activism

The Brewers Association reports that: "the volume of craft beer sold in the first half of 2007 rose 11% compared to this same period in 2006 and dollar growth increased 14%. For the first time ever craft beer has exceeded more than a 5% dollar share of total beer sales."

So one out of every twenty beers drunk in the U.S. are made by craft brewers. In a 'macro' view, that doesn't sound too impressive, but for micro folks like us trying to make a name for ourselves in the massive beer market, this is good news. It's slow revolution in tastes, but clearly good beer has the movement on its side (overall growth in beer sales was only 1%).

I'm part way through the book Fermenting Revolution by beer activist Chris O'Brien. I picked up a copy at the Green Festival down at McCormick Place but missed his afternoon talk. It's a nice ramble on the history of beer and how it connects with movements of social change and sustainability. Perusing his blog I was happy to see his endorsement of glass growlers as the most environmentally friendly way of packaging beer if you are sadly unable to drink draft. We're not going to have room for a big bottling line but we do plan on selling growlers to go from the pub.

So today is May 1st, the day I start this blog and May Day to many across the world. Few people around here seemed to celebrate this holiday until recently with the mass rallies for immigration reform. It is nice to see people standing up for what they believe in and getting out in the streets again. 121 years ago some people gathered in Chicago to ask for the eight-hour day and a few days later a little scuffle broke out. In 121 years from now, I bet talking about the pros and cons of immigration policy will seem as silly as it does to be protesting today about implementing the eight-hour day or whether taverns should be open on Sundays.

Feels like a good day to start blogging about this new project, which I admit is as much about good 'ol American capitalism as it is about challenging the system we live in. No, we aren't creating a worker-collective, but we are trying to bring fresh, local beer to the masses and promote community and activism while we do it. We'll be setting an example ourselves with green building renovation and operating practices. And like any good street protest, we're going to have fun while we do it. Stay tuned.