Got Beer

A few things happening here… I learned about the Songify app by Khush for iPod the other day, and then I had thoughts about the anti-microbrew Motion 414  that was added to and signed into Wisconsin's budget bill, which got me thinking about how great it is to have such a diverse group of craft / microbreweries in Wisconsin and how bad this motion is. That made me think about the "got milk" campaign, so I thought "Hey! how about got beer". I didn't have an easy way to get a lot of beer mustaches, so I put the music to showing a list of microbrews in Wisconsin instead.

Part of the reason I'm really troubled by Motion 414 is because craft brews and microbreweries are making really great beer with flavors, diversity, and complexity as they become the new wine or an good alternative to grapes. Beer also has a richer history. It's like Wisconsin had found a way to take something back from California after the milk subsidies enabled t to surpass Wisconsin in milk production – and of course make fun of Wisconsin milk in the process (like that was necessary). Wisconsin has a "new wine" now in the form or really great beers that could lead the nation and provide a good alternative to wine – beer that is brewed with love to provide complex flavors for people that wanted more than lite beer (or cheap wine if put into perspective).

So this is just my support for Wisconsin jobs and microbrews that have created t.

More information at Wisconsin Brewers Guild and Motion 414 is also at scribd. Authors of the motion were Senator's Darling and Olsen, with Representative Vos and Meyer.

For those unfamiliar with the milk subsidy. It's basically federal money given to California Milk producers (and others) based on how far they are from Eau Claire, Wis. I pick on California because not only do or did they get the money, they use to (and may still) run ads on TV that make fun of Wisconsin milk and cheese (like that's necessary when they benefit WI – how far away they are). I say "did" because this may have stopped. I'm reading conflicting stories. But it doesn't matter… CA got the subsidies for a long time and capitalized off of it at our expense.

Reference Material – more to be found if you just search and read.

• Motion 414
• Wisconsin State Statue on Alcohol Beverages – Chapter 125
• Midwest Microbrew List – For Wisconsin
• An interesting take on this – at NJ.com
• Controlling the market? – Channel 3000 website
• Another perspective from – The Cap Times
• Perspectives from – State Journal
• Dairy Farms – More on milk
• More on Beer as the New Wine – Dining in DC