Local Cravings for Chinese Beer

Recently I visited my local Brownsburg beer and wings establishment and was very excited to see on the menu “Over 50 Local and Import Beers.” I proceeded to ask the waitress what kind of micros she had and she rattled off about a half dozen types of schnapps. She had no clue what a micro brew was, but eventually listed several standard imports and even a Chinese beer I hadn’t heard of. Is there a big demand for Chinese beer in Brownsburg? Well, this bar is a stones throw away from Wal-Mart, need I say more?

There are many great breweries right here in Indiana, such as; Upland (Bloomington); Barley Island (Noblesville); and my favorite, Three Floyd’s (Munster). There are countless small town taverns scattered all over the state and they are filled seven nights a week with people drinking their Bud, Miller Lite, Corona, Heineken and apparently Chinese beer. Very few of these local watering holes support their home grown Hoosier beers. I know these craft brews can be a little expensive, but if one is willing to pay $4 for a skunked Heineken with dust on the bottle, why not pay $4.50 for a fresh beer that was made with Hoosier labor. What negative image do micro brews have that prohibits good ole’ boys from embracing them? Does this kind of beer have a snobbish image attached to it that scares off potential customers? Or, maybe they are unaware of the quality beer available in their own backyard because they are not given the option to try them.

I have a passion for craft beer. Beer that is made with care by other beer lovers right here in the heartland. I would love to see some of these stale, overpriced beers from every corner of the world replaced with local products. I feel good about paying a little more for a better beer, knowing my neighbors are at work making it.