% AND TALKING WITH ONE ANOTHER IS
% NOT UNUSUAL.
% >> ALSO AT THE CAPITOL THIS
% WEEK, A REPUBLICAN BILL IS
% MOVING FORWARD THAT WOULD MAKE
% NUMEROUS CHANGES TO HOW
% WISCONSIN REGULATES THE SALE AND
% DISTRIBUTION OF ALCOHOL.
% THE CURRENT LAW WAS DESIGNED IN
% AN AGE WHERE GIANT BREWERS
% DOMINATED THE INDUSTRY, WELL
% BEFORE THE BOOM IN MICRO
% BREWERIES AND WINERIES ACROSS
% THE STATE.
% MARISA WOJCIK SPOKE WITH A CRAFT
% BREWERY OWNER AND PRESIDENT OF
% THE WISCONSIN BREWER'S GILD,
% WILL GLASS, WHOSE LIFE WAS
% UNENDED BY THE STATE'S
% CONVOLUTED LAWS.%>> WE STARTE
D THE BREWING
% PROJEKT BECAUSE THERE WAS A VOID
% IN THE MARKET.
% THOUGHT, HEY IF IT'S NOT THERE,
% MAYBE WE SHOULD START MAKING IT.
% >> WHILE WORKING THROUGH THE
% COMPLICATED PERMITTING PROCESS
% TO START HIS BREWERY, WILL GLASS
% FACED A SIGNIFICANT BARRIER.
% >> BECAUSE MY WIFE'S BUSINESS
% HAD A MUNICIPAL LIQUOR LICENSE,
% I WAS NOT ALLOWED TO HAVE A
% BREWERY.%ONE OF THE THINGS TH
AT THEY
% ACTUALLY TOLD US WAS THAT IF WE
% GOT DIVORCED, WE COULD THEN HAVE
% THIS PROBLEM WOULD BE SOLVED.
% WHEN IT CAME TO BE A REAL
% CONVERSATION, BECAUSE AT THAT
% POINT WE WERE OVER A HALF
% MILLION DOLLARS IN INVESTMENT
% INTO THIS BUSINESS, WE ALSO THEN
% FOUND OUT THAT BECAUSE WE HAD
% CHILDREN IN COMMON AND THERE
% WOULD BE A FIDUCIARY
% RESPONSIBILITY BETWEEN SPOUSES,
% THAT MONEY WOULD HAVE TO GO
% BETWEEN US, THAT THAT WOULD ALSO
% CONSTITUTE A BRIDGING OF THE
% TIERS AND MADE US INELIGIBLE TO
% GET A BREWER'S PERMIT.
% >> THE TIERS HE'S REFERRING TO
% ARE THE THREE THAT LARGELY
% REGULATE WISCONSIN'S ALCOHOL
% INDUSTRY.
% >> DEPENDING ON IF YOU WANT TO
% BE A PRODUCER, A WHOLESALER OR A
% RETAILER, YOU KIND OF HAVE TO
% ACT AS ONE AND NOT THE OTHER.
% THERE ARE A LOT OF EXCEPTIONS TO
% THAT.
% I STARTED LOOKING AT THE
% STATUTES A LITTLE CLOSER AND I
% WAS HAVING A CONVERSATION WITH
% MY FATHER.
% I WAS DRIVING TO THE GROCERY
% STORE, GETTING SOME MILK, I WAS
% TALKING TO HIM ON THE PHONE, AND
% HE SAID, WELL, WHAT IF I OWNED
% THE BREWERY, AND I SAID, WELL,
% THAT COULD WORK.
% SO WE BASICALLY MADE A DEAL
% WHERE I TRANSFERRED ALL OF MY
% ASSETS INTO HIS NAME, SO ALL OF
% THE DEBT THAT I HAD TAKEN ON,
% ALL OF THE MONEY THAT I HAD
% SAVED FOR YEARS.
% >> WHEN HE THOUGHT THEY HAD
% DOTTED ALL THE "Is" AND%CROS
SED ALL THE "Ts", ANOTHER
% COMPLICATION SUDDENLY AROSE.
