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Tied down by the 'tied house' lawBy Jenny Price
As The Great Dane Pub & Brewing Co. prepares to open a third location at Hilldale Shopping Center on Madison's Near West Side, it's against the law for the microbrewery's owners to serve their own beer. At issue is a set of state statutes -- called "tied house" laws -- that govern a three-tiered system for brewers, wholesalers and retailers of alcoholic beverages. The laws were originally aimed at preventing a monopoly and prohibit brewers that make more than 4,000 barrels a year from selling their own beer at more than two restaurant locations; the Great Dane's output is just a few hundred barrels above that. "We've been a successful business in Dane County and now we're kind of being punished for our success," said Eliot Butler, president of The Great Dane. "We're just trying to write some rationality into the law." There's no bill drafted yet on the issue. Mike Welsh is working behind the scenes for The Great Dane, consulting with groups who could be opposed to legislation, including beer distributors, Miller Brewing and the Tavern League of Wiscon-sin. Welsh, a lobbyist, said he is trying to determine "are we going to have to fight them," and consulting with Butler on what a bill could look like. A spokesman for Miller said the company had no comment on the issue, but members of the Tavern League have concerns about changing the law for brewpubs, according to Scott Stenger, the group's lobbyist. Stenger said brewpubs have lower costs because they don't have to go through a wholesaler as taverns are required to do by law. Stenger said Colorado-based Rock Bottom Brewery failed a few years ago in its bid to get the Legislature to junk the law altogether, which could have allowed outlets of the brewpub chain to pop up all over Wisconsin. Today, Rock Bottom's sole Wisconsin location is in downtown Milwaukee. "When you change the statute, it's not specific to one license or one business or one problem," Stenger said. But Stenger also said The Great Dane is a Tavern League member and it's possible for the group to work with owners to reach a resolution. "At the same time, we don't want to blow a hole in the statutes," he said. "There's a reason they're written the way they are." The goal is to find a niche in the law for Wisconsin-based brewpubs without getting rid of the current system, said Rep. Spencer Black. The Great Dane's new location is in his district and the Madison Democrat said he's willing to introduce legislation that would help solve the predicament. "When it actually opens my constituents will wonder why they can't get Great Dane beer at The Great Dane Pub," Black said. "I think we can make a modest change without upsetting the apple cart. ... It's still a very small operation." Butler is hoping to get a reprieve from the Legislature by late spring. Until then, The Great Dane's new location is slated to serve "brewer-approved" beer from around Wisconsin and the world that have helped inspire its own brews. Despite the media attention the brewpub's situation has attracted -- including a favorable editorial in the Wisconsin State Journal -- Butler said "95 percent of the people that come in will still be surprised." The restaurant plans to post information on special table tents or its menus encouraging patrons to contact their legislators. "We'll have a little fun with it," Butler said. A change in the law could also benefit other microbreweries if they decide to expand their restaurant business, including Gray's Brewing Co., celebrating its 150th anniversary this year, Welsh said. The Janesville brewer will open its first brew pub in Verona this fall -- called Gray's Tied House -- where it will test Gray's products, which include sodas. Black said he doesn't anticipate there will be major opposition to the changes among lawmakers. "You never know in the Legislature what becomes partisan, but I can't imagine what's philosophically partisan about this," Black said. What are tied house laws? States, including Wisconsin, enacted the laws after the repeal of Prohibition to try to prevent monopolies in the alcoholic beverage industry. Tied house laws are a reference to the days when saloons were tied to particular brewers and are part of Wisconsin's three-tier regulatory system for alcoholic beverages, which is based on independently operating brewers, wholesalers and retailers. Jenny Price is a Madison freelance writer. jenny.price@gmail.com madison.com ©2009 Capital Newspapers. All rights reserved. |
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