CHARLESTON,W.Va. — Brewers of craft beer in West Virginia asked state lawmakers Tuesday to level the playing field as they try to grow the industry in the Mountain State.
Members of the West Virginia Craft Brewers’ Guild made a presentation to the Joint Committee on Economic Development meeting at the state capitol. They asked lawmakers to streamline their licensing procedures and give them the same opportunities as wine and whiskey makers.
“I think it would be good to benchmark with those industries as well to try and set the playing field level and provide us with the benefits that they have doing their business,” guild member and Blackwater Brewing Company owner Lincoln Wilkins said.
There are currently 11 craft beer breweries in West Virginia with five of those being located in brew-pubs. Mountain State Brewing’s Brian Arnett told lawmakers streamlining the licensing process would tap into untapped potential.
“Drinking is a social thing and it invites people into your community instead of repelling them,” Arnett said. “I think it’s going to draw people from all around West Virginia into the nooks and crannies of West Virginia. I think like nothing else this will bring tourism into the state.”
Wilkins said he’s been in several states where the craft beer industry teams with outdoor activities to make for a strong partnership in promoting tourism.
“These areas have taken full advantage of that synergy, between that outdoor tourism and the craft beer industry, they go hand-in-hand,” he said. “So there’s really an economic benefit to bringing in that outside dollar.”
Arnett agreed.
“Colorado has nothing on West Virginia as far as beauty and all of that. So there’s no reason we shouldn’t be as economically and tourist based as Colorado is,” he said.
The brewers expressed a number of other concerns including the turnaround time to get a new product approved.
A representative from the state Alcohol Beverage Control Agency told lawmakers the ABCA likes working with the craft beer brewers but federal case law places some limits on the industry.
Lawmakers may consider some of the proposed changes in next year’s legislative session.