California Craft Brewers Join in on Annual ‘Hill Climb’

Nearly 200 brewers and state guild leaders representing all 50 states descended on Capitol Hill last week to meet with members of Congress.  A total of 330 meetings were conducted over the course of a single day. Lead by the CCBA, nine brewers from California held meetings with 26 House and Senate offices. The annual Hill Climb, coordinated by the Brewers Association, is an extremely impactful and valuable opportunity to meet with staffers and members of Congress and convey our industry’s issues and needs. It is a fascinating experience to participate in private meetings with members of Congress in their offices and chat about our industry and the benefits we provide to California. Each meeting helped to further our relationship with members of Congress. We touched on a wide variety of issues, including the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act, the anticipated merger of SABMiller and Anheuser-Busch and funding for the TTB. Many of the conversations included California-specific issues as well.

The day ended with a private beer tasting for staffers at the Rayburn House building. Great craft beer from around the country + 250 staffers = one fun party!

The CCBA also participated in a day-long state guild meeting held the next day.