"While I am still, and will remain, a practicing Christian, the Hops ought to be free." Demetrius Newton (D) Birmingham, AL
Free The Hops, founded in 2003 by three thirsty Alabamians fed up with the inability to purchase "Gourmet Beer" within the borders of their own state and counties, achieved state recognition by the introduction of HB 196 on March 4, 2008 which would allow such beverages to be sold statewide. Included below is a recording of the House of Representative's session on the bill that was posted on YouTube and mentioned to me by Bill Barton of the Philadelphia Brewing Company. I checked it out and it got me thinking about beer.
Morning Edition,November 13, 2007 · A worldwide hops shortage will make stouts, ales and other specialty microbrews more pricy in coming months.
A triple whammy of bad weather in Europe, an increase in the price of barley and a decrease in hops production in the U.S. has lead to a price increase of 20 percent for the most widely grown varieties, to 80 percent for specialty hops. The shortage is particularly hitting microbreweries, since they use more hops than major brewers.
Industrial brewers like Anheuser-Busch and Miller are more insulated against the shortage because they have futures contracts with hops farmers. The contracts, which help big brewers hedge against rising prices, allow them to buy a quantity of hops for a specific period of time for a certain price.
