one of them.

I'm not angry, just saddened. Note that we'll happily return to Brew at the Zoo when thematic unity is restored.

Other local brewers are free to examine their consciences with respect to whether they should participate under AB-InBev's chosen conditions (foreign ownership, foreign sponsorship, payola, anti-localism), which cruelly negate the ethos and rationale of their own small breweries -- but this is no litmus test. Do as you please. As of this moment, I'm finished with the topic ... in 2013. perhaps the dark clouds will abate in 2014, and we can gather together at the Parrot Dice Casino once again.

Lest readers draw the wrong conclusions, my personal and brewery support for Brew at the Zoo goes back to the very start. In 2004, at the very first one, NABC drove all the way back to New Albany and back to fetch two kegs of beer and keep the drinkers at the Zoo watered when all the other beer was gone. Search the pages of this blog, and find yearly reminders from me to attend the event and be part of the fun.

The zoo event has evolved quite positively over the years, but AB-InBev's cash clearly signals regression. I hope it isn't indicative of a permanent shift. Only time will tell.

Localism + Beer (Nov. 15, 2012 at LouisvilleBeer.com)

Eyes and Palates, Wide Open

Not so long ago, Goose Island Brewing Company was a proud independent, but now it is 100% owned by the multinational monolith called AB-Inbev, meaning that in cold, hard fact, Goose Island is no more independent than an Ignatius J. Reilly-themed weenie wagon on the streets of Pyongyang, North Korea. Honkers Ale remains certifiably better than Budweiser, but to me, it really matters where the money goes … and dollars paid for Honkers ultimately travel to corporate headquarters in Leuven, Belgium, not Chicago, Illinois.

Sorry, but Goose Island sold out. Craft beer drinkers need to examine their consciences lest they sell out, too.

Tierney: "Sorry we disagree on the Forecastle news-release."

The topic is Insider Louisville's writer Michael Tierney's two recent pieces about Sierra Nevada's (California, North Carolina, etc) sponsorship of the Forecastle music festival (held in Louisville).

Let's review.

First, Tierney's Sierra Nevada-Fluffs-Forecastle, and I do the insider "leaking" around here, and my reply: Seriously, local brewers enjoy being thrown under the bus.

Then, Tierney's labored explanation and lengthy rumination as to which non-local musicians can best help achieve trickle-down nirvana, followed by my observation that when it comes to Forecastle, Sierra Nevada and conveniently variable localism, some dudes desperately needing an editor just can't seem to find a clue.

Somewhere between Tierney's first and second unsuccessful efforts to argue that we must always kill localism to save it, he authored a message addressed to NABC, via Facebook.

Sorry we disagree on the Forecastle news-release, I found the news exciting for all of Louisville, and from an "inside" perspective know that Sierra was a major part in booking this year's headliner, who is supposedly going to be huge... we'll have to see.

In regards to beer-writing, I would like to include the brewery in a business piece I've been working on, with a much more serious tone than a news-release. If you'd like to submit information for a basis of comparison to the other craft beers in the state (BBC, West Sixth, Alltech, Against the Grain, Falls City) please feel free to answer the questions below. I tried to contact you all from the website, but never heard back.

1. What's your current brewing capacity at?

2. How many bottles did you ship out last year?

3. Any big plans for new-beers or facilities in 2013?

4. What's your relationship to Kentucky craft beers, and the Kentucky Brewers Guild?

5. Is there an advantage to being across the river from the city?

6. What's your all's most popular beer?

That's all if interested in being included in the analysis...

MHT

P.S. I had my first visit to the brewery and just finished a sixer of your Ale sponsored by Sam Adams. Enjoyed both.

My reply follows, as fashioned to post here:

Your previous posts at Insider Louisville about a lack of support for local music seemed to indicate that you understand the over-arching notion of localism, at least to some extent. Then you wrote about West 6th IPA and the Holy Grale's mention in Draft, and while flawed in terms of historical perspective, these articles at least suggested that while you have a great deal to learn, you might come to understand localism in the context of craft beer, too.

But with the Forecastle fluff piece, you essentially regressed to this: While local beer and local music are important, if Forecastle can use California beer to bring in national music and throw local beer under the bus, then that’s great. Your cliched win-win-win shtick ignores one basic fact: Whether it’s ABInbev or Sierra Nevada, if independent small brewers cannot be a part of the equation because we can’t afford pay-to-play as usual in such venues, then it IS NOT A WIN for us. We are EXCLUDED either way.

I’m sorry that you sent a message to the website and didn’t get a reply, although at the same time, if you knew anything at all about local beer, you’d know how incredibly easy it is to get in touch with me. What you don’t seem to grasp is that given your nonchalance about local beer in the Forecastle equation (i.e., too bad about brewing indies so long as we music fans get what we want), and taking into consideration your beer writing track record so far, which is profoundly underwhelming owing to a basic absence of factual knowledge and seeming unwillingness to acquire it, I can’t say that I really want you writing about us. Twice or thrice bitten, quadruple shy.

