Those rat bastards

**SmokenScion** · 02-21-13, 04:53 PM

Originally Posted by MaFioSo

I think the biggest problem I had with the law is the fact that licensed brewers do not have the the freedom to distribute their own beer. So as a licensed brewer you can't walk into a bar, speak to the owner and sell him a keg to try it out. You can meet with the owner, he can agree to try out your beer but he has to receive it by a third party (distributor).

So after the agreement, the brewer will ask the owner of the bar who distributes their beer. From that point the brewer needs to contact the distributor.

Generally there is not a lot of competition in beer distribution. i.e. The entire Phoenix-Metro area only has two distributors, Hensley and Crescent. And really they're not in competition with each other. Hensley distributes most of the domestic beers while Crescent distributes mostly imported. i.e. Crescent doesn't distribute Bud light and Hensley doesn't distribute Corona.

After contacting the distributor, the brewer will need to go about making a deal as to what the distributor will charge to distribute their beer. This is where the microbrewery encounters yet another disadvantage. Since the brewery is so small it may be subjected to higher distribution costs compared to what the larger breweries pay.

Once the distributor has the brewers beer in stock, it can finally be ordered by the bar owner.

Now from the distributors perspective, they don't care what sells, if bar and store owners demand it, they will distribute it. However you can't deny that distributors are very loyal to the larger breweries, since 90%+ of their business is done through them.

The right to distribute your own beer would be a tremendous help the micro breweries. They could literally go bar hopping, pitching their beer to owners and offering incentives/credits to get their beer on the shelf or on the beer tap.

Or just removing the practice of offering incentives/discounts and/or enforcing current laws against such.
Also Removing the Beer Lobby would do wonders. As politicians, or "bottom feeders" if you will, could get the true grit.