A Mile Deeper - Courtyard entrenches in Spite of Louisiana Beer Laws

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The Beer Industry League, led by executive director John Williams, has often been at odds with the Brewers Guild. But Guild executive director Cary Koch says that, until recently, it looked like fruitful discussions about self-distribution would take place during the last state legislative session. Koch says there were six meetings that included himself and Williams, as well as attorneys, brewers, and distributors.

Wood adds that “the League promised the Senate Judiciary that they’d work with the brewers to create a bill for self-distribution. We met multiple times and the Guild agreed to all their numbers and caps. They have all the power, so we agreed to all their terms.” Wood himself met with Williams personally three times, as self-distribution was one of Courtyard’s key growth mechanisms as he planned the packaging line at the second Greenway location.

Two weeks before the bill was to be filed, Koch says that John Williams met with him and said they would no longer support the bill. “He said it was too much work for too little return,” Koch says.

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