The 2015 Mash Tour made its final stop for the year in Austin last month. Brooklyn Brewery co-founder and chairman Steve Hindy brought together a panel of Texas brewers to discuss some of the unique opportunities facing the beer industry in their state. Our friends at First We Feast recorded the entire evening for our State of Craft Beer podcast, and they’re ready for you to listen in.
In a time of brewing megaconglomerates and craft buyouts, it was refreshing to hear more from the local-focused breweries of Texas. Our panel– which included Michael Graham, co-founder and beer liaison at Austin Beerworks; Josh Hare, founder of Hops & Grain; Brad Farbstein, owner of Real Ale Brewing Company; John Holl, editor of All About Beer– featured an intense passion for creating beer by Texans, for Texans. Austin Beerworks and Real Ale Brewing company both restrict their distribution entirely to their native state, and have “no plans whatsoever” of expanding further. The Real Ale Brewing company has grown to be the fifty-third largest craft brewery in the country, so this restriction hardly seems to be an issue for their immediate growth.
What else is on the minds of some of Texas’ most intriguing brewers? How does the latest news of AB InBev/SABMiller impact their outlook for the future. Is it as ill-advised to “mess with Texas” as we’re all led to believe? (Spoiler: Yes.) Hear more from all of our panelists by tuning in to the Brooklyn Brewery and First We Feast State of Craft Beer podcast. Listen, subscribe, and catch up on all of the other cities from our 2015 Mash Tour.
