1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:03,960 Hi, I'm Abigail Hummel and I'm Berry Humble, and we're the co host 2 00:00:03,960 --> 00:00:07,759 of the Pops on Hops podcast. If you need more beer related content, 3 00:00:07,839 --> 00:00:10,919 you can check out our podcast. But right now you're listening to Beer in 4 00:00:10,960 --> 00:00:17,359 Front. Take it away, Dave. This is Beer in Front, part 5 00:00:17,359 --> 00:00:22,519 of the Oddpods media network. Every week i'll talk about a beer that maybe 6 00:00:22,559 --> 00:00:28,000 we've forgotten along the way while we get those check ins and badges. Some 7 00:00:28,079 --> 00:00:32,359 weeks, i'll have a new beer that has potential to be a classic. 8 00:00:32,960 --> 00:00:38,520 Being the Chicago beer guy, I'll also talk about great craft beer and craft 9 00:00:38,600 --> 00:00:43,799 beer news in the city of Chicago. Sometimes the beer in front of you 10 00:00:44,560 --> 00:00:49,119 is the best one yet. That's Beer in Front, and it's coming up 11 00:00:49,880 --> 00:01:00,479 now. Welcome to episode one hundred and fifty of Beer in Front. I'm 12 00:01:00,479 --> 00:01:06,079 your host, Dave's allatorus, and whether you've listened to the past one hundred 13 00:01:06,079 --> 00:01:10,920 and forty nine shows or if this is your first time, I thank you 14 00:01:11,000 --> 00:01:17,280 for listening. Instead of having one beer this week, I'm opening beers sent 15 00:01:17,760 --> 00:01:23,680 from friends all around the country. I'll have beer from California, Nevada, 16 00:01:23,840 --> 00:01:30,599 Arizona, Pennsylvania, and a Chicago one. If you're untapped, you can 17 00:01:30,680 --> 00:01:36,200 follow me there at Beer in Front to see what I scored these and every 18 00:01:36,239 --> 00:01:40,640 beer I have for the show. There are a couple of laws on the 19 00:01:40,719 --> 00:01:46,519 books here in the state of Illinois that, if they pass, should greatly 20 00:01:46,560 --> 00:01:52,760 benefit breweries here in the state. I'll speak with Ray Stout, the executive 21 00:01:52,799 --> 00:01:59,159 director of the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild, to discuss these. Just two episodes 22 00:01:59,200 --> 00:02:04,120 ago was the third anniversary of the show, so I won't bore you with 23 00:02:04,680 --> 00:02:08,639 the same details here on this the one hundred and fiftieth episode, but I 24 00:02:08,719 --> 00:02:15,719 will once again thank you for listening to the podcast watching the videos over on 25 00:02:15,759 --> 00:02:20,919 YouTube and TikTok. It means a lot. Thank you to Pops on Hops 26 00:02:21,000 --> 00:02:24,000 for the intro this week, and you could check out their podcast on your 27 00:02:24,039 --> 00:02:30,800 favorite player. Next week, the special pizza episode will come out, and 28 00:02:30,879 --> 00:02:35,479 I think you're going to enjoy that one. Friends from the podcasting and beer 29 00:02:35,520 --> 00:02:39,719 community help me talk about pizza from their region, and you'll want to jump 30 00:02:39,759 --> 00:02:46,199 on a plane to taste all of the styles from around the country. We're 31 00:02:46,280 --> 00:02:52,319 hitting the third anniversary of COVID this week, and Jesus, does that seem 32 00:02:52,360 --> 00:02:58,000 like a lifetime and maybe thirty pounds orgo. How is your beer purchasing and 33 00:02:58,120 --> 00:03:02,520 consuming changed in the last three years. Get a hold of me at Dave, 34 00:03:02,719 --> 00:03:07,400 at beer infront dot com or on social media to let me know. 35 00:03:15,960 --> 00:03:19,879 In Beer News this week, Friday night, I ran to the grocery store 36 00:03:19,919 --> 00:03:24,319 after work and I was checking out the beer aisle. There were a few 37 00:03:24,680 --> 00:03:30,280 groups of twenty ish mailes buying stuff. Usually that means someone's grabbing a case 38 00:03:30,360 --> 00:03:36,639 of Macro or maybe a few six packs of craft beer. These guys went 39 00:03:36,919 --> 00:03:44,039 right to the seltzers and we're grabbing high Noon and Seagram's refreshers. So the 40 00:03:44,120 --> 00:03:49,719 demise of the hard seltzer category might not be as soon as people think. 41 00:03:50,479 --> 00:03:57,000 The latest crossover hard Seltzer, comes from of all Things Sunny D. They're 42 00:03:57,000 --> 00:04:01,039 going to have a new vodka Seltzer on the show later this year. I 43 00:04:01,039 --> 00:04:06,080 don't know. In my opinion, that seems a little shady. Many of 44 00:04:06,439 --> 00:04:13,960 the other crossovers were at least a product that was marketed to adults in their 45 00:04:14,000 --> 00:04:19,920 original non alcoholic origins. Sunny D, what's next, You're going to have 46 00:04:20,000 --> 00:04:27,879 a Capri sun booze and foil pouches New Holland their Dragon Milk line is going 47 00:04:27,920 --> 00:04:34,000 to introduce Ready to Drink Old Fashioned and that's coming out next month. Stone 48 00:04:34,199 --> 00:04:41,319 is expanding their Dead Guy series even further with a new variety pack, including 49 00:04:41,360 --> 00:04:46,240 the new Dead Guy IPA. They're going to have a Pale ale in Pilsner 50 00:04:46,759 --> 00:04:53,600 as well. Finally, Upland Brewing in Indiana University are teaming up with the 51 00:04:53,800 --> 00:05:00,600 first official beer of the university. This is called Hoosier Game Day Log and 52 00:05:00,680 --> 00:05:06,319 the cans feature the iconic red and white stripes from the basketball team's warm up 53 00:05:06,319 --> 00:05:18,639 pants. I'm Richie aka Midnight Agent Raw. I'm Devin aka Special Delivery Dev. 54 00:05:18,839 --> 00:05:24,680 We're the Supermedia Bros. Podcast and each week we give a comedically informative 55 00:05:24,720 --> 00:05:28,839 take on movies, music, television, pro wrestling, and much more. 56 00:05:29,360 --> 00:05:33,199 Check us out at Supermedia Bros podcast dot Com, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, 57 00:05:33,519 --> 00:05:42,439 or anywhere else that you can listen to podcasts. Shades on We're Off be 58 00:05:42,560 --> 00:05:47,120 sure to catch the latest from Supermedia Bros. Wherever you listen to podcasts. 