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With names like Peyton Manning, Post Malone and Dana White listed for the Bud Light Super Bowl commercial, the question has to be asked if the controversial beer brand is making a comeback. Also on the show, we cover the Las Vegas Sphere climber, the 201 Corrections Officer charged for having sex with an inmate and Big Mac prices in California when their new minimum wage hits in April.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Two things that scare us are corpses and ghosts. Peter Kreeft wrote about this, noting that these scare us because they are separated things that belong together. When apart, dead bodies revolt our senses and spirits terrorize our minds. Horror movie plots depend upon our disturbance at this separation of body and soul, or if not total separation, then the disordering or the dismemberment of bodies and souls. Without the soul the body is not animated, and without the body the soul is as invisible as a passing breeze.Now, I am not a trained philosopher, but it seems fairly straight forward that if God doesn't exist, then our soul fades away with him, and along with those things, so goes our free will. Worse still, in a godless universe where we are happenstances of chemistry, the “do unto others” notion begins to unglue. Things we hold in our minds fall apart quickly once the soul is denied. The soul is like a binding agent, like an egg in a recipe, that keeps the flour of matter held together. Remove either part of the recipe and the whole cookie crumbles.This presented a real problem for me, as the idea of the Golden Rule clung to me even after falling away from faith. The concept of “do unto others” is found in various religions and cultures throughout history. However, the further step of “love your enemy” is unique to only a few. Jesus was quoting the Old Testament in his two commandments to “love God” and “do unto others.” He did not invent it himself, he was quoting Moses and Proverbs, but taking it even further into forgiveness. To make the point stick, he claimed to be God, the actual one and only God, the living God, and then he lived out this practice of loving his enemies, all the way to his final breath on the Cross.This is the trouble with Jesus.He raised the bet so high that even if other books of wisdom say, “love your enemy,” none of them declare that the speaker or author of the phrase was God himself. This claim that he makes cannot be understated. He says he is God in the flesh. Imagine hearing someone say that to you. What is most unbelievable to me is that I believe him when he says it.More strange still is the fact that even non-believers quote and paraphrase Jesus, when they should be rejecting him entirely as a liar. Many atheists are obsessed with Jesus, but only to disprove him or mock him. Yet they can't look away. They can't stop talking about Jesus. The trouble here is that what he says is insane to us, but then he doesn't act insane. Instead everything he says and does becomes convincing that he is not lying, which is why we cannot stop reading and arguing about him, and naturally, those who deny him wind up hating his followers. Oddly enough, Jesus predicted all of this, telling his followers that they would be hated. Wow, was he right about that.If Jesus is not God, then what else would Jesus be but an arrogant and insane person? That's why the response from deniers comes like a hammer. If you don't see the God in Jesus, then the response could only be anger. Really, who could possibly be taken serious saying, “I forgive your sins,” unless the person saying it was God? Who could possibly have the nerve to speak it, and expect to be believed, save God himself?The Thomas Jefferson Bible is an attempt to circumvent this problem of Jesus' divinity, but Jefferson missed the point from the start. Jesus is not only instructing us about God. He is very clearly telling us that he is God. Jefferson cut out all miracles and supernatural events of his Bible, keeping just the teachings of Jesus. As a Deist, Jefferson believed in God, but not in the divinity of Jesus. But why would anyone, let alone the wise Jefferson, keep the teachings of an ordinary flesh-and-bone person that claimed to be God but was lying about it? If Jesus is not God, why would anyone care what he said about anything, on any topic?When I was a non-believer, I thought Thomas Jefferson was onto something, but at some point in my struggle with faith in the Resurrection I realized that if the miracles are not true, then Jesus is not God, and that would make the teachings a complete waste of time. Buddhism has great teachings, so you can get that