% >> THEY TOLD US "NO" AGAIN
% BECAUSE ONE OF THE MANAGEMENT
% EMPLOYEES THAT WE HAD, HIS WIFE
% WAS A BARTENDER AT A BAR IN
% TOWN.
% IT'S ALL THIS CRAZY STUFF, AND
% IT REALLY IS THE UNINTENDED
% CONSEQUENCE OF PEOPLE NOT PAYING
% ATTENTION TO THE CHANGES THAT
% HAPPENED IN 2011 TO OUR
% INDUSTRY.%WE LOST THE ABILIT
Y TO HOLD
% MULTIPLE PERMITS AT THE SAME%
TIME.
% IT JUST TURNED INTO THIS KIND OF
% RAT'S NEST OF COMPLICATIONS AND
% EXCEPTIONS TO THIS RULE AND
% EXCEPTIONS TO THAT RULE.
% IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO KNOW
% WHAT YOU CAN AND CAN'T DO.
% WE HOST WEDDINGS UP HERE.
% IT HELPS US TO BECOME MORE
% COMPETITIVE.%>> GLASS HAS SPE
NT YEARS PORING
% OUT OF THE STATUTES OUT OF
% NECESSITY.% HE COULDN'T AFFO
RD A LAWYER TO
% INTERPRET THEM, AND EVEN THEN,
% HE DOESN'T THINK THAT WOULD HAVE
% MATTERED.%>> WITHOUT A DOWN
THE, THE
% STATUTES HAVE NOT KEPT UP WITH
% THE MARKET.
% RIGHT NOW, HARD SELTZERS IN THE
% STATE OF WISCONSIN ARE
% CONSIDERED WINE.
% THAT'S AS OF ABOUT TWO MONTHS
% AGO WHEN THE DEPARTMENT OF
% REVENUE DECIDED TO REINTERPRET
% WHAT A HARD SELTZER WOULD BE AS
% OPPOSED TO THE FERMENTED
% BEVERAGE, NOW THEY CONSIDER IT A
% WINE SO IF YOU'RE MAKING HARD
% SELTZER IF YOU DON'T HAVE A WINE
% PERMIT, NOW YOU'RE ILLEGAL.
% THE PROBLEM WITH THE 3-TIER
% SYSTEM IS THAT IT TAKES AWAY A
% LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES FROM
% ENTREPRENEURS.%IT HOLDS UP TH
E ABILITY FOR THE
% MARKET TO CHANGE AND FOR US TO
% BE ABLE TO RESPOND TO THAT.
% >> THE CURRENT BILL SPEEDING
% THROUGH THE LEGISLATURE IS THE
% CULMINATION OF YEARS OF ADVOCACY
% FROM DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE
% INDUSTRY.
% >> THIS PROPOSAL THAT'S BEING
% FLOATED RIGHT NOW WE'RE MAJOR
% PROPONENTS OF, IT WOULD CLEAN UP
% THE VAST MAJORITY OF ISSUES THAT
% I HAVE RUN INTO IN THE PAST, THE
% MAJORITY OF ISSUES THAT OUR
% MEMBERS RUN INTO.
% IT'S LONG OVERDUE BECAUSE THE
% OTHER MEMBERS OF OUR INDUSTRY
% HAVE SPENT SO MUCH TIME IN IT,
% CHANGE IS DIFFICULT.
% CHANGE IS HARD.
% THE FUTURE SYSTEM ISN'T GOING
% AWAY, BUT WHAT THIS BILL DOES IS
% IT CREATES ALLOWANCES WITHIN.
% IT GIVES SMBT ABILITY TO OPEN A
% BREWERY WHEN THEIR WIFE OWNS A
% BAR.
% IT GIVES SOMEBODY THE ABILITY TO
% HAVE SMALL LEVELS OF INVESTMENT
% IN OTHER PARTS OF THE INDUSTRY,
% IN OTHER TIERS THAT'S BEEN
% FORBIDDEN FOR A VERY LONG TIME.
% IT JUST KIND OF OPENS THE MARKET
% UP IN A WAY THAT MAKES SENSE
% TODAY.
% >> REPORTING FROM EAU CLAIRE,