On the other hand, if you’d genuinely like to try and see this issue from another side, spend some time with a local brewery, and take a stab at actually learning something, then I’ll consider hosting you for a day in our shoes.

It’s up to you. I'll do my best to inform you, but you must want to be informed.

Right now, I've precious little interest in either Forecastle or Sierra Nevada, especially the latter. If Sierra's going to start acting like ABInBev and spend money to exclude indies in this way, I suppose it’s finally time after two decades or more for me to wean myself from being a fan of theirs. It isn’t like we don’t have a dozen regional breweries as good, albeit unable to play that corporate money game.

That's where it stands. Note that another of Tierney's "insider" scoops since this story broke is that local breweries will indeed have a place at Forecastle. We'll have to wait and see.

Forecastle, Sierra Nevada and conveniently variable localism: Dude desperately needing an editor just can't seem to find a clue.

Previously on this topic: Sierra Nevada, Forecastle and "localism": When Michael Tierney writes about beer, it's a non-insider embarrassment.

Somewhere amid more than 2,000 meandering, star-struck words devoted to once again missing the point about localism – and while I’m at it, ye gods, can Insider Louisville arrange an editor for this guy – our befuddled "local" music writer returns to rationalize Forecastle’s mass-market financing imperatives in a discussion of which top national headlining acts could generate enough festival torque so that little shards of leftover jack might waft ever so gently into the local economy, compelling us to fall to our knees in praise of Forecastle’s benevolence as we beg of Michael Tierney, please, sir, may we have another (choose one: reaming; pretzel twist of illogic; appearance by Jack White)?

Bear in mind that it’s the same Michael Tierney who recently took WFPK-89.3 to task for not playing enough local music on locally-supported radio.

But how much is our “cool & hip” radio station doing for our local scene? As an independent station that operates from donations – from its listeners to local businesses – 91.9 WFPK should know how important keeping things local is for our city. Local support = local growth, and 91.9 isn’t tending to the garden out back.

Ah, but when it comes to Forecastle, it's off to the big-box, and these small-time local gardening principles evidently no longer apply. They were forgotten at the 300-word mark. In fact, we quickly learn that when it comes to local-oriented music and beer, size really does matter.

The coming big news hinted by the festival via Twitter and Facebook means one thing: The lineup is on the way, and it could be big.

Altogether now, let's do the Wave: Ooooh … aaaahhh. Ooooh … aaaahhh. Or, to summarize, the bigger and more non-local Forecastle gets, the better for all things local. Tierney hasn’t caught his breath since he single-handedly broke the epochal news that when local festivals acquire big dollar sponsorships, everything changes!

On Thursday, we broke news of Forecastle Festival’s new sponsor, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. With a major sponsor, Forecastle looks to take it up a notch. Bigger sponsors mean bigger acts, bigger crowds, bigger revenue for not only the festival but for many businesses in the Louisville area. And that includes Southern Indiana.

(Hmm, wonder toward whom the “Southern Indiana” reference is aimed?)

What was that?

How do greater profits for a nationally-banked “local” music festival help us little folks to fatten up and prosper?

Glad you asked, because if you thought trickle-down economics went out of fashion following the nadir of the Ronnie Ray-Gun Er-ror, think again. Tierney the musical localist embraces bait ‘n’ switch/double-trickle-down economics as veritable salvation for genuinely local independent businesses excluded from Forecastle’s fiscal model.

Holly Weyler had this big news for us: “(We’re) expecting around 75,000 over the weekend in 2013.” 75,000! In case you can’t do the math, that is 25,000 a day over July 12 to July 14 … Big time sponsors are creating a bigger Forecastle “pie” that will allow more, and bigger serving sizes for local bands and businesses; pretty simple economics. So, while the craft beer community lost out on selling beer inside the fest, and a shot of being a sponsor, Sierra Nevada, and other sponsors to come will prove that more resources, leads to larger crowds, leads to larger revenue- a true attempt at trickle down economics that should work for the city, and its businesses.

The needle on the Orgasm Tracking Meter just snapped; Tierney's “In case you can’t do the math” would be admirably ironic, if he was in on the joke. Amid his "national big bucks charitably begets the little hardscrabble local people” trickle-down argument, there’s a sop graciously tossed in the direction of local craft brewers.

Business is going to be booming in the Louisville area July 12 through July 14, and in particular downtown Louisville, with maybe one of the largest urban gatherings this city has seen to date. That’s why the Sierra Nevada sponsorship is exciting for Louisville businesses in their entirety, and that includes craft brewers. Not only will their restaurants sell out, their beer will be discovered by out of towners in the bars throughout the city.

Really?

Five daily prayers in Forecastle’s direction aren’t enough?

You mean that once we’re finished kissing J.K. McKnight’s butt, we have to turn the rugs around to face Chico, California (or is it Asheville, NC, or Lima, Peru), too? My knees are sore enough already.