59 00:05:47,839 --> 00:05:54,120 There are a couple new bills being introduced into the Illinois General Assembly that will 60 00:05:54,199 --> 00:06:00,319 modernize our liquor laws help to promote growth of Illinois breweries while meeting a man 61 00:06:00,800 --> 00:06:04,600 from consumers for craft beer shipping to talk about this. So I'm happy to 62 00:06:04,680 --> 00:06:09,959 have back on the show. Ray Stout. Ray is the executive director of 63 00:06:10,040 --> 00:06:15,319 the Illinois craft Brewers Guild and will help explain how these bills will benefit Illinois 64 00:06:15,399 --> 00:06:20,959 brewers and consumers of great craft beer all over the country. Ray, thanks 65 00:06:20,959 --> 00:06:25,120 for coming back on Welcome Back. Oh, it's a pleasure to be back. 66 00:06:25,160 --> 00:06:29,879 I always love the show. Of the two bills, Senate Bill two 67 00:06:29,959 --> 00:06:34,720 one ninety three, which will legalize direct to consumers shipping, is getting the 68 00:06:34,759 --> 00:06:40,639 most attention. How is this going to benefit breweries and consumers? That's a 69 00:06:40,680 --> 00:06:43,800 great question. So I think if you take a step back and look at 70 00:06:43,839 --> 00:06:47,360 the liquor laws in the state of Illinois, the main liquor law is the 71 00:06:47,399 --> 00:06:51,439 Liquor Control Act of nineteen thirty four. And you heard that right, nineteen 72 00:06:51,560 --> 00:06:56,279 thirty four and a lot of the liquor laws are based off of that and 73 00:06:56,319 --> 00:07:01,560 come out of that are are really result of ourized crime in Illinois and al 74 00:07:01,600 --> 00:07:05,480 capone. And so what we did in the state of Illinois institute a three 75 00:07:05,480 --> 00:07:12,600 tier system so that means there's producers like breweries, there are distributors that are 76 00:07:12,639 --> 00:07:15,199 basically the logistics companies that bring the beer from point A to point B, 77 00:07:15,759 --> 00:07:20,759 and then there's retailers. You know, one thing about nineteen thirty four is 78 00:07:20,800 --> 00:07:26,079 that there was no inkling that there would ever be this thing called the internet, 79 00:07:26,399 --> 00:07:29,879 right, and so in the state of Illinois, it is illegal to 80 00:07:30,000 --> 00:07:34,879 ship alcohol or ship beer through the mail. Right now, you could send 81 00:07:35,040 --> 00:07:40,160 wine to a consumer in Illinois. So since two thousand and seven you've been 82 00:07:40,160 --> 00:07:45,639 able to do that. And so as the Illinois craft Brewers Guild and Illinois 83 00:07:45,639 --> 00:07:48,600 craft Brewers realized throughout the pandemic is that, you know, we need to 84 00:07:48,600 --> 00:07:53,160 meet customers where they are, and more and more they're at their house. 85 00:07:54,079 --> 00:07:57,439 You know, one thing that we are getting a lot of tension on is 86 00:07:57,480 --> 00:08:01,480 that, hey, this bill could possibly negatively impact retailers. And you know, 87 00:08:01,519 --> 00:08:05,800 I hear the hesitancy in their voice to hop on board with this, 88 00:08:05,879 --> 00:08:09,759 and I think the fear is valuable. But the facts of the matter are 89 00:08:11,399 --> 00:08:15,399 in states that have already legalized direct to consumer beer shipping, there's actually a 90 00:08:15,560 --> 00:08:20,199 higher percentage of retail and distributor jobs per capita. And actually, if you 91 00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:26,759 look at the experience with Illinois wine, there are actually more Illinois wine retailers 92 00:08:26,879 --> 00:08:31,120 now than there were in two thousand and seven when direct to consumer wine shipping 93 00:08:31,159 --> 00:08:35,200 was legalized. But you know, in essence, this bill allows the consumer 94 00:08:35,279 --> 00:08:41,320 to hop online and have a beer shipped from the brewery directly to their house 95 00:08:41,639 --> 00:08:48,759 using a third party, third party service like ups, DHL and FedEx. 96 00:08:48,279 --> 00:08:52,799 One thing that's important, this is not a delivery bill. This is not 97 00:08:52,159 --> 00:08:56,240 you know, calling up the brewery and having somebody drop a four pack of 98 00:08:56,399 --> 00:09:00,200 beer on your doorstep. This is something that you know, goes through through 99 00:09:00,279 --> 00:09:03,840 the mail, just just like any package you would order. You know, 100 00:09:03,879 --> 00:09:07,279 I was reading an article on brew Bound on I think Saturday, and there 101 00:09:07,399 --> 00:09:13,559 was a Harris poll and it said that almost four and five consumers said they 102 00:09:13,559 --> 00:09:20,039 would buy more craft beer if there was a bill like this past. And 103 00:09:20,120 --> 00:09:24,960 also there was something like in states that have this bill there is like fifteen 104 00:09:26,039 --> 00:09:30,720 percent more distributor jobs as well. So it sounds like it's a win win 105 00:09:30,799 --> 00:09:33,720 for everybody. It is. It is a win win for everybody. And 106 00:09:33,000 --> 00:09:37,639 that's exactly right. Is that that that that article and that Harris Pole really 107 00:09:37,679 --> 00:09:43,240 shines a light on the desire for consumers to have access to these products. 108 00:09:43,240 --> 00:09:46,799 And you know, right now, even if you got something delivered, it 109 00:09:46,840 --> 00:09:50,960 has to go through the distribution and retail tiers. And you know, as 110 00:09:52,000 --> 00:09:54,440 we know, most of our breweries in the state of Illinois are are self 111 00:09:54,519 --> 00:10:01,000 distributed or have limited distribution regions because most of the breweries here are pretty tiny 112 00:10:01,039 --> 00:10:05,120 by and large, and so for somebody to get you know, scratch brewing 113 00:10:05,159 --> 00:10:09,159 beer up in Lake County is virtually impossible. You know, even though they 114 00:10:09,159 --> 00:10:11,759 are up for a Michelin Star and make delicious beers, um, they're just 115 00:10:11,879 --> 00:10:16,159 not one that that are are are found in most distributors catalogs. You know, 116 00:10:16,440 --> 00:10:22,840 another thing I do want to highlight what's happening in the retail retail shelves 117 00:10:22,919 --> 00:10:28,159 is what I call them the voodoo Ranger effect. And so right now we're 118 00:10:28,159 --> 00:10:35,279 seeing a lot of macro breweries masquerading as craft that are filling the skews on 119 00:10:35,320 --> 00:10:41,399 the shelves because they could sell beer for a significantly lower price point. And 120 00:10:41,480 --> 00:10:45,720 so if you have, you know, a hazy Voodoo Ranger sitting next to 121 00:10:46,399 --> 00:10:50,519 hazy Illinois craft beer they're going on the retail shelves, they're going to be 122 00:10:50,559 --> 00:10:54,679 able to undercut price dramatically. And you know, the rank of the file 123 00:10:54,799 --> 00:10:58,919 customer really really, you know, gravitates towards towards price. When it's an 124 00:10:58,960 --> 00:11:01,759 apples to apples. We both know it's not apples to apples because Illinois craft 125 00:11:01,840 --> 00:11:05,320 is far superior. But you know that in terms of buying decisions on the 126 00:11:05,360 --> 00:11:09,679 retail shelves, there's there's fewer and fewer slots for Illinois craft beer. So 127 00:11:09,919 --> 00:11:15,440 we are we are looking towards the future here. Now, if this bill 128 00:11:15,559 --> 00:11:22,840 passes, is this going to be voluntary that a brewery is going to participate? 