Don't Be Mean in This Week's 5 Stories Over Beer

5 Stories Over Beer is a weekly article that presents 5 thought-provoking stories about beer and the brewing industry from the week before that you should read. So sit down, grab a beer, and take a few minutes to read 5 stories while drinking a beer. Cheers!

Don’t Be Mean Leads This Week’s 5 Stories Over Beer

1. Don’t Be Mean – Two North Carolina breweries are creating a new beer called the Don’t Be Mean to People: A Golden Rule Saison. The beer is in response to North Carolina’s HB2 law that voids cities’ anti-discrimination rules with the intent to send a message that the new law is wrong. Three dozen breweries have signed up to sell the beer on their draft taps. Cans of this beer will also go to people who have donated to the project’s fundraising campaign. 100 percent of the profit from the new beer’s sales will go to two North Carolina-based groups: EqualityNC, which opposes HB2 as part of its advocacy efforts, and QORDS, which operates summer music camps that focus on gay and transgender youth. Read the full story by NPR by clicking here.

2. 2016 Beer Style Guidelines – The Brewers Association (BA), the not-for-profit trade group dedicated to promoting and protecting America’s small and independent craft brewers, released its annual Beer Style Guidelines for 2016. Constructed yearly by the BA, these guidelines serve as a reference tool for beer experts and judges, highlighting and celebrating beer styles from around the world. Read about the updated guidelines by clicking here.

Courtesy of Brewers Association

3. Mikkeller Brewing San Diego Grand Opening and Meet the San Diego Brewer – In 2006 he was a math and physics teacher that started experimenting with hops, malt and yeast back home in his kitchen in Copenhagen. Today Mikkel Borg Bjergsø, the gypsy founder of Mikkeller Brewing, exports his micro brewed beer to 40 different countries and is internationally acclaimed as one of the most innovative and cutting edge brewers in the world. A while back, Bjergsø took over the old AleSmith Brewing facility in San Diego to create Mikkeller Brewing San Diego. This weekend Mikkeller Brewing held the Grand Opening for Mikkeller Brewing San Diego.

Bill Batten was an integral cog in the AleSmith machine for well over a decade, ascending to the rank of Senior Brewer at the Miramar interest. When AleSmith handed the keys to its original brewery to Mikkel Borg Bjergsø, they also handed over Batten to Bjergsø to ensure the new Mikkeller beers (produced as part of a creative partnership between Bjergsø and AleSmith’s owners) will be great from the get-go when they opened this weekend. Learn more about Bill Batten by clicking here.

Courtesy of Mikkeller Brewing

4. Evolution of Cask Ale – The ever-changing and evolving brewing culture in the United States has taken the cask conditioned-beer tradition and put its own spin on it. American brewers are more likely to add creative or experimental ingredients to the cask, such as fruit, wood, herbs and spices. Is the result evolution or bastardization? Read Nora McGunnigle’s full story by clicking here.

5. 8 Beer Operations that Support the Troops – Independent craft breweries in the United States often contribute to military causes. Read about eight organizations that recognize, support, and give back to soldiers through beer by clicking here.