Think Drink Local is based in Birmingham, Alabama, and features Stuart Carter from Free The Hops as The Beer Guy.
After arriving in Alabama in 2005 and becoming outraged at the lack of good beer, Stuart soon became a very active member of the local grassroots group Free The Hops, ultimately becoming President of the organization in 2008 as part of the effort to reform Alabama’s antiquated beer laws.
Four influencers in the Alabama beer world:
Susan Hartley from the J. Clyde, Harry Kampakis from Alabev,
Stuart Carter and Jason Malone from Good People.
Photo credit: Beverly S. Taylor
While all of this was ongoing, Stuart was busy working with the J. Clyde to challenge people’s preconceptions about what “beer” is all about, running regular beer education classes (“Beer 101”, as the J. Clyde termed them) for both the customers and the staff of the J. Clyde, and even speaking at Gardendale library (a dry municipality) in an effort to educate people about good beer.
After successfully piloting the 2009 Gourmet Beer Bill into law, Stuart stepped down from Free the Hops’ presidency in 2011 to become the first VP for Media Relations and then a member of the Board of Directors.
Our goal at Think Drink Local is to encourage you to discover, drink and enjoy the wonderful beverages being created right here rather than always looking outside. To that end, Stuart plans and conducts beer tastings, beer pairings and beer dinners at Birmingham venues including Earth Fare, Highland Package Store, Piggly Wiggly and Whole Foods.
You may also see him at The J. Clyde, Magic City Brewfest, local breweries, or any other location selling craft beer!