I emailed Leigh Maida earlier today about the disturbing rumors of “unregistered” beers being confiscated by the PLCB at Local 44, Memphis Taproom and Resurrection Ale House I’d been hearing about. We had a brief exchange after that and she’s decided to send out the following to the entire local beer blogging community:
So, you’ve been asking (some of you) and you’ve by now probably heard rumors about what went down yesterday at Local 44, Memphis Taproom and Resurrection Ale House. I thought I’d offer this account of the facts, rather than have it turn into sketchy gossip in a few more hours (probably too late for that, eh?)
You may or may not know by now that the PLCB started an investigation against because someone called in a complaint that we are serving beers that are not registered in PA. We have been going through the list of what was confiscated with our lawyers (and the lawyers of our major distributors) today and we are finding out that some pretty popular beers (widely poured around the city) may in fact, not registered be for sale in PA. As the day progresses, more of the list might prove to be unregistered, or more of it cleared up as bureaucratic mistakes, but for now it’s just few, and i think rather than inviting a lawsuit against ME for spreading untruths, I’d rather just let that part of the situation work itself out without using brand names.
Yesterday all three bars were visited by teams of State Police, armed with a list of “un-registered” beers (and guns!).
The beers that were on the “un-registered” list that they came looking for are some really commonly poured beers (some local, some regional) as well as some harder to get Belgian, English and German beers. How these particular beers got on that “to confiscate” list? Not sure. I blame the woeful incompetence of the PLBC itself, but that’s just a personal opinion.
Again, until the lawyers are all done pouring over the lists and double checking things, I might prefer to not list out for you what of our inventory was confiscated. Some of it would make you laugh though. Something interesting to point out, some of what they confiscated at one location, they left alone at another. Some of what they took is listed plain as day on the PLCB list of registered beers, which, if you haven’t made yourself familiar with it, is located here:
http://www.lcbapps.lcb.state.pa.us/webapp/registered_brands.asp
The State Police hold it for the duration of the investigation, and when it comes out that this is all mostly BS, we’ll get it back (hopefully unharmed). This could take 2 weeks or 6 months. Who knows. Every beer distributor with a beer on the confiscated list has been in touch with their PLCB contacts on our behalf, so hopefully that will speed things along.
Personally, two of my many concerns during all of this has been that our employees and guests might now feel like we’re up to something shady (we’re not, swearsies) and, well, perhaps obviously, that there’s someone out there with enough of a grudge against us that things took this course. My goal is to make this whole experience as un-drama-filled as possible. Our bottle lists haven’t been depleted all that severely, though there are a few favorites that we’ll just consider 86′d for a little while.
If nothing else, this will give us a great excuse to hold a couple of “welcome back bottle” weekends at the bars!
All questions welcome, all answers screened by our lawyer, for the time being.
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So, on the same weekend this garbage goes down… for the umpteenth year in a row, bars and their patrons that partake in the handful of Irish themed bar crawls are not held accountable for the populace roaming the streets with open alcohol containers, littering, public urination, public intoxication and general nusance
MANY spelling mistakes, improper brewery listings, not EXACT names. Are we also expected to not be selling these as well? Are we now supposed to check the list before buying? “I’m sorry I can’t buy your XYZ it’s misrepresented on the list as YXZ ”
I saw a post on another site touting that Yuengling’s Black & Tan was not listed. In fact it is listed “BLACK & TAN ENGLISH STYLE DARK BEER – D G YUENGLING & SON INC”
Two of Rogue’s beers are listed under the name “Rouge”
There are many listings that are just too vague to determine which beer they are XYZ Ale, XYZ Lager, XYZ Special.
TJs/Jeff…you hit this squarely on the head. (Your observation on Rogue/Rouge is a classic example)
This is exactly what I was referring to yesterday in my post when I said “…I’ve never put confidence that the fingers that type the entries on the list are getting it right on every line of roughly 3000 beers…” Fact is, it’s just people, not perfection, that enters this information. Of course, there could be a typo on the application from the brewery/distributor that then becomes part of the permanent record.