there. Stoicism has all the morals and self-denial you'll ever need, and a ton of great sayings to use in place of prayer. Greek mythology has more characters and better drama. We don't need or want an “ethical teacher” who says he is God, unless he actually is God. If he is truly the incarnate God, then yes, we want that. We want that very much. More than anything in the world. There are plenty of people in history who have believed they are God. But we don't believe any of those people. We only believe this one carpenter who made the claim.If the miracles and Resurrection did not happen, then Jesus is a fraud. But if the miracles are true, then the teachings matter. No, it's more than that. Then everything he ever said or did matters immensely. Quite honestly I would rather Jefferson had carved a version of the Gospels that kept the miracles instead of the teachings, because while the teachings are wonderful, the Resurrection is why a billion people occupy pews every week. They do not get dressed up for church on Sunday morning because he told the parable of the talents or upbraided some Pharisees about the meaning of the law. The Resurrection is everything. The teachings interpret the rules we are the live by, but they do not provide the reason for belief. The reason for belief is the miracle, not the parables. I don't like rules. But I love the miracle. Thus, I love the parables, too. If the Resurrection didn't happen, then those rules don't matter. But the more I read the Gospels the more I realize that I can not help but see that Jesus is God. There is just no other way around it. I cannot read it any other way.So as a result, if you see that Jesus is the incarnate God, his “do unto others” and “pray for your enemies” become real commands. You don't have martyrs of other faiths praying for their enemies while being tortured and killed, as Jesus did when he cried out, “Forgive them for they know not what they do." Then you have the many saints doing the same thing, like St. Stephen or St. Maria Goretti or Good King Wenceslaus. For a believer the right answer to every situation is to imitate Jesus, but this proves very difficult. This is like reading fan fiction, where the imitator never lives up to the original writer.Sure, praying for your enemies sounds good on paper, but that idea is not natural to us. Love my enemy sounds reasonable when I am comfortable and full and warm. Most of us live in greater comfort than any king who existed before the inventions of refrigeration or indoor plumbing. In a stable society, with well-fed people, in warm houses, and plenty of jobs, then, yes, “love your enemy” seems entirely possible. But many people today can feel how tenuous and fragile this order of our modern society actually is and no prophet is needed to announce that we are likely occupying a temporary state in human history.This problem of being only a creature, only chemistry, is troubling, or should be troubling to us all. If we have intellect but no real free will, with no goal save that of our next meal or personal achievement, hope and charity sink like stones. If we lack souls, then we are solely creatures, and creatures forget “do unto others” when resources grow scarce. When it comes time to eat, a wolf does not think of the good of the pack until its own belly is full, nor does a blade of grass consider its neighbor when searching for water in a drought. Plants and animals do not divest of their resources or pray for their enemies, they merely strive for self-preservation and reproduction. These ideas would sometimes corner me when the “noonday demon” of depression would arrive unannounced, at any hour, not only noon. Then, as a creature, I had few places to turn, but none of those places could really help.Yes, there are pills and therapy, but I could not cry out, "Help me, science!" to answer the deepest longing of my heart, which was never fully satisfied with what this finite world can offer. I could read about Cognitive Behavioral therapy, but that was an arrow still aimed at the self. Mindfulness was another self-buttressing solution, and was a bit warmer to the problem but still faced earthward. Then there was talking to someone, but the talk would give guidance toward lifestyle changes, yoga, hobbies, and offer pamphlets and especially pills. Psychiatry since the time of Sigmund Freud has loathed faith so a nudge never came from there. After making all the lifestyle changes and trying all the suggestions, it always seemed that pills was the actual answer.Doctor: Any tobacco or alcohol or drug use?Me: None.Doctor: So you have a healthy diet and exercise regularly?Me: Yes. Except for daily breakfast cereal with 9 