Beer News

BEER Act Introduced

Senators John Kerry (D-Massachusetts)& Mike Crapo (R- Idaho)  have officially introduced the BEER Act, that would lower the beer excise tax on small brewers in America.  BEER stands for Brewer’s Employment & Excise Relief.

What You Need To Know:
The BEER Act aims to create close to 1,600 jobs in the small brewing industry.  There are close to 100,000 jobs already in craft brewing.   The senators have met with breweries in their respective states discussing finances, supply & demand, taxation etc.  Introducing this beer will keep the industry thriving in rough economic times.  Small brewers incur higher costs for production, raw materials, & packaging than the large breweries, and multi-national competitors.  The BEER Act also stimulates barley, wheat, & hop growers.

Current Tax Structure:
– If the small brewery produces less than 2 million barrels, the excise tax is $7 a barrel on the first 60,000 barrels
– Over 60,000, excise tax is $18 a barrel.

Proposed Tax Structure:
– Reduces the excise tax from $7 to $3.50.  The difference gives small breweries an estimated $19.9 Million for expansion & employment.
– Excise tax for barrel production from 60,000 barrels t0 2 million barrels would be lowered to $16 a barrel.  An addition of $27.1 million for growth & development.

The current tax structure and legislation has not been updated since 1976. Read on for the full press release

Lost Abbey Barrel Notes

Tomme Arthur is spending some time this week in Denmark, Scotland, & Belgium.  He mentions it in March’s Libri Divini. Something interesting he notes –

“We have a visit scheduled with their cask supplier. It is my hope to find types Continue Reading →

Mad River Adds Barrel Aging Program

Mad River Brewing is based in Blue Lake, California.  Just announced recently the official addition of a barrel aging program.  From Mad River:

Our brewing team is very excited about the launching of the Mad River barrel program! February Continue Reading →

Sierra Nevada To Add Cans In 2011

Sierra Nevada Brewing (Chico, CA) will be adding a canning line sometime in 2011.  Details are not widely known, I consulted Chad Mc Rae with the brewery that shed a little light on the status of things:

“We are going to Continue Reading →

Wild Heaven Tweaks Logo

As Wild Heaven Craft Beers gets ready to package their beer, they have tweaked their logo a bit. On the left are some of the subtle changes.

According to Nick Purdy:

– The colors are brighter
– Brown is darker
– Name of company Continue Reading →