Deschutes Brewery Supports Homebrewers

Fresh Hops for HomebrewerDespite what the newspapers are reporting Deschutes Brewery supports home brewers.  Somehow it makes sense that the OLCC would throw gas on their fire and resurrect the negative PR after the Jason Evers incident.  You have to wonder if they are in some self-sabotage cycle and are asking to be disband.  This week most of the Oregon newspapers have reported on the OLCC’s resurrection of a dormant law regarding homebrewers and have tied our name to the story. Unfortunately, all but the Bend Bulletin did not call Deschutes Brewery to get their side of the story.

Gary Fish, president and founder of Deschutes Brewery, said:

“The real story is that Deschutes Brewery contacted the OLCC to ensure that a homebrewers forum we were planning during American Craft Beer Week was legal. Given the rules we are bound to as licensee of the OLCC and as a responsible member of the brewing community, we always want to make sure that we understand the intricacies of the OLCC’s regulations. After a three-minute conversation with an OLCC representative, we were told that the agency would call us back with further information. This never happened, and the planned event was dropped as a result.

“The bottom line is that we were attempting to create an event celebrating homebrewing, and our roots in this culture. We were never contacted by any media outlets to clarify this story and the reasons for our inquiry. We hope that these OLCC laws will change in the near future, as recent coverage has suggested, and that homebrewers can continue to share their creations with the world.”

Deschutes Brewery strongly believes in the value and importance of homebrewing, and will continue to support homebrewers whole-heartedly in the future.