129 00:11:22,480 --> 00:11:26,480 And if they do, is this just going to be for special releases 130 00:11:26,639 --> 00:11:31,120 or if you know, hypothetically, say someone in Nebraska wanted to order a 131 00:11:31,159 --> 00:11:35,720 four pack of Dovetails via analogue or would they be able to do that? 132 00:11:37,000 --> 00:11:39,799 Yeah, so any of this is voluntary. So um, you know, 133 00:11:39,919 --> 00:11:45,559 some breweries are going to be early adopters when when this legislation passes, Um, 134 00:11:45,639 --> 00:11:48,799 some are going to be hesitant. It's going to create a whole new 135 00:11:48,840 --> 00:11:54,000 marketplace here in the state of Illinois. Um. Um. These companies to 136 00:11:54,320 --> 00:11:58,639 start shipping their products direct they to consumers, and you know, shipping infrastructure 137 00:11:58,840 --> 00:12:01,399 takes a little bit to stand up. And you know, right now, 138 00:12:01,440 --> 00:12:05,679 the cap that we're proposing in our legislation is twelve cases of beer per year 139 00:12:07,200 --> 00:12:09,639 that could be shipped directly to your door. That mirrors the wine language. 140 00:12:09,679 --> 00:12:18,120 And yes, if if Nebraska was a state that had legalized direct consumer beer 141 00:12:18,159 --> 00:12:20,600 shipping, and there's fourteen states that do, then you could order a four 142 00:12:20,679 --> 00:12:24,399 pack a Dovetail delivered to your door. You know, I think one thing 143 00:12:24,480 --> 00:12:31,440 that we'll all call out is that shipping alcohol is cost prohibitive. It's expensive, 144 00:12:31,600 --> 00:12:35,240 right, Alcohol has a lot you know, you generally want to keep 145 00:12:35,279 --> 00:12:41,360 it under temper temperature controlled situations, especially with a lot of these fresh aisy 146 00:12:41,440 --> 00:12:45,159 products, so they'll be dry ice involved. And you know there's ways to 147 00:12:45,200 --> 00:12:48,600 do it because food's been doing it forever, right. So, but where 148 00:12:48,600 --> 00:12:54,360 I see this working most and most effective is those products that are more akin 149 00:12:54,440 --> 00:12:58,399 to wine, So those large format barrel age beers, those beers that generally 150 00:12:58,480 --> 00:13:05,159 do not even make it to the distribution tier and even less likely to make 151 00:13:05,200 --> 00:13:09,200 it to retailer shelves with some small exemptions of retailers that curate their craft beer 152 00:13:09,320 --> 00:13:13,159 very very well. But even then most of those most of those skews are 153 00:13:13,200 --> 00:13:18,679 filled by distributed products. Is there going to be a distance limit or is 154 00:13:18,759 --> 00:13:24,919 this just for out of state customers like you were mentioning a brewery earlier. 155 00:13:24,240 --> 00:13:30,279 If I wanted to order something from Lake County that I can't get here, 156 00:13:30,559 --> 00:13:33,720 or say hand of Fate, which is down state, would I be able 157 00:13:33,759 --> 00:13:39,399 to do that in Chicago? Absolutely? And so the bill we're proposing would 158 00:13:39,679 --> 00:13:45,360 allow for the statewide shipping of alcohol as well as the bidirectional shipping of alcohol 159 00:13:45,440 --> 00:13:48,519 too, and from states that have directed consumer beer shipping. So this opens 160 00:13:48,559 --> 00:13:54,000 up new markets for our brewers in Illinois and opens up new opportunities for craft 161 00:13:54,000 --> 00:14:00,720 your enthusiasts in the state of Illinois. Is there anything and if not, 162 00:14:00,960 --> 00:14:05,120 maybe we could joint forces and come up with this app and retire. But 163 00:14:05,320 --> 00:14:11,519 are there plans for like an Illinois based app like a tavor where consumers can 164 00:14:11,679 --> 00:14:16,159 just buy beer from the state of Illinois. Yeah, I'm sure there's I'm 165 00:14:16,159 --> 00:14:20,360 sure there's a market to build an app just like that. You know, 166 00:14:20,399 --> 00:14:24,200 it's funny that you brought up to Voor and a couple of other companies have 167 00:14:24,360 --> 00:14:31,879 really kind of figure it out a nuanced way to to ship beer already in 168 00:14:31,919 --> 00:14:35,600 the state of Illinois. So this is already happening, right, this is 169 00:14:35,159 --> 00:14:39,720 this is happening through Tavor. It's also happening because there, you know, 170 00:14:39,960 --> 00:14:46,159 everybody knows there's a significant secondary or what we call the black market for craft 171 00:14:46,200 --> 00:14:48,519 beer in the state of Illinois, especially those barrel aged products, and so 172 00:14:48,840 --> 00:14:52,120 you know, this is this is something that that's already happening. But yes, 173 00:14:52,159 --> 00:14:56,240 there's nothing stopping somebody from coming up with a Illinois craft beer app and 174 00:14:56,360 --> 00:15:01,480 you know, becoming the local king of craft beer or queeness. All right, 175 00:15:01,519 --> 00:15:03,399 well, I'm gonna edit this part out and we'll talk later. Yeah, 176 00:15:03,399 --> 00:15:09,200 we'll come up with this. The second bill that's up is Send It 177 00:15:09,240 --> 00:15:13,240 Bill two two one six, which is the Beer Omnibus Bill, and that's 178 00:15:13,279 --> 00:15:20,159 going to formalize and clarify beer drinker engagement programs while making it easier for breweries 179 00:15:20,200 --> 00:15:24,360 to grow and modernize. How is this going to help everyone? Yeah, 180 00:15:24,360 --> 00:15:28,200 So there's about there's six provisions and what we're calling the Beer Omnibus Bill, 181 00:15:28,240 --> 00:15:31,399 and that's the one that you referenced. You know. The first one is 182 00:15:31,440 --> 00:15:39,120 that rewards programs and mug clubs have operated in a very gray area