Dragging each other down?

[boognish]

Agreed. We need less regulation, not more. Let your product speak for itself. One thing I have noticed is that it seems like a lot of people in this industry come to it from completely different industries which are not related to beverage alcohol. That being said, I may have a different perception coming from the craft brewing industry, which IMO is pretty much the same as this one. Craft brewing has grown by leaps and bounds all without this type of onerous self/government regulation. The market will sort itself out, especially in the digital age with so many blogs and reviewers. In the 90s, there was a big craft beer bubble, very similar to where I see us heading. There were a ton of new entrants on the market, many being started by people looking for a fun and interesting second career that seemed doable. Many of these startups produced crap beer and sold it to a public which wasn't necessarily educated or knowledgeable about what a well made craft beer should taste like. While unfortunate that some consumers had to dig through the garbage to find the gems, the brewers who sold crap beer were culled out, and the cream rose to the top. Were there unfortunate casualties? Sure. However, those who made good beer but went out of business most likely failed for a different reason. Bad marketing, location, etc. We definitely do not need any more regulatory headaches, self imposed or government.

[bpsisk]

heated debate guys!

[bpsisk]

Don,t forget all the history of this country guys and gals. We should be thankful we can make spirits . We have had plenty of regulation in this country , we should be joining together to make this industry stronger . the week are always weeded out And the strong stand together

[Dan P.]

This is a fascinating discussion. As a graphic designer and college professor, the issue of certification comes up quite a bit. Should graphic designers be required to hold some kind of professional certificate? At first blush, the answer would be no, but one could make a compelling argument (and many have) that certification would help elevate the profession. Given the history of distilling, mandatory certification would never work, but I can definitely see a place where voluntary certification by an industry respected body could be of value.

I look forward to reading more about this.

Brian Kolstad

Asotin County Distilling Co.

Certification has to be regulated or somehow officially (state?) sanctioned, otherwise you just get a plethora of awarding bodies which would mostly be just Mickey Mouse money-spinners for whoever owns them.

[Dan P.]

Love this video.

Ha!

Hate this video!

The best that they could do was to cherry pick actually perfectly sensible legislation from wildly disparate parts of the country and put totally lame spin on them.

So, the people of Miami would rather have totally anonymous people selling them unregulated foodstuffs, while driving around in unregistered vehicles, without a driving licence or insurance? What a wonderful idea!

And the good people of Milwaukee would be happy for unregulated businesses (hot rod shop, jackhammer tuning studio, sub-woofer manufacturer) to operate out of the house next door? Anything less would be oppression that would shame Pol Pot!

And balloon advertising! Who could live without it?

Really goofy.

[nick jones]

Beware everyone!

I have contacted the authorities, and Mr. Dan P does not have a license to post his opinions in public. His outrageous ideas have not been approved by the State, and are therefore dangerous and to be avoided.

Nick

[roots]

This is simple. We are not each other's competitors, we are the little ground shrews scurrying under the feet of the dinosaurs. We are trying to carve something out of an ecosystem that has favored big liquor for 70 years. We should be helping each other like crazy and sticking together so we can inherit the earth. Let the drinker decide and not tear each other down no matter what.

That is why everything I post is licenced under Creative Commons. All the brewing and distilling source code, all the technology (except formulations) I publish as open source.

In terms of legislation there are two things I think would help.

1. Fast tracking applications for craft distillers, 12-18 months are common.
2. Allow 2 Litre on site purchases and tastings for craft distillers without a distributor requirement.

Hope this helps and good luck to all of you!

Clay