grams of added sugar per serving.Doctor: What about yoga?Me: Yes. I've done that.Doctor: How is your job and family relationships?Me: All very stable.Doctor: And you have hobbies and friends.Me: Yes.Doctor: What about financial difficulties?Me: I have a good job.Doctor: Are you overstressed?Me: Only when I drink too much coffee.Doctor: And you've read those pamphlets I gave you?Me: Yes, and many other books.Doctor: (pensive, coming to the end of his WebMD list of suggestions) Have you tried prayer?I'm kidding. Of course the last comment didn't happen. No, here is what the last comment was:Doctor: (pensive, coming to the end of his WebMD list of suggestions) Well, I guess we can increase your dosage. How many milligrams are you taking? I'll write a new prescription for you.Always pills. Always pills. Hooray for pills! I felt like the scene in the movie Dumb and Dumber where Jim Carrey is stuffing rat poison pills into a man's mouth and telling him, “Pills are good. Pills are good.”Science, that trusty tool to fix all the things, could offer facts and instruct me about neurotransmitters and receptors and synaptic clefts. Better yet, science could do some magic with those pills that seemed to provide a solution. But in the end I realized that pills did not resolve the problem any more than getting high or drunk ever solved a problem. Taking pills to address spiritual problems is like taking Advil to heal a compound bone fracture. It's the wrong treatment.So science wasn't the solution.Nor could I say, “Help me, self!” when the well inside was already dry. The cistern was cracked, my tank was empty, so I could not draw up the strength needed to restore myself, as my self lacked the necessary mortar to seal the drain. In fact, my self was the problem, so I only could pretend for a while to “suck it up” or “man up.” As an employee of large corporations, I was very good at keeping up the adage “Fake it until you make it,” as that is the lifeblood of office culture. But faking takes a toll. At some point, unless you are especially gifted with the twin pillars of pride and vanity, faking it becomes hard to maintain. Along with drinking issues, this is another stop in life where I discovered the flaw in willpower, as the self has its limits. Both science and willpower eventually run into finite walls. What a surprise then when I discovered that the Holy Spirit not only seals the cistern, but it fills it too, and as a bonus it can pass through those finite walls.No knowledge or possessions or status or science or self-assurance could help me with the underlying questions. “If you're felling depressed,” I was told, “it's because there is a chemical imbalance in your brain that requires medication.” Whenever I heard this I could not help but think of Brave New World and the drug called soma, where the characters would take this wonder drug to bury any uncomfortable feelings or questions about their life and the universe. The narrator even says “…that second dose of soma had raised a quite impenetrable wall between the actual universe and their minds.” In fact, various lines from the book says it all. Soma had “All the advantages of Christianity and alcohol; none of their defects.”What I heard from my fellow atheist friends and my doctor was what Huxley's sex-obsessed character Lenina says in the book when Bernard is feeling blue:“…why you don't take soma when you have these dreadful ideas of yours. You'd forget all about them. And instead of feeling miserable, you'd be jolly. So jolly.”So I did. Or I tried to be jolly. I pretended for periods of time to have conquered the problem, but it never truly disappeared. I tried to answer the yearning, to fill the void with sand, to pulverize it, to medicate it, to cure it with therapy, to use mindfulness, and to ignore it through chasing goals. But science and my personal autonomy proved inadequate in fastening any kind of lasting meaning to existence. Science did not satisfy the heart, nor did my own attempts at sculpting truth suffice.Science feeds our need for certainty, for actual answers, and science is excellent for finding truth in certain spaces. I should qualify that; the hard sciences are reliable at finding truth through measurement and experiment. There are various other “sciences” that do not share the same rigor as chemistry and biology and physics, but even these three fields are beginning to have bleed-through from non-scientific political and social ideologies. Yet, even solid science cannot get us all the way to the goal, to the full “why.” The “whys” I am speaking of are all simple sentences: the why of existence, of being, of knowledge, of gravity, of time, of beginnings, of