In a letter (which you can read here) addressed to the folks behind the Stone2Cbus movement, Stone Brewing Company announced today — after announcing that they will be building their east coast brewery in Richmond and not Columbus — they will be brewing a special beer that will only be released in Central Ohio.
The beer – which they describe as not a consolation prize even though it totally is – will be “an exclusive edition of the bold style of craft beer that movated the citizens of [Columbus] to do such a good job of showing us what Columbus is all about.” It will be an IPA.
In the letter, Stone makes no mention of the reasons for not selecting Columbus, though in a press release issued earlier today they state that Richmond was chosen “because of their ability to meet [Stone’s] extensive site requirements.”
Many have speculated that better tax incentives offered by the city of Richmond, as well as Ohio’s ABV limit, may have been consideration factors in the decision.
Whatever the beer ends up being, I’m sure it will be delicious… but I’m also sure that it will be under 12% ABV.
One Comment on "Stone’s brewing a consolation beer for Columbus"
The 12% ABV limit is ridiculous. I’ve had arguments before with ignorant people who will claim that high-alcohol beers will allow people to get drunk too fast. Never mind the fact that most high-alcohol brews cost close to $1 an ounce – People who want to get drunk fast and cheap are not going to buy a Dogfish Head World Wide Stout (~18-20% ABV). They are going to instead purchase a case of Natty Light or a $6 half-gallon of 42 proof vodka from Kroger. Nearly all wines and liquors are above 12%. I’ve yet to hear a good reason for keeping beer under 12%.
And, this probably did factor into Stone’s decision (albeit a smaller factor). Why would they want to build an expansion facility in a place that wouldn’t be able to brew ALL of their beers? Hopefully the politicians will crawl out from the rock they are hiding under and realize this archaic law needs updated to reflect modern times.