However, I’m more likely to believe that when you have a data entry clerk responsible for getting info into a system, there’s a much greater chance that the breakdown in data quality will occur at that point. (One of many concerns in my day job relates to Data Quality, so I think I have a fairly good grasp on the subject…yet the lack of it frustrates me to no end still today…this is what I refer to in our culture as “ah, don’t worry, it’s good enough.”)
Nice job, Jack, in getting a healthy conversation going.
I just returned from Belgium to see this shit storm. The three bars are great. All the people involved with these bars are top-notch, honorable people. It sucks that someone with a vendetta against Brenden and Leigh can use governmental agencies to lash out at them. Spineless! I plan on going out of my way to patronize Memphis, et al more frequently. Vendetta boy just boosted his enemy’s business and got them tons of free pub-licity. Join me there for a beer?
I’ll meet you there Tom.
I’m anxious to try Dogfish Sha’tea. That is misspelled on the site, too.
If we’re gonna party, we need a special beer, which shall be called….Vendetta (Gone) Sour Ale.
As a frequent visitor to this blog I like to read the comments, especially in a situation like this, and reflect on both the salient points as well as the nonsense (I find it amusing). I never really thought of posting until now; not because I have such great inside info or anything like that but just an interesting story.
Last Friday I heard rumors from a friend something happened at Memphis/Local/Resurrection, and sat down at my computer after school with a beer to see what happened. When I saw Leigh’s post with the link to the registered beer list, I decided I should check what I was drinking. Lo and behold, my beer was not on the list! It was a beer I purchased in the city a few months prior under the assumption I was a good law abiding citizen…shame on me I guess.
I’m hesitant to list what the beer was. I shouldn’t be since it’s a great beer from a great brewery and should be promoted as such. I will say it is a VERY recent GABF gold medal winner and not from this area. Shouldn’t we celebrate the fact I (or anyone else for that matter) get to sit down on a Friday night and enjoy this beer…without all this PLCB nonsense? The fact I’m not sure I should tell people exactly what I was drinking on a blog only a select few read (no offense intended Jack) is a little disturbing to say the least.
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I’m sorry. I’m stupid and allowed a turdhead a little bit more fun. I dragged some fine brewers into something that didn’t directly concern them. And I helped distract us from the main issue of bad laws and bad enforcement of those laws. Again, I’m sorry.
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Meet you at Memphis soon Tom.
Then I’ll do my regular stop at Local 44 on my way home. 44 is a great beer bar with lots of nice people and bartenders! If it wasn’t I would not be stopping in
about 3 nights a week for at least one!
So did anyone start the “Rewrite the PA liquor code” or “Abolish the PLCB” facebook groups yet?
Done, Kevin. Sending out invites now.
Wow, that was quick Lew. I was hoping you would wind up owning the group. I’m in and will begin helping spread the word.
I don’t understand how it’s the responsibility or bars/restaurants? If they are buying beer from licensed distributors shouldn’t it be the distributors problem?
Iviz2000 (is that Lviz or Iviz?),
It looks like the responsibility of registering the beers is on the brewer or their agent in the commonwealth, not the wholesalers’ or retailers’ responsibility. That said, the law seems to read that if unregistered beers are found on the premises of a wholesaler or retail account (bar or distributor), they are considered “contraband” and are subject to confiscation and subsequent destruction. I don’t know if there’s a fine involved there or not.
So what is seriously being done to about this? Are bar owners, brewers, distributors, wholesalers, and beer writers (Lew, Jack, etc.) going to unite to prove to the state of PA that the PLCB and the states ridiculous beer laws are archaic and need to be abolished or re-written?
What can the average citizen do to help?
Let us keep this in mind –
Anyone remotely condoning the actions of the State police here remember this whole thing is over a $75 fee. Any violation that occurred could easily have been rectified in a VERY simple manner, without taking any beer or causing any hassle.
Absolutley ridiculous!
Laws are laws and stupid laws are stupid laws…let’s help our legislature figure it out!
@Jeff:
The average citizen can write to their elected reps and express their opinion and desires. I wrote to Rep Curry and Sen Washington, my reps in Harrisburg, to express my displeasure. If they don’t agree with me or represent my views in Harrisburg (they don’t appear to to) I’ll vote them out. Rinse, repeat.
