Spotted Cow, Spotted Record
According to this article in the Wisconsin State Journal, a New York City bar owner has been cited for selling New Glarus' Spotted Cow - a cream ale - at his bar in the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Apparently 50 cases of the beer were confiscated from the bar.
Not only does New Glarus not sell their beer outside of Wisconsin, but the bar owner was also in violation of state laws prohibiting the direct purchase and sale of beer without the intermediary of a distributor.
Kinda makes you wonder how - and why - this enterprising bar owner ended up with all of the New Glarus beer - he obviously made the trip over to Wisconsin and picked up 50+ cases of Spotted Cow at retail to resell in his bar. Or someone did on his behalf.
I guess it's a compliment to New Glarus that their beer is being actively sought outside of their own state, but obviously this isn't the way to go about it. As far as I know, New Glarus has no plans of expanding their distribution much to the chagrin of beer geeks far and wide. Still you've got to respect their commitment to quality and keeping a local product intact in the face of obvious demand in the market.
The moral of this story ...? Bigger isn't always better, I suppose. And neither is getting busted for shirking the law.

