Of the world’s Top 100