Texas, we have a problem. For years now we’ve lived under the mantra, or at least heard it if we live out of state, that everything is bigger and better in Texas. That might be a debatable point for some, but no one can deny this state is huge. The attitude of its residents is huge. Yet for a state with this much pride and attitude, we fall short when it comes to beer.
I know what you are thinking. “What, Texans fall short with beer?”. Well, it is indeed true. Texas is the second largest state when it comes to the consumption of beer, only 40 million behind California, consuming around 20 million barrels per year. Yet, of that massive amount of beer consumed, Texans consumed in 2009 only roughly .4% were produced by Texas Craft breweries that were members of the Texas Craft Brewers Guild, according to Scott Metzger, founder and owner of San Antonio’s Freetail Brewing Co. points out that “Of the approximately one million barrels of craft beer consumed in Texas in 2009, only 7.2% was produced by members of the Texas Craft Brewers Guild.”
What is contributing to this and why is this important? Currently, brewpubs in Texas are not allowed to self distribute their beers to wholesalers, distributors or other retailers. What this means, is that if you want Freetail beer in Dallas, you will have to make the drive down Interstate 35 to San Antonio to get some or drive From San Antonio to Austin to get beer from Uncle Billy’s. Consequently, micro-breweries such as San Antonio’s Ranger Creek Brewing and Distilling, can give you a tour and a sample at their brewery, but can sell you a case there. You will need to head to the store for that.
Doesn’t make sense, does it? What drives the proverbial stake in, is that while I may not be able to by craft beer from Texas brewpubs in the store, I can go to my local bottle shop, pick up a six-pack of craft beer from a brewpub outside of Texas. The State is not only loosing out on revenue during a budget crisis, not supporting local business, but we’re also wounding our own pride here.
Twenty-four days ago, the state legislature went into session and on their docket was HB 660. A bill co-authored by Metzger, Joey Villareal of Bluestar Brewing a other peers. The bill aims to do the following:
HB 660 would:
- allow Texas brewpubs to sell to distributors and wholesalers
- allow Texas brewpubs to sell up to 5,000 barrels per year at the pub, directly to consumers
- allow Texas brewpubs to self-distribute their product to retailers so long as they are under 10,000 barrels per year
- allow Texas brewpubs to have total production of up to 75,000 barrels per year
- allow Texas microbreweries to change their license to a brewpub so long they meet the qualifications abov
This would create revenue for the state and allow brewpubs to grow their business in Texas, without having to consider heading out of state in order to grow.
Metzger has started a blog called ‘Brewed and Never Battered, to record the daily happenings of the House bill and what you can do, as well as a twitter account @HB660 and a Facebook page. My thanks to Scott for the information contained in those sources, as it was helpful in preparing this article. Check the sites out, and then call your congressman, tell your friends and get involved. There’s even an online HB 660 petition you can sign. This is one issue that affects us all and we can’t just sit on the sidelines.
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