Blog Posts

President Trump announced last Thursday that he plans to impose a 10% tariff on all aluminum imports and a 25% tariff on all steel imports.  This aluminum tariff will dramatically increase the manufacturing costs of American brewers and beer importers.

What is big sky country? This past August, I—along with my colleague Joe Heaton—the Beer Institute’s director of federal affairs–traveled to Sunburst, Montana to lend our hands as part of the annual barley harvest. If you’ve ever been to Montana, you know that the clear blue sky stretches along the horizon for miles. And at night, the sky turns into a blanket of twinkling stars.

In order to provide comprehensive tax relief to America’s brewers and beer importers, Congress recently passed a temporary reduction in federal excise taxes on beer as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), which President Trump signed into law in December 2017. This tax cut is good news for the beer industry as well as for the American economy because the new excise tax rates on beer may help make our industry stronger, more diverse, and more competitive.

Beer is not just America’s most popular alcohol beverage, but it is an excellent ingredient to use when cooking. From soups and stews to main dishes and desserts, beer adds flavor and depth to your favorite dishes. To help you prepare a dish to share with friends when getting together to watch a game, I am partnering with the Beer Institute to provide you with recipes that you can use for your upcoming occasions.

The devastating aftermath of Hurricane Harvey in Texas and Louisiana over the past two weeks has proven heartbreaking, but it has also shown the very best of our country with neighbors helping neighbors, strangers traveling hundreds of miles to aid in rescue operations and millions across the nation donating supplies and funds to help survivors rebuild.

Last month, at the 2017 Beer Institute Annual Membership Meeting in San Diego, I shared with the audience some alarming facts. Beer’s share of beverage alcohol and its production capacity utilization are at historic lows. Now is the time to look for new opportunities to grow, and brewers and beer importers are doing just that.

Did you know that the beer industry provides jobs to nearly 2.23 million Americans across every state and congressional district? Here is the story of the many professionals that are relied upon in order to ensure that we all can enjoy a beer. When you think of beer a brewery might come to mind, but that’s not where beer’s story begins – it actually takes more than 491,800 hard working men and women to supply U.S.

It is an honor to represent America’s brewers, beer importers, and industry suppliers as the President & CEO of the Beer Institute. Today I am excited for two reasons – the Beer Institute is launching its inaugural blog post, and we are celebrating Alcohol Awareness Month by recognizing the great ways in which our member companies promote responsibility.