of Illinois 183 00:15:39,200 --> 00:15:43,039 liquor law for for decades, and so there's nothing that says you can do 184 00:15:43,080 --> 00:15:45,919 them, but there's nothing that says you can't do. And most most good 185 00:15:45,960 --> 00:15:50,799 craft drinkers are members of their local mug clubs because virtually every brewery is offering 186 00:15:50,919 --> 00:15:56,600 some level of rewards our points or mug clubs, also retailers, you know 187 00:15:56,799 --> 00:16:00,919 those A lot of those points systems that are already in existence are not codified 188 00:16:00,039 --> 00:16:03,840 law anywhere, and so we are looking to make sure those programs that are 189 00:16:03,840 --> 00:16:10,039 widely popular with um you know, Illinois residents and craft beer enthusiasts alike, 190 00:16:10,840 --> 00:16:15,559 are are legalized. You know. The second one that I don't think is 191 00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:22,919 getting enough attention is that folks that are engaged in gift basket raffles or bottle 192 00:16:22,960 --> 00:16:29,200 auctions specifically for raising funds for nonprofit organizations our in violation of Illinois liquor law. 193 00:16:29,639 --> 00:16:30,639 And you know, I don't know about you, but you know, 194 00:16:30,679 --> 00:16:34,720 everybody's doing it in my world, from the local boy Scout troop at their 195 00:16:34,759 --> 00:16:38,720 spaghetti dinner to the pta, to the Democratic Party, right, and so 196 00:16:38,759 --> 00:16:45,720 we want to make sure that craft brewers can donate products to nonprofit organizations for 197 00:16:45,759 --> 00:16:51,840 fundraising purposes, which seems seems like a pretty cut and dry thing. You 198 00:16:51,879 --> 00:16:55,639 know. Another thing that we're trying to figure out here in state is that 199 00:16:56,080 --> 00:17:00,440 there are no laws that allow for craft breweries and assist thematic way to participate 200 00:17:00,440 --> 00:17:06,240 in farmers markets are community events. There is a law that limits it to 201 00:17:06,240 --> 00:17:08,359 a one classification at brewer. And I don't want to get too wonky with 202 00:17:08,400 --> 00:17:12,119 your listeners because it's a little much to explain, but most of the brewers 203 00:17:12,119 --> 00:17:18,400 in the state of Illinois are unable to participate in community events or farmers markets 204 00:17:18,400 --> 00:17:21,519 and sell their products there. And what I like to say is that there's 205 00:17:21,559 --> 00:17:26,119 nothing more local than than craft beer. And so you know, excluding them 206 00:17:26,160 --> 00:17:30,119 from those types of events just seems silly because you know, they are they 207 00:17:30,119 --> 00:17:33,079 are pillars of their community and you know, are made right right right in 208 00:17:33,119 --> 00:17:37,440 the communities in which they're selling our products. Yeah, and like you know, 209 00:17:37,559 --> 00:17:41,079 my wife and I we love farmers markets. And while you know, 210 00:17:41,160 --> 00:17:44,680 maybe having beer at ten o'clock in the morning on a Saturday might not be 211 00:17:45,559 --> 00:17:48,000 now we've done it, I mean, who hasn't done it? But I 212 00:17:48,039 --> 00:17:52,839 think that would bring more people out to that farmer's market, which would in 213 00:17:52,920 --> 00:17:57,599 turn help you know, farmers in the Midwest sell their products as well. 214 00:17:57,680 --> 00:18:02,279 So that's another one teams like a win win for everyone. Yeah, and 215 00:18:02,319 --> 00:18:04,039 then you pick up a four pack to go, right. Yeah, so 216 00:18:04,119 --> 00:18:08,279 in addition to your tomatoes and your giant zucchini's, you know, you have 217 00:18:08,319 --> 00:18:14,599 a four pack of locally made fresh craft beer and so to go with whatever 218 00:18:14,720 --> 00:18:18,000 kind of carbonara you're making for dinner, with all your delicious ingredients that you 219 00:18:18,039 --> 00:18:23,119 got from the farmer's market. You know. Another one I think is really 220 00:18:23,160 --> 00:18:27,799 important is that, you know, in Illinois, I smoke before about the 221 00:18:27,799 --> 00:18:33,640 three tier system, we do allow for a level of self distribution. And 222 00:18:33,680 --> 00:18:41,960 this is important to note because what's happening in the second tier, the wholesale 223 00:18:41,000 --> 00:18:47,400 tier, is there's been massive retraction and consolidation of these wholesalers, and so 224 00:18:47,440 --> 00:18:52,440 these distributors are buying each other up and basically owned by a small handful of 225 00:18:52,559 --> 00:18:59,599 multinational you know, billionaire trillionaire corporations. And so what that's doing is leaving 226 00:18:59,599 --> 00:19:03,039 a lot of craft brewers on the outside looking in, because these folks in 227 00:19:03,079 --> 00:19:07,720 the distribution tier essentially hold the power when they decide where the beer goes, 228 00:19:08,000 --> 00:19:11,519 who's selling it where, and what where they're going to try to sell their 229 00:19:11,599 --> 00:19:15,359 beer. And so, you know, the Illinois legislature a number of years 230 00:19:15,400 --> 00:19:21,160 ago created exemptions for self distribution, and this means a craft brewery can sell 231 00:19:21,240 --> 00:19:26,960 products directly to retailers, which is great because it levels the competition a little 232 00:19:26,960 --> 00:19:30,680 bit, right, It opens up the market a little bit. And so 233 00:19:32,039 --> 00:19:36,079 in twenty twenty one, we created what's called a Class three brewer. But 234 00:19:36,240 --> 00:19:38,920 one of the things we allowed for this Class three brewer is to self distribute 235 00:19:40,240 --> 00:19:44,480 a pretty measily two hundred barrels, and a Class three brewer just where everybody 236 00:19:44,480 --> 00:19:47,920 knows, is like your local group of so they have the ability to also 237 00:19:47,920 --> 00:19:52,480 sell spirit and wine at their brewery. And it's become a very popular model 238 00:19:52,519 --> 00:19:56,680 because I hear time and time again from brewer saying, hey, a group 239 00:19:56,680 --> 00:20:00,200 of nine people walked in two of their wives only during wine and then they 240 00:20:00,240 --> 00:20:03,359 all walked out, right. So this allowed for folks to kind of really 241 00:20:03,400 --> 00:20:07,680 have more robust offerings that there after tap rooms and it's become widely popular. 