@Pete:
What exactly did you say to them?
Quick update, and then I’m going to take our legal advice and shut my trap for the foreseeable future (insert collective hallelujah here).
Some of the really extra legal beer came back tonight. Some still being debated about. LCE Officers, including LaTorre were rather accommodating about it — truly seem like decent people performing a job that is based on a shitty set of wonkily regulated laws.
(Notice how nice my language gets after my lawyer shuts me up?)
I put links to state government (etc) emails, on the home page at all three bars. If you’ve got time, be constructive and proactive and maybe as a group of voices we can all get heard and liquor laws will creep slowly towards the 21st century.
Cheers,
Leigh
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This sucks for all of us. The people that called for being jealous ruined more than just pliny the younger or any other beer. Now its got us on high alert and forcing brewers to register their one offs that they may only send a few kegs of this or a few cases of that thus increasing their already high price. Im not saying thats wrong, or shouldnt be, but its goign to make me and im sure all the other wholesalers in PA think twice about getting a beer in before its registered.
Maybe there should be a “special permit for registering limited quantity beers” in effect.
or a lowered rate since the beers will only be in a limited amount of time and a limited number of cases or kegs will be sent. I’m rambling and by the way… whoever you are that called on Leigh and Brendan, you need to possibly consider, maybe you need to do a little bit more biz with certain wholesalers and create your own niche if you feel you deserve certain beers. We do it like this.. you support said brewery over the year.. your reward is the special beer. You dont, your not inclined… Sometimes, we are asked by the brewery for the sales reports and they make the determination as to who gets what and how much.
Just cause you build it, does not mean they will come…. You have to work it, show you care, believe in the craft beer industry, and then you may get recognition, so long as its genuine.
BV loves M-R-44!
@Jeff: Just ask them what their position is on reform/elimination of the PA LCB. Tell them you are a taxpayer, a citizen and their constituent, and that this is an issue that you care about. If you want to link to an economic analysis or a study that reinforces your position, do that. Lew Bryson has shown some ‘back of the envelope’ calculations that demonstrate that the taxes that are being lost in over-the-border sales would more than offset the loss of revenue for the wholesale sales. The bigger question might be ‘why the heck is the State of PA in the wholesale liquor business anyway?’ What is that about?
While we are at it, can we repeal the Johnstown Flood Tax – 18% on all alcohol, ennacted for a disaster in the 1930s!
http://www.johnstownfloodtax.com/
@Jack and @Smashington
Actually, restaurants are not allowed to have any wine in their posession that is not sold through the PLCB. This is the first time the PLCB has gone apeshit over ‘illegal beer’, but they definitely have crippled the wine industry and have forced wine fans to travel to Delaware, New York, and yes, even the Jerz to purchase from a great selection.
Now, bar owners can request the PLCB to order special wine, but it’s basically the same process, it will get added to this list, but they have to go through the state. If they would find wine in the cellar that wasn’t purchased here, they would definitely dump it.
The only thing that might be an issue is if the wine was purchased years ago before these specific laws regarding importing and storing ‘illegal’ product were in existence. Since beers are generally not as ageworthy as wine (yes, there are some that do go through beautiful maturation, but in general, beers do much better when they are fresh) and in many cases wines dont reach drinkability until years later, so there might be a grandfather clause somewhere for wines that came in before that, but trust me, the bar owners and bev managers who do specialize in wine have as many issues with the PLCB as the beer crowd now does.
Bottom line, they’re screwing everybody. And it’s really not so much an issue of let’s change the law, but why the f$*k they all of a sudden decided to get raw about this. I mean, we had 2 amazing beer weeks with hundreds of events each week, and they’re only now doing this?
Thanks whistleblower. You ruined it for everyone, including your patrons, not just Leigh and Brendan.
As for Leigh and Brandon, see you guys soon. And often.
Facebook group focused on the raids, support for Leigh and Brendan. C’mon over!
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=383329938967
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Anyone tally how much larger the brands list has become the past few days? I’m guessing the office handling brand registration has been busy this week.