Sorry for missing days 61 and 62. As things are gearing to heat up, I need to take a short sojourn to the beach and recharge. One of my favorite things, as a native Texan, is the amazing diversity in our landscapes. In a two-hour drive I can from the hill country to the beach and feel like it’s another world. Sadly, no matter where I drive in this state one thing remains the same: the beer shelves are void of local, brewpub beer. We’re a state that pride’s ourselves on the vastness of choices in where to live and diversity of culture – yet we haven’t yet extended that philosophy to beer. Good thing times are a changin’.
While I was out, the UTSA Student paper, The Paisano, had a story on HB 660. The story briefly mentions the ability for me to potentially sell my beer where UTSA starts playing football this fall. Beyond that school or just my brewery – it’s a belief of mine a lover of sports and craft beer that teams should be supported by the flavor of their local eateries and breweries. In my mental notebook of Sport’s Stadium Grades – I put the AT&T Centre, where the Spurs play, at the bottom of the list because the concessions consist of nothing but macro-produced lagers and typical chain eateries. When I went and saw the US vs. Brazil last year at New Meadowlands Stadium, I was impressed to see Brooklyn Brewing beers on tap all around the stadium and local food vendors lining the concourses. Hopefully Texas sporting venues go this direction sooner than later. Unfortunately, facilities get lured into signing large exclusivity contracts with one vendor, who turns around and homogenizes the entire facility. Yes, diversity is hard to manage. But it’s what the consumer WANTS. Businesses need to listen to their customers, not force a limited set of choices on them.
That’s the end of my rant for today!
