New brewpub law benefits brewers, beer enthusiasts

The December 2007 issue of Capital Region Business Journal featured an article regarding the much maligned, often misunderstood brewpub legislation recently passed by the Wisconsin Legislature.

Unfortunately, the article ignores the merits of the bill and the growth opportunity it provides for Wisconsin brewpubs and instead reports inaccurate information based on insincere rhetoric spread by opponents of the bill.

The Great Dane Pub & Brewing Company welcomes the opportunity to set the record straight.

When the third Great Dane location opened in December 2006 at Hilldale Shopping Center, our customers noticed something was missing - Great Dane beer.

Most were stunned that a state law prohibited us from selling our own beer at more than two locations.

Under the law, brewpubs that produced more than 4,000 barrels of beer annually could not operate more than two brewpub locations where they served their own hand-crafted beer. The Great Dane brews about 4,500 barrels per year.

Essentially, the law "punished" success, artificially restricted economic growth and limited consumer choice.

Two objectives

The Great Dane quickly set out to change the archaic law with two simple objectives in mind:

1. Provide more growth opportunity for brewpubs and the craft brewing industry in Wisconsin and

2. Do so without negatively affecting any current Wisconsin brewer.

With the brewpub legislation that was recently signed into law, the Great Dane family strongly believes we accomplished both goals.

Under the new law, Wisconsin brewpubs can now operate up to six locations statewide and brew up to 10,000 barrels of beer annually — a 150 percent increase over the previous law.

Not only does this allow our patrons to enjoy a Great Dane beer at our Hilldale location, it also provides significant growth opportunity for every single brewpub in Wisconsin and opens the door to increased economic development, job creation and tourism activity associated with the brewpub industry.

Misconceptions

Unfortunately, misunderstanding, fear of change and inaccurate descriptions of the legislation have reflected negatively on the new law - and our business.

The December article that ran in this publication reported the popular myth that the new law would rob traditional, non-brewpub breweries in the state of their ability to sell food at retail to visiting guests if they produce more than 10,000 barrels of beer annually.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

The new law has absolutely no impact on traditional breweries currently operating in Wisconsin. It will not affect their business model or prohibit them from selling food or operating an on-site restaurant.

The only businesses the legislation will impact are brewpubs - and it will do so in a positive manner.

The brewing industry is a vibrant part of Wisconsin's economy, providing billions of dollars in wages, taxes and other economic benefits. The Great Dane would not put that success in jeopardy.

While the new brewpub law does benefit the Great Dane and our customers, it does so only because it was crafted in an effort to enhance Wisconsin's brewing industry and satisfy consumer demand for high-quality craft beer.

Eliot Butler is president of the Great Dane Pub & Brewing Company.