242 00:20:07,720 --> 00:20:11,880 But you know, those folks are only allowed to self distribute two hundred barrels, 243 00:20:11,400 --> 00:20:15,480 which is not a lot of beer. If folks know their barrel it's 244 00:20:15,519 --> 00:20:18,359 calculations, it's thirty one gallons per barrel. And so we are looking to 245 00:20:18,440 --> 00:20:22,720 raise that up to twenty five hundred barrels to allow these small brewers to gain 246 00:20:22,799 --> 00:20:27,079 a foothold in the distribution tier, to eventually be calm big enough to be 247 00:20:27,240 --> 00:20:33,200 picked up by a distributor and paid attention to. Yeah, and the last 248 00:20:33,200 --> 00:20:37,039 one is a little wonky, but it's worth it's worth a talk because you 249 00:20:37,039 --> 00:20:42,039 know, there are laws in the state of Illinois which regulate how much beer 250 00:20:42,200 --> 00:20:48,079 you could actually move between two breweries that you own. Right, So it's 251 00:20:48,119 --> 00:20:51,599 like imagine having a peach of factory and a pizza shop and you can only 252 00:20:51,599 --> 00:20:55,160 move a certain amount of pizza between the two. And that's what we're that's 253 00:20:55,200 --> 00:20:57,559 what we're effectively doing here in the state of Illinois. There are laws on 254 00:20:57,599 --> 00:21:02,119 the books. Let's say you cannot move more than a thousand barrels of beer 255 00:21:02,599 --> 00:21:08,680 between two wholly owned locations without partnering with a distributor for that thousand and first 256 00:21:08,759 --> 00:21:12,599 barrel. So for that thousand and first barrel, you then need to contact 257 00:21:12,640 --> 00:21:17,839 a distributor or find somebody to move your product for you and pay them thirty 258 00:21:17,839 --> 00:21:21,680 percent margin just to ship that beer between two places that you that you own, 259 00:21:21,759 --> 00:21:25,160 when you own both spots, when you own both spots, yes, 260 00:21:25,319 --> 00:21:29,440 yeah, and so you know, and and and that's affecting the growth of 261 00:21:29,440 --> 00:21:34,039 the industry because you know what we're seeing now and we saw a couple months 262 00:21:34,039 --> 00:21:37,960 ago, and I think we'll continue unfortunately, continue to see you over the 263 00:21:37,960 --> 00:21:41,960 course of the next couple of years. Crystal balling is is some of these 264 00:21:41,000 --> 00:21:48,359 smaller local producers that may have been able to hold on through COVID because of 265 00:21:48,640 --> 00:21:52,039 a lot of the government assistance programs that were available, you know, are 266 00:21:52,279 --> 00:21:53,880 really facing or reckoning. And I think, you know, unfortunately, we 267 00:21:53,920 --> 00:21:59,480 are going to see some smaller independent breweries close. But what we're probably going 268 00:21:59,519 --> 00:22:03,759 to see is some of the larger players in the brewery space in Illinois opening 269 00:22:03,839 --> 00:22:07,319 second or third locations. And we're already kind of starting to see that a 270 00:22:07,359 --> 00:22:12,559 little bit um but so passing something like this is even more important because if 271 00:22:12,599 --> 00:22:17,920 they're already operating at a large production facility, it's silly to brew small, 272 00:22:18,480 --> 00:22:23,519 small batches at the local tap room just because of economies of scale. I'm 273 00:22:23,559 --> 00:22:30,359 sure the status quo would love to see these bills fail. What can a 274 00:22:30,519 --> 00:22:37,720 consumer do to you know, what should we all contact our local congress people, 275 00:22:37,759 --> 00:22:41,400 our Illinois senators. What can we do as individuals to help help these 276 00:22:41,400 --> 00:22:45,000 bills along? Yeah, and that's precisely right, is that you know, 277 00:22:45,039 --> 00:22:52,440 these bills are now the product of politics, right, And so, um, 278 00:22:52,000 --> 00:22:56,160 I love my job because I represent small independent businesses in Illinois, and 279 00:22:56,759 --> 00:23:03,039 really the juxtaposition is small, local pen at businesses versus these multi billion dollars 280 00:23:03,119 --> 00:23:06,799 distribution companies and that and that, and that's what we're dealing with here in 281 00:23:06,839 --> 00:23:10,200 the state. And so it's really going to take a grassroots effort and all 282 00:23:10,240 --> 00:23:15,480 the folks listening to this podcast sending a quick message to your house member and 283 00:23:15,559 --> 00:23:18,920 your senator, your Illinois house member and Illinois senator saying, hey, we 284 00:23:19,000 --> 00:23:26,039 want to see direct consumer beer shipping legalized, and hey, it's silly that 285 00:23:26,079 --> 00:23:30,559 we're putting restrictions on breweries moving a beer between locations. Because when we lose 286 00:23:30,599 --> 00:23:36,039 that brewery in our neighborhood, that place has gone forever. And that is 287 00:23:36,079 --> 00:23:40,640 a community center, and that is a gathering point for towns and villages and 288 00:23:40,680 --> 00:23:45,680 cities across the state of Illinois. And you know, we've seen whole villages 289 00:23:45,759 --> 00:23:49,279 pop up around the existence of a craft brewery. And that's why this industry 290 00:23:49,359 --> 00:23:53,759 is pretty cool. Yeah, exactly. Well, great, I appreciate you 291 00:23:53,839 --> 00:23:59,480 coming on to talk about these two bills. If anyone wants to know more, 292 00:24:00,400 --> 00:24:03,799 where can they find it? Yeah, so you could always find out 293 00:24:03,799 --> 00:24:08,759 information on Illinois Beer dot org and then you could also follow us an Illinois 294 00:24:08,799 --> 00:24:14,519 craft Beer on Facebook and Instagram. Now, we were talking before we hit 295 00:24:14,599 --> 00:24:19,000 record about a couple other things. Is there anything else you'd like to bring 296 00:24:19,079 --> 00:24:23,680 up? Yeah, you know, I was talking before about how much I 297 00:24:23,759 --> 00:24:29,480 love the reviews that you do. And you know, one of the things 298 00:24:29,480 --> 00:24:32,519 that I saw you do is is the hard Mountain dew and thank you for 299 00:24:32,599 --> 00:24:34,039 doing it, because I had not to try it myself, even though I 300 00:24:34,079 --> 00:24:38,480 see it all the time in the stores. And you know, one bill 301 00:24:38,599 --> 00:24:44,440 that is actually sitting before the Illinois Legislature has to do with the merchandising of 302 00:24:44,920 --> 00:24:48,319 of products like that, and I think it's incredibly important because the last thing 303 00:24:48,359 --> 00:24:52,680 we want to do is promote underage drinking here in the state. And so 304 00:24:52,079 --> 00:24:56,559 you know, right now it is legal to put your hard cat can't your 305 00:24:56,599 --> 00:25:00,599 can of hard mountain dew right next to a regular mountain dew on the shelves 306 00:25:00,599 --> 00:25:04,079 and stores, and you know, we think that sends the wrong message to 307 00:25:04,599 --> 00:25:07,960 consumers, and they're definitely the wrong message to kids. So um, there's 308 00:25:07,960 --> 00:25:14,720 a bill right now that that forces the separation of these alcoholic products masquerading as 309 00:25:15,119 --> 00:25:19,000 pop from from soda and soft drink products, and so that that's something that's 310 00:25:19,000 --> 00:25:23,079 pretty cool that I think folks should pay attention to. Yeah, exactly. 