But he's not through yet. There’s more. With the Forecastle team artfully planting its Sierra Nevada sponsorship “leak” with self-appointed media savant Tierney, and this stunning revelation eliciting rounds of yawns and periodic expressions of annoyance, now the very same Forecastle team reassures those of Tierney's long-suffering readers who somehow have remained awake – not local brewers, by the way, who’ve yet to be included in any of these top-level chats by Louisville's highest rollers – that they’re right on top of everything and have been all along.

Plus, the Forecastle team responded to our leak, and gave word that their will be local beer representation at Forecastle, and there will also be local spirits (bourbon) for those craving the harder stuff. Now we’ve taken care of business, let’s get to the fun stuff – who might play Forecastle in 2013.

That's right, the "fun" stuff, and just like that, (poof!), Tierney merrily waves away the objections. The alms duly will be drizzled, because Forecastle can do no wrong, and we may now unite for the ritualistic singing of “We Are The World,” as we gather at the river to do what’s best for the local economy by relegating the local economy to third-tier status out back, behind the reeking latrine, by the servant’s quarters, because the most important task ahead of us in Possibility City is to Hire the Best Damned National Headliner to trickle down as much as possible.

After all, as even Tierney himself grasps in closing his seemingly endless piece:

We’ll have to save Louisville bands for later ….

Do we ever.

And the beer, too.

Sierra Nevada, Forecastle and "localism": When Michael Tierney writes about beer, it's a non-insider embarrassment.

Michael Tierney writes about music at Insider Louisville. Apparently he is a musician, and it makes sense for a musician to write about music. When one purports to be an "insider," a certain level of knowledge about the topic is a minimum requirement, isn't it?

A while back, Tierney aggressively upheld localism in music, and it was a good piece. These thoughts were augmented here:

Local radio, but no local music: 91.9 WFPK tends to ignore Louisville’s best in favor of national acts

… But how much is our “cool & hip” radio station doing for our local scene? As an independent station that operates from donations – from its listeners to local businesses – 91.9 WFPK should know how important keeping things local is for our city. Local support = local growth, and 91.9 isn’t tending to the garden out back.

Brandishing these "insider" principles of localism in musical etudes, yesterday Tierney reversed field and copped the persona of an excitable junior high school cheerleader in praising Sierra Nevada’s benevolent sponsorship of the Forecastle music festival, to the exclusion of … yes, LOCAL Kentuckiana breweries.

Forecastle inks deal to make Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. the music festival’s craft beer for 2013 

(Forecastle impresario) J.K. McKnight … confirmed that Sierra Nevada will be the beer “on the craft side” for Forecastle 2013. McKnight’s team is still working on domestic/imports, but will probably end up similar to last year.

Now, the cynic may have a rallying cry for Louisville’s own Bluegrass Brewing Co.

Maybe having a Kentucky beer tasting garden of the state’s awesome beers would be a good alternative for Forecastle, if negotiable.

No, Michael, a cynic would not restrict his field of view to BBC. A cynic would ask: Is a breathless fan boy like Tierney, who's dabbling in vocations of which he has little or no direct experience, being naïve, ignorant or hypocritical?

Dude: Once Sierra Nevada is THE beer “on the craft side,” the playing field is tilted away from local beers just as irrevocably as it is at Louisville Slugger Field, where the giant payola talisman of Budweiser’s billboard is a constant reminder of the way performance and sports venue business works. Why do you think Sierra's building a brewery in Asheville, anyway?

This is the tactic being deployed at Forecastle, even if Sierra Nevada's "craft" status blinds you to it. The result in either case is precisely the same insofar as locals are concerned. It means we don't get in. Sponsorships of this sort exist to exclude, not to include.

If the money flowing into Forecastle’s coffers from a brewery 3,000 miles away, and also from its wholesaler here in Louisville (River City is NABC's wholesaler, too; another topic for another day), enable the festival’s founder to take Forecastle to national prominence from a Louisville pedestal (now THAT's localism in action, folks), then exactly what incentive is there to include local breweries in a beer garden when the sponsorship pie’s already been sliced to the satisfaction of the festival operator?

So, is Tierney a localist, or not? Perhaps while he's getting his localism principles straight, Insider Louisville’s Terry Boyd actually will recall that given his experience with professional journalism, he should know far better than this, and actually deign to examine the faux “insider” credentials currently being usurped by Insider Louisville contributors operating far out of their element.

Tierney writes coherently about music, but when he writes about beer, the result is clueless and frankly embarrassing.

Spare me Terry, will ya?

NABC to sponsor disc golf's Charlie Vettiner Open in September.

I don't claim to know very much about disc golf. If you don't, either, then learn more at Disc Golf Basics. Our brewery is staffed by avid disc golfers, and John Campbell (outside sales guru) has also caught the bug.

What I do know is that NABC will be sponsoring the Charlie Vettiner Open in September. There's more at the LouisvilleDiscGolf.com discussion board.
We're committed to throwing a great shindig for the participants, and it's going to be fun.

There'll be more details later.