endings, of justice, of truth, of goodness, of beauty, of righteousness, of suffering, of forgiveness, of redemption.The real questions were these subtle “whys.” Like shadows behind a wall, the shapes were papered over, kept in hiding by small talk and distractions. We could all see the shapes but we avoided talking about them. Instead we talked about these things: “Have you seen the ?” “Did you watch the game yesterday?” “Can you believe what President said?” “Have you seen the new ?”Those were not the questions I cared about. The main question underneath, that I was seeking, is encapsulated in this quote:"Man will always yearn to know, at least in an obscure way, what is the meaning of his life, of his activity, of his death." (Gaudium et Spes, 41)I would go to great lengths to find answers to these questions via ideology in a book or through the lens of my self and my experience. But sooner or later, a little tug would come back to me. As it always does, I'd feel the tug, like the nibble of a fish biting a hook.This electric feeling of “the tug” was like that which comes through a fishing pole, when the tug of something on the hook alerts the mind, while simultaneously quickening the heart. Anyone who has gone fishing and had the luck of getting a nibble, or better yet, catching a fish, knows this feeling. The tug of the fish brings full awareness. You become awake to what is happening in the water, where you cannot see, but you know full well something is there because you can feel it. We only have our senses to know anything, but this kind of tug that I'm talking about goes past our usual senses into something deeper, to a sense in the heart that cannot be quantified, captured, or tested like other things.Old ideas would come into motion. Something would hint to me that there is more than just work and paying bills or having sex or drinking beer. But I would shut those thoughts down because I did not want to open those archives. I was worried that what I had denied might be true. That was the real fear. I believed that I had control and that God was not real. But then on occasion the tug became a strike, a direct bite. A fight. Suddenly then I'd be wrestling with the question: what if it is true? What if I am not the creator of my destiny? What if there is something more to life? For anyone who knows what I'm talking about - this feeling of a tug - if you doubt or deny God, you will probably ignore that tug, like I did, and continue onward. No shortage of TV series and movies and hilarious cat videos await, so you can carry on for years with staring into screens. But sooner or later in life you may not want to ignore it. You may not be able to ignore it forever as some event will force the issue. The beauty of free will is the choices we get to make. The path we are being guided to walk is to ignore the tug. That's what we are being told by every part of society: TikTok advertisement: “You are the good thing.” Christina Aguilera: “You're beautiful, in every single way.” L'Oréal Paris: “Because you're worth it.” Nike: “Just do it.” Harley Davidson: “American by birth. Rebel by choice.” Reebok: “Cheat on your girlfriend, not your workout.”I guess the slogan, “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner,” will just never do well in sales. Memento Mori sounds better as a slogan, but the translation, “Remember one day you will die,” also probably won't sell widgets. “Take up your cross and follow me” will probably not be a Bud Light Super Bowl ad any time soon. Well, I guess these slogans aren't for the short term. In the long run, however, as in eternity, these slogans work wonders.How funny it is to me that I refused to take orders from anyone, but all the while I was being told, guided, instructed what to do by advertisers and businesses and governments and influential people. As the doctor guided me toward pharmaceuticals, the political parties and ad agencies and sports leagues and social media were going to great lengths to keep me distracted from addressing the tug, from calling on the aching question that was raising its hand. While the world was selling me on freedom and autonomy, they were telling me what to do every step of the way. They were telling me, “Don't be a fool. Don't look into it. Whatever you do, do not ask the hard questions.”But the tug was summoning me to something bigger, to this much greater question, far bigger than what Apple product to buy or Netflix show to watch. And I didn't want anything like God to be true. I did not want it to be valid. Because then someday I would have to revisit those rules, those old bronze age edicts that I felt so unfair, so out of touch with our modern world, and that bothered my sense of freedom because they said “No” to my behavior. I didn't want to be challenged. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.whydidpetersink.com