311 00:25:23,279 --> 00:25:27,039 You know we were talking you know off air. Sunny d is coming out 312 00:25:27,079 --> 00:25:33,880 with a vodka seltzer later this year. I know I haven't seen it really 313 00:25:33,880 --> 00:25:37,039 in the grocery stores, but I know it like a Binnie's. I've seen 314 00:25:37,759 --> 00:25:41,920 Sonic has a hard seltzer that you know, if you're not paying attention, 315 00:25:42,039 --> 00:25:45,720 you would just think, oh, wow, Sonic makes a pop you know, 316 00:25:45,799 --> 00:25:48,440 I could grab this. Uh yeah, it does seem like the line 317 00:25:48,480 --> 00:25:56,279 seem to be blurred between non alcoholic and alcoholic as people are buying stuff based 318 00:25:56,319 --> 00:26:00,960 on like childhood memories. That's that's right. And you know, I was 319 00:26:00,000 --> 00:26:04,400 in the House Executive Committee listening to testimony when this came up, and you 320 00:26:04,440 --> 00:26:07,079 know, one of one of the House members said, Hey, I I 321 00:26:07,119 --> 00:26:11,119 thought I was grabbing a seltzer off off the shelf, and about half half 322 00:26:11,119 --> 00:26:15,440 a seltzer later, I was thinking something was wrong with me. Port she 323 00:26:15,599 --> 00:26:18,759 realized it was alcohol, and so yeah, I know, I'm laughing, 324 00:26:18,799 --> 00:26:21,119 it's serious, but it was. It was. It was a good it 325 00:26:21,160 --> 00:26:23,839 was a good story and a good way to UM, you know, to 326 00:26:23,839 --> 00:26:30,079 to to to show the problematic nature of of of where the space is operating. 327 00:26:30,119 --> 00:26:33,519 Because you know, one last thing is that that that's the main part 328 00:26:33,559 --> 00:26:38,880 of place where the alcohol industry is growing across the United States is these pre 329 00:26:40,039 --> 00:26:44,279 mixed drinks and these heart these you know, high noon type things, and 330 00:26:44,359 --> 00:26:49,480 so you know that category of we're calling RTDs or ready to drink spirits UM 331 00:26:49,559 --> 00:26:52,640 is growing at a rate of you know, thirty forty percent each year. 332 00:26:52,720 --> 00:26:56,480 And you know it goes back to what we were talking about before, is 333 00:26:56,519 --> 00:27:00,240 that there's even less room on retail shelves now for craft beer because that section 334 00:27:00,359 --> 00:27:04,799 is growing exceptionally fast. And you know, you can't knock the hustle, 335 00:27:04,880 --> 00:27:11,720 but you just you definitely need opportunities for consumers to be reached by craft brewers, 336 00:27:11,720 --> 00:27:15,839 and that's why direct consumer beer shipping and self distributions is so important. 337 00:27:17,759 --> 00:27:19,920 Well, right, you're in your car, so I'll let you continue to 338 00:27:19,960 --> 00:27:23,839 focus on the road. I to appreciate you coming on, you know, 339 00:27:23,880 --> 00:27:29,359 I'm sure I'll talk to you pretty soon for Illinois Craft Beer Week. Oh 340 00:27:29,440 --> 00:27:32,599 can't wait. It's gonna be great this year. Excellent. All right, 341 00:27:32,640 --> 00:27:40,640 Ray, take care of yourself. We'll talk to you soon. The first 342 00:27:40,680 --> 00:27:44,680 beer in front is from longtime friend of the show, Sarah, and this 343 00:27:44,839 --> 00:27:51,839 is Revolutions Freedom Lemonade. This is a Session sour ale with lemons and natural 344 00:27:51,920 --> 00:27:56,799 lemon flavors. This checks in at four point five percent alcohol and is rated 345 00:27:56,920 --> 00:28:03,759 three point nine bottle caps over on untapped. I like this one. I've 346 00:28:03,799 --> 00:28:10,480 had it before. Revolution has a few different flavors with this Session Sour series, 347 00:28:10,920 --> 00:28:12,839 but the lemonade is good. I haven't had it in a while, 348 00:28:14,279 --> 00:28:22,920 so let's crack it open. Thanks to Sarah. It pours very nice, 349 00:28:22,000 --> 00:28:26,359 has a nice color. It looks like a beer. But you notice right 350 00:28:26,400 --> 00:28:37,519 away while pouring this big whiff of lemon scent smells very lemony. That's really 351 00:28:37,559 --> 00:28:41,960 good. It's very tart. If you like tart things, I think you'll 352 00:28:42,039 --> 00:28:47,480 like this. You oh yeah, even at the end you get that nice 353 00:28:47,640 --> 00:28:52,960 little you know, pucker your cheeks. It's very tart. I like this 354 00:28:52,000 --> 00:28:57,880 one. Yeah, this is very good. I could definitely see pounding these 355 00:28:57,920 --> 00:29:02,799 down in the summertime. It's low in alcohol, so you could have a 356 00:29:02,839 --> 00:29:07,079 few of them. Say, if you're out at a backyard party or barbecue, 357 00:29:07,440 --> 00:29:12,000 I think you'll do good if you're drinking the Freedom of Lemonade from Revolution, 358 00:29:12,240 --> 00:29:17,519 Thank you, Sarah. Next up or two cent over from friends in 359 00:29:17,680 --> 00:29:22,480 Las Vegas. Ray Ray found a cider from Neutopia in San Diego. This 360 00:29:22,559 --> 00:29:29,279 is called Pog. This has pineapple, blood, orange, and mango. 361 00:29:29,920 --> 00:29:34,279 They use one hundred percent West Coast apples and this checks in at six point 362 00:29:34,319 --> 00:29:40,480 five percent alcohol and has rated three point nine one bottle cap. So let's 363 00:29:40,880 --> 00:29:56,000 crack open Pog. Wow, this really smells good. Like the first wave 364 00:29:56,119 --> 00:30:00,880 that hits me with the aroma is the pineapple, and that's pretty much all 365 00:30:00,920 --> 00:30:04,119 I get out of the aroma. But it looks good, looks like a 366 00:30:04,119 --> 00:30:10,880 regular cider. It's not as carbonated as some others, but let's drink it. 367 00:30:11,079 --> 00:30:15,240 Well, that's really tasty. Well, I don't get as much of 368 00:30:15,279 --> 00:30:19,160 the blood orange. The pineapple and the mango hit me right up front. 369 00:30:21,440 --> 00:30:25,279 Really good. I like this flavor a lot. Yeah, No, I 370 00:30:25,319 --> 00:30:32,319 think that's delicious. Yeah. The mango starting a kind of overtake the pineapple, 371 00:30:32,359 --> 00:30:34,480 and I think I'm getting the blood orange at the end. So there's 372 00:30:34,480 --> 00:30:38,519 a lot going here besides the apples. But I like this and I would 373 00:30:38,519 --> 00:30:42,519 try more stuff from Newtopia. So if you like ciders you're in the San 374 00:30:42,599 --> 00:30:49,680 Diego area, pick up bog from Newtopia and thank you Ray Ray Grandpa Beer 375 00:30:49,759 --> 00:30:56,160 and Sharon sent over a couple and the one I'm having today is dry Heat. 376 00:30:56,839 --> 00:31:02,640 This is a hazy ipa from Kraft House Brewing located in Henderson, Nevada. 377 00:31:02,920 --> 00:31:07,920 Dry Heat is a six point six percent alcohol beer has forty five IBus, 378 00:31:07,960 --> 00:31:11,440 so that's going to be interesting to try from a hazy and it checks 379 00:31:11,440 --> 00:31:26,440 in at three point eight eight bottle caps over on untapped that is they're not 380 00:31:26,559 --> 00:31:30,400 lying when they say hazy. That is haz really good to roma here. 381 00:31:30,400 --> 00:31:34,160 I like the aroma from this. There's good foam, good carbonation to this 382 00:31:34,200 --> 00:31:38,599 one. No, that's rock solid. I like this one. A lot 383 00:31:41,440 --> 00:31:47,960 good flavors to this. They use Citra Mosaic and El Dorado hops so you 384 00:31:48,079 --> 00:31:53,039 get this huge citrusy tropical notes to the aroma and taste. No, this 385 00:31:53,079 --> 00:31:57,119 one's really good. Yeah. I would definitely knock off a few of these, 386 00:31:57,880 --> 00:32:00,240 a couple of things. I think it was sent over some stuff from 387 00:32:00,279 --> 00:32:06,279 Kraft House before. So everything that I've had from them I enjoy. If 388 00:32:06,319 --> 00:32:12,119 you're in the Las Vegas Henderson area, I would definitely check out Kraft House 389 00:32:12,799 --> 00:32:16,960 Darren Henderson. Like I said, this one is called dry heat hazy IPA. 390 00:32:17,240 --> 00:32:21,400 I think it's winner. Put it in the cart. Thank you to 391 00:32:21,559 --> 00:32:28,960 Sharon and Bill Floyd and Pennsylvania sent over some great ones from Pizza Boy in 392 00:32:29,000 --> 00:32:35,240 this one which I'm excited to have now. Tamave Pivo Special is an Imperial 393 00:32:35,440 --> 00:32:43,200 Dark check lagger from poor Man's Brewing in Ephrata, Pennsylvania. This one checks 394 00:32:43,200 --> 00:32:49,160 in at seven percent alcohol has an untapped rating of four point two six bottle 395 00:32:49,200 --> 00:32:52,640 caps. I'm done cracking them open for the rest of the show. You've 396 00:32:52,640 --> 00:32:57,559 had enough of the sound effects. So it pours really nice. It's a 397 00:32:57,680 --> 00:33:02,920 very dark beer. The car urbonation in the foam is not as good as 398 00:33:02,920 --> 00:33:08,640 other beers. This is almost more like a soda pop. It smells very 399 00:33:08,759 --> 00:33:14,480 nice. I get a lot of the dark malts, the chocolate roasted malt 400 00:33:14,519 --> 00:33:21,039 here in the aroma. The smell is fantastic with this. That's really good. 401 00:33:22,000 --> 00:33:27,240 I get all of the malt flavor up front. There's a little sometimes 402 00:33:27,279 --> 00:33:32,039 you get with darker malts stout, you get almost like a raisiny tang type 403 00:33:32,119 --> 00:33:37,640 feel. I'm getting that. But it's a really delicious beer. There is 404 00:33:37,680 --> 00:33:40,759 a ton of carbonation in here. You're just not seeing it in the foam 405 00:33:40,799 --> 00:33:45,400 in the head. This is a really good tasting beer. No, that's 406 00:33:45,400 --> 00:33:49,680 delicious. I could drink this all day long. I don't know if I 407 00:33:49,680 --> 00:33:52,680 would at seven percent, but if I'm off the next day, I could 408 00:33:52,759 --> 00:33:57,920 drink these all day long. This is a really good one. Everything that 409 00:33:57,960 --> 00:34:01,480 Floyd has sent over from Pennsylvania has been top notch. This one, this 410 00:34:01,680 --> 00:34:07,760 Tamave Pivo special if you're in Pennsylvania and you see this one, I would 411 00:34:07,800 --> 00:34:13,039 definitely put this one in the cart from poor Man's Brewing. Thank you, 412 00:34:13,079 --> 00:34:17,480 Floyd. The next beer I'm going to have his courtesy my friend PJ in 413 00:34:17,719 --> 00:34:22,840 Phoenix. He sent over a couple great Arizona beers. He's going to be 414 00:34:22,920 --> 00:34:29,079 on the podcast next week on the pizza episode. But this one I'm really 415 00:34:29,119 --> 00:34:34,559 looking forward to. From Renhouse Brewing. This is a New England IPA called 416 00:34:34,840 --> 00:34:42,880 Spellbinder. This one the gabfback in twenty twenty. It's one other Beer Awards, 417 00:34:42,920 --> 00:34:46,400 so this should be really good. I know my friend over at Spacecastle 418 00:34:46,559 --> 00:34:51,960 DT. All of my friends here for this segment are initials, but DT 419 00:34:52,239 --> 00:34:57,679 said this was his favorite beer, favorite IPA in Arizona, so I'm looking 420 00:34:57,719 --> 00:35:02,840 forward to it. It pours like a New England hazy style. Smells great, 421 00:35:04,199 --> 00:35:10,079 absolutely phenomenal. They use cascade in here along with mosaic and citrus, 422 00:35:10,159 --> 00:35:17,679 so you get a lot of citrusy tropical notes to the aroma. Oh yeah, 423 00:35:19,639 --> 00:35:25,360 no, that's outstanding. This is really good. There's they use some 424 00:35:25,599 --> 00:35:32,360 white wheaton here, so it's not your typical ipa, typical New England. 