This week Preston and Chase review the big game, Super Bowl 54. Not just the game but what you really care about the most, the commercials! Chase and Preston also revisit last weeks show to see how they did on Super Bowl prop bets, for all you degenerate gamblers! A week in review for the Mavs, including an update on Luka Doncic injury. Also look back at the week for the Stars, which included an amazing play from Jamie Benn in OT. Bud Light Super Bowl commercial Proctor and Gamble Super Bowl commercial Doritos Super Bowl commercial Tide Super Bowl commercial Part 1 Tide Super Bowl commercial part 2 Tide Super Bowl commercial part 3 Reese's Take 5 Super Bowl commercial Brewing Sports DFW Instagram Brewing Sports DFW Facebook
Craft Brew News 10/18/19(courtesy of Brewbound – www.brewbound.com)Anheuser-Busch Accuses MillerCoors of Stealing Confidential Beer RecipesThe legal battle between the two largest beer makers in the U.S. escalated today, as Anheuser-Busch today accused MillerCoors of breaking state and federal laws by stealing trade secrets regarding beer recipes for its two top-selling brands, Bud Light and Michelob Ultra.A-B alleges that two of its former employees who now work for MillerCoors and its parent company Molson Coors either shared confidential trade secrets with their current employers or sought information from current employees about the making of A-B products.MillerCoors VP of communications and community affairs Adam Collins issued a statement accusing A-B of “trying to distract from the basic fact that they intentionally misled American consumers.”The allegations are the latest salvo in the ongoing legal friction between the large beer manufacturers. In March, MillerCoors filed a deceptive advertising lawsuit in federal court against A-B for launching Bud Light Super Bowl commercials that pointed out the use of corn syrup in the brewing process of Miller Lite and Coors Light.A-B’s filing today points to two of its former employees: one who serves as Molson Coors’ VP of global quality and food safety, and a brewer for MillerCoors at its Golden, Colorado-based brewery, who previously worked at A-B’s Cartersville, Georgia-based production facility.In its counterclaims, A-B argues that its trade secrets are its “most important assets — specifically, the means and manner in which it brews its most popular beers.”Boulder Beer Retrenches, Pivots to Brewpub ModelCiting increased competition in a crowded marketplace, Boulder Beer Company announced today that it would cease distribution and focus on its brewpub business.Boulder Beer director of marketing Tess McFadden said the 40-year-old Boulder, Colorado-based beer company will pivot to a brewpub business model once the last batches of production beer leave its facility.As part of the transition, Boulder will lay off about 20 of its 50 employees over the next two months as operations wind down, she added.Production at Boulder Beer, which was founded in 1979 by David Hummer and Randolph “Stick” Ware, a pair of University of Colorado-Boulder astrophysics professors and homebrewers, has declined steadily in recent years. Last year, the company produced 16,305 barrels of beer, down 44% from its peak of 29,333 barrels in 2014.According to McFadden, the company plans to buy a seven-barrel brewhouse and will transform its production area into an event space. The brewpub will continue serving Boulder beers, as well as a barbecue-focused menu.Boulder Beer plans to sell the majority of its equipment. However, the company plans to keep its 50-barrel brewhouse, which remain as a decorative artifact.Tree House Brewing Makes Million Dollar Investment for New WarehouseMassachusetts’s Tree House Brewing is expanding once again at its Charlton-based production brewery and headquarters.Earlier this month, Tree House co-founder Nate Lanier tweeted an aerial image of a large construction site next to the existing facility with the “shhh” emoji. Questions from curious followers rolled in, but Lanier did not publicly answer them.However, according to a report in the Worcester Telegram, Tree House is constructing a 76,700 sq. ft. warehouse adjacent to its existing building. The expansion necessitated the purchase of 41 acres of neighboring land.Tree House’s meteoric rise over the last few years made it 42nd fastest growing brewery in 2018, according to national trade group the Brewers Association’s (BA).Since 2015, the first year the BA has Tree House’s production volumes on record, Tree House’s production has increased from 2,350 barrels that year, to 44,250 barrels in 2018, an increase of 130% from 2017 levels, according to the BA.Tree House sells the vast majority of its beer directly to consumers at its Charlton facility. Nielsen: Active Lifestyle Beers Offer Big Opportunity for Craft, IPAs Remain Dominant Style and Value Tops VolumeConsumers are considering health and wellness more and drinking less but willing to spend more on alcoholic beverages when they do drink, members of market research firm Nielsen’s beverage alcohol team shared during last week’s Brewers Association Power Hour webinar.Here are three takeaways from Nielsen’s latest update on craft’s mid-year performance.Consumers More Mindful of Health and WellnessConsumers are now more concerned about health and wellness than any other topic, according to the Conference Board Global Consumer Confidence Survey, in collaboration with Nielsen.The most common reason respondents gave for drinking less is that they’re prioritizing health and about half of respondents said they were “making an effort to reduce their overall” alcohol consumption.The health and wellness trend was clear across several product segments. Five of Nielsen’s top 10 growth brands by dollar sales were hard seltzers. According to Nielsen, hard seltzers crossed the $1 billion sales mark in August for the last 52-week period.IPAs Still Dominant, Other Top Styles ShrinkIPAs remain the top-selling style in craft, and the only style among craft’s top five to gain in dollar share for the 36 weeks ending September 7. The next four styles — seasonal, witbier, variety packs, and American pale ales — each lost at least 5% of dollar share. IPAs accounted for 30% of all craft dollars and grew dollar sales 10%. Other styles increasing sales during period included blonde or golden ales, bocks, American wheat beers, and pilsners, Premiumization: Value Tops VolumeWhile consumers report that they’re drinking fewer alcoholic beverages, trends show that they’re spending more. Several off-premise metrics, such as household penetration and frequency of shopping trips, have remained steady, but dollars spent are increasing. On-premise data, reported that consumers are willing to pay more for local brands both on- and off-premise.“Consumers tend to be willing to pay a premium — almost a $5 premium — when it comes to paying for local craft, compared to some of the more national or non-local varieties or offerings,” “Value is outpacing velocity and volume in all categories. “It goes to show the premiumization in the whole alcohol segment.”Craft Beer Storm Website: www.craftbeerstorm.com If your Company, Hotel or Restaurant wants to book a CraftBeer Weekend or Craft Beer Evening for your guests or employees send an email to Michael@craftbeerstorm.com Subscribe to Craft Beer Storm Podcast iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/craft-beer-storm/id1438117278?mt=2Support ACS In NYC Marathon“32K In 64 days” - I signed up for the NYC Marathon through the American Cancer Society and I am aiming to raise $32,000 ($3,200 Minimum X 10X) - please follow link below to donate what you can - $25, $50, $30K! - Onward... - Here is link –http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR?fr_id=94035&pg=personal&px=49477898&fbclid=IwAR2mBEvhF1wMA_BbHPhkavichNSFrE9Y9gi2RVZzfQ_4Da5Sht7gvH9rY_k*** A Top 20 Podcast in Food on iTunes ***Michael Potorti is the Host of Craft Beer Storm and Founder/Brewer at Beara Brewing Co. in Portsmouth, NH*** Interested in starting your own brewery? Our Portsmouth, NH TURNKEY facility is for sale! Follow link for more info:https://www.neren.com/Listing/2800-Lafayette-Rd-12A/5cdda2dabf34cb9150a7faebMichael PotortiFounder/BrewerHost of "Craft Beer Storm" Podcastmichael@craftbeerstorm.commichael@bearairishbrew.com*** Come visit our brewery for some delicious local craft brew! ***Beara Brewing Co.2800 Lafayette RoadPortsmouth, NH 03801Tel. (857) 342-3272 www.bearairishbrew.com Like us onInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bearairishbrew/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/BearaIrishBrewingCo Twitter: https://twitter.com/BearaIrishBrew Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beara-brewing-co-30776075/**LISTEN to our Craft Beer Storm Podcast and share with a friend**Craft Beer Storm Podcast iTunes: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/craft-beer-storm/id1438117278Craft Beer Storm You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCp3PVuCGmywNWlGFh0N0ukg?view_as=subscriberCraft Beer Storm Podcast Stitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/podcast-center-la-2/craft-beer-stormCraft Beer Storm Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/craftbeerstorm/Craft Beer Storm Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/michaelpotorti/
Helping us move from awareness to action this week is Josh Goodstein. Josh is the Production Manager at OHSO Brewery in Gilbert. Listen to learn about Beer School, a fun program designed to educate and raise money for the Blue Pint Society, why OHSO is committed to supporting nonprofits as well as the recent Bud Light Super Bowl commercial. You can find out more about Josh and what he’s working on at OHSOBrewery.com, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. To learn more about Beer School and the Blue Pint Society, click HERE. Please subscribe to the show and leave a review!For templates of letters/emails and or talking points referenced in the show, or simply to say “hi” email us at contact@GeorgeGrombacher.com.
Craft Brew News – 2/22/19Courtesy of Brewbound.comReceiver Reaches Agreement to Sell DME Group’s Main BusinessCourt-appointed receiver Alvarez & Marsal filed a report Thursday saying it had reached an agreement to sell financially troubled Canadian brewing equipment manufacturer DME Group’s manufacturing and fabrication headquarters in Charlottetown.According to the receiver’s second report filed with the Superior Court of Prince Edward Island, Alvarez & Marsal said it executed a purchase agreement with CIMC Enric Tank and Process Ltd. on February 13. Now, the receiver is asking the court to approve the sale.According to CIMC’s website, the company is “one of the largest suppliers for the beverages and liquid food industries,” with operations around the globe.Alvarez & Marsal said CIMC plans to continue the DME Group’s operations in Charlottetown, employ a majority of the employees currently working at the facility and potentially rehire others.Backlash Over Boston Beer GardensA pair of Massachusetts lawmakers are attempting to rein in Boston’s popular outdoor beer gardens, according to the Boston Globe.Driven by the Massachusetts Restaurant Association, state Sens. Ed Kennedy (D-Lowell) and Nick Collins (D-South Boston) are co-sponsoring a bill that would prevent any person or company from obtaining more than 14 one-day licenses a year. Beer companies such as Trillium and Wachusett, among others, have used those licenses to operate outdoor beer gardens from the spring into the fall.Currently, the law allows applicants to obtain up to 30 one-day licenses. However, beer companies have used a loophole that allows multiple applicants to request licenses on their behalf. Last year, the city issued 82 one-day licenses, up from 39 in 2017, the Globe reported.Speaking to the Globe, Massachusetts Restaurant Association president and CEO Bob Luz said the law is being abused to the detriment of his organization’s members.The states brewers have said they’re willing to work with lawmakers to evolve the law.Meanwhile, Notch Brewing founder Chris Lohring pointed out that the bill as written wouldn’t just hurt craft brewers, but would also affect nonprofits that rely on one-day licenses.Jim Koch Responds to #CorntroversyIt’s been nearly two weeks since Anheuser-Busch launched its Bud Light Super Bowl ads pointing out MillerCoors’ use of corn syrup in its flagship Miller Lite and Coors Light offerings and upsetting corn farmers. Now, Boston Beer Company founder Jim Koch has trudged into the cornfield with a blog post on the Samuel Adams website titled “Corntroversy — Deja Vu?”Koch wrote “It’s like McDonald’s and Burger King arguing about grilling vs. broiling their burgers,” he wrote. “Who cares? Fast food is still fast food.” Koch also predicted that the next phase of A-B’s fight with MillerCoors would be either the latter’s use of hop extract or an attack on imports such as Corona and Modelo, which “use the same industrial brewing techniques and ingredients”Koch also wrote “How safe is the quality image and premium price point of imported beers if drinkers realize that their fancy, upscale image hides less expensive ingredients and industrial brewing practices, just as happened in 1986?”Drizly Partners with BevMo! in CaliforniaBoston-based on-demand alcohol delivery company Drizly is expanding its reach in California via a new partnership with retailer BevMo!, according to a press releaseBevMo has 166 beer, wine and liquor stores on West Coast.The deal will make Drizly’s 60-minute delivery service available in 45 of BevMo!’s stores, including those in the Bay Area, Silicon Valley, Los Angeles and San Diego.With the addition of BevMo!, Drizly now partners with more than 1,000 retail locations in more than 100 cities across North America. The company recently secured $34.5 million as part of a Series C fundraising round.Subscribe to Craft Beer Storm Podcast iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/craft-beer-storm/id1438117278?mt=2Michael Potorti is the Host of Craft Beer Storm and Founder/Brewer at Beara Brewing Co. in Portsmouth, NHMichael PotortiFounder/BrewerHost of "Craft Beer Storm" Podcastmichael@craftbeerstorm.commichael@bearairishbrew.com*** Come visit our brewery for some delicious local craft brew! ***Beara Brewing Co.2800 Lafayette RoadPortsmouth, NH 03801Tel. (857) 342-3272 www.bearairishbrew.com Like us onInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bearairishbrew/?hl=enFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/BearaIrishBrewingCo Twitter: https://twitter.com/BearaIrishBrew Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beara-brewing-co-30776075/**LISTEN to our Craft Beer Storm Podcast and share with a friend**Craft Beer Storm Podcast iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/craft-beer-storm/id1438117278?mt=2Craft Beer Storm You Tube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCp3PVuCGmywNWlGFh0N0ukg?view_as=subscriberCraft Beer Storm Podcast Radio Public: https://radiopublic.com/craft-beer-storm-WdbK0LCraft Beer Storm Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/craftbeerstorm/Craft Beer Storm Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/craftbeerstorm/
New Glarus Brewing isn't coming soon to a store near you (unless you live in Wisconsin) Daniel and Deb Carey sent their beer to a few other states for a while, but today New Glarus is Wisconsin's beer. The Careys want control of their beer and their company, and the easiest way to do that is to keep it as close to home as possible. The plan seems to be working well for them as New Glarus Brewing is the 17th largest craft brewer in the US, and the 25th largest overall brewery. Carey's brewing history spans over 30 years. He earned a degree in Food Science with an emphasis in malting and brewing from UC Davis in 1983, and was valedictorian of the 1987 Siebel Institute course in Brewing Technology. He apprenticed at a small brewery near Munich and worked for Anheuser-Busch, where he tells us his desk was right next to Mitch Steele's (Stone/New Realm). Daniel Carey joins us on the show this week to talk about his brewing history and the growth of his brewery. He shares insight on why they choose to stay in Wisconsin, passing on buy-out offers, and the importance of being a moral business. We also discuss the Bud Light Super Bowl commercials and get insight on the big deal with corn syrup. We sample a few New Glarus beers and get info on the brews and the styles. Plus, we find out the connection that New Glarus has to good 'ol Atlanta. Episode Guide New Glarus Brewing with co-owner and brewmaster Daniel Carey Beer Guys Radio Ep. 163 Daniel Carey Introduction, Topics | 00:51 New Glarus Uff Da Bock | 01:11 Decoction Mashing | 02:38 Discussing Bud Light's "corn syrup" Super Bowl commercials | 03:10 Beers of the Week | 06:39 Craft Beer News | 07:40 AB InBev acquires 100% of RateBeer.com Bell's Brewery pulls out of Virginia Daniel Carey's brewing background | 11:46 Old school Henry Weinhard | 15:39 The benefits of professional brewing education | 16:05 New Glarus 2019 Flanders Sour | 19:30 New Glarus's many awards | 23:05 The growth of New Glarus and staying close to home | 24:38 New Glarus Spotted Cow | 28:30 Passing on selling out / building a moral business | 29:40 New Glarus and Atlanta | 34:00 New Glarus Serendipity | 36:25 Pioneering sour beer in the US | 38:00 New Glarus's "caves" | 40:40 Capturing big fruit flavor in your beer | 42:25 Next Week | Athletic Brewing Co.
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By now you've heard about and most likely seen the Bud Light Super Bowl commercial. The spot proudly proclaims Bud Light doesn't contain corn syrup whereas the brand's two biggest competitors do. Many of our co-horts in the Business of Agriculture - particularly corn growers- are up in arms. While I'm a pro-corn guy from a corn state, I'm gonna tell you in this episode why the commercial was probably good marketing on Bud Light's part. I'll also look a little deeper and explain why this commercial ties nicely with Anheuser Busch's other two commercials, one for Budweiser and the other for Mich Ultra Pure Gold. The theme is socially conscious marketing. One spot touts environmentalism, one sells nature and organic compliance, and the “corn-troversial” one distances itself from a common villain: high fructose corn syrup. While we in Ag may not like it (and we may even feel singled out as corn producers) these are the realities of the marketplace.