425 00:35:32,679 --> 00:35:37,159 The wheaton here adds a nice touch to it. I think it's very smooth, 426 00:35:37,400 --> 00:35:44,280 very like creamy almost. It has a really good flavor. No, 427 00:35:44,480 --> 00:35:50,079 that's terrific. This checks in at seven percent ABV. Really good beer. 428 00:35:50,280 --> 00:35:53,840 If you're in the Phoenix, Arizona area, or in an area where they 429 00:35:53,920 --> 00:36:00,800 distribute, I would definitely check out ren House Brewing. Pick up their spellbinder 430 00:36:00,920 --> 00:36:07,000 IPA Thank you PJ. Next up is a beer courtesy of J and K 431 00:36:07,719 --> 00:36:13,519 over it Fuck My Work Life podcast. That's a great show. Check that 432 00:36:13,599 --> 00:36:19,119 out every week. This is a beer from Oceanside, California. It's the 433 00:36:19,280 --> 00:36:25,000 South o Brewing Company. This is Loma Alta. It's a Mexican lager four 434 00:36:25,079 --> 00:36:31,039 point seven percent alcohol. Before I talk about it, what a beautiful can. 435 00:36:31,159 --> 00:36:37,360 The artwork on this can is absolutely outstanding. If I were to see 436 00:36:37,400 --> 00:36:44,239 this at a bottle shop or liquor store, I would buy it without even 437 00:36:44,280 --> 00:36:46,920 knowing anything about it. The font is good, their logo is good. 438 00:36:47,880 --> 00:36:53,159 Really nice packaging on this. I poured it. It's a Mexican lager. 439 00:36:53,320 --> 00:37:01,320 It's very clean looking, very light, good carbonation here, good aroma I 440 00:37:01,400 --> 00:37:06,280 get. There's a little sweetness in the aroma. I don't get a lot 441 00:37:06,320 --> 00:37:13,320 of hops, but you generally don't get backed in your Mexican laggers. That's 442 00:37:13,320 --> 00:37:19,920 really good, very crisp, very clean, a little more on the sweet 443 00:37:19,960 --> 00:37:23,880 side then you would get if you're thinking of Mexican lagger, you're thinking of 444 00:37:24,360 --> 00:37:30,880 a corona or a medello. This is definitely a notch above that. Really 445 00:37:30,920 --> 00:37:37,119 good flavor here, good sweetness. They use Motuca hops, which gives it 446 00:37:37,199 --> 00:37:43,039 a nice lime citrus flavor to it, which is kind of interesting. They're 447 00:37:43,119 --> 00:37:49,920 using New Zealand hops in a Mexican lagger. But this works really well. 448 00:37:50,320 --> 00:37:54,039 Yeah, that's outstanding. Twenty five IBU so it's not very bitter. According 449 00:37:54,079 --> 00:38:00,239 to the brewery website, this is a gluten reduced beer. I wouldn't know 450 00:38:00,320 --> 00:38:05,320 the difference. If I didn't read vaft off the website, I wouldn't know 451 00:38:05,440 --> 00:38:09,159 the difference. I think this is really good. If you're in the Oceanside 452 00:38:09,239 --> 00:38:15,159 area, I would definitely pick this up. This is outstanding. They sent 453 00:38:15,280 --> 00:38:19,840 over in Ipa as well, and I'm going to talk to them actually this 454 00:38:19,920 --> 00:38:22,679 weekend we're going to do a joint thing. They're going to come on my 455 00:38:22,719 --> 00:38:27,199 show. I'm going to come on there. So they sent over a couple 456 00:38:27,840 --> 00:38:31,880 different ones and ipa and then I sent them a few Chicago beers. So 457 00:38:32,719 --> 00:38:37,119 that'll be coming out in a couple of weeks and you should definitely check that 458 00:38:37,159 --> 00:38:40,519 out and check out their podcast. But if you're in the Oceanside area, 459 00:38:40,599 --> 00:38:46,320 I would definitely hit up South O'brewing Company and pick up Loma Alta. Thank 460 00:38:46,360 --> 00:38:51,119 you to J and K. The last beer in front I'm going to have 461 00:38:51,760 --> 00:38:57,840 is a black IPA from Illinois. I couldn't have a show or I talked 462 00:38:57,840 --> 00:39:02,880 to the executive director of the Illinois Kraft Brewers Guild and not have another beer 463 00:39:04,079 --> 00:39:09,079 from our great state. This is from Big Guile and Dryhop. This is 464 00:39:09,199 --> 00:39:16,480 Johnny Quest thinks we're sellouts. This might have been the first black IPA I 465 00:39:16,679 --> 00:39:25,199 had. I remember having this over at Dryhop probably two thousand and fourteen, 466 00:39:25,360 --> 00:39:29,760 I would say, and I thought, wow, this was really good. 467 00:39:30,000 --> 00:39:31,960 I think that was the first time I was ever at Dry Hoop and the 468 00:39:32,039 --> 00:39:37,760 first I've heard of Big Guile. So this started me on my Black I 469 00:39:37,960 --> 00:39:45,280 PA journey and I found too great Illinois breweries that I still drink to this 470 00:39:45,400 --> 00:39:54,000 day. So let's crack open. Johnny Quest thinks we're sellouts. This poor 471 00:39:54,159 --> 00:40:01,159 is great. Really nice foam, I'd say a good two thing, nice 472 00:40:01,760 --> 00:40:09,400 mocha colored foam here. The smell is really good. You get all of 473 00:40:09,400 --> 00:40:14,639 the West Coast ipa hops that they use here. I think they use Cascade, 474 00:40:15,280 --> 00:40:21,400 Simco, Citra and Galaxy in combination with the darker malts. The aroma 475 00:40:21,519 --> 00:40:28,239 smells fantastic. No, that's really good. If you like black IPAs, 476 00:40:28,360 --> 00:40:32,039 I think this will be right up your alley. It's really good. You 477 00:40:32,119 --> 00:40:37,480 get everything right there, you get the dark malts in the flavor, you 478 00:40:37,599 --> 00:40:42,199 get all of the hops. Really delicious. There's a good bitterness at the 479 00:40:42,199 --> 00:40:50,039 back of your tongue. This checks all the boxes for really solid black ipa. 480 00:40:50,159 --> 00:40:52,840 Yeah, that's a winner. It's not very high in alcohol, It's 481 00:40:52,840 --> 00:40:57,280 only five point four percent, so and I'm not sure this is a year 482 00:40:57,400 --> 00:41:00,599 round thing because I don't see it all the time, so you could find 483 00:41:00,639 --> 00:41:06,159 it now. So if you're near Big Guile or Dry Hoop or your favorite 484 00:41:06,599 --> 00:41:12,679 bottle shop, I would definitely pick up. Johnny Quest thinks we're sellouts. 485 00:41:21,199 --> 00:41:23,599 That it's going to wrap things up for this. The one hundred and fiftieth 486 00:41:23,639 --> 00:41:29,800 episode of Beer in Front. I thank you very much for listening. If 487 00:41:29,840 --> 00:41:32,880 you need to get a hold of me, you could email me Dave at 488 00:41:34,159 --> 00:41:38,000 beer infront dot com, or you could find me all over on social media 489 00:41:38,159 --> 00:41:44,800 at beer in Front. Have a great week everyone. Remember next week is 490 00:41:44,840 --> 00:41:51,239 the pizza episode and also sometimes the beer in front of you is the best 491 00:41:51,280 --> 00:41:54,599 one yet. All right, everyone have an appetite for next Wednesday, the 492 00:41:54,679 --> 00:41:57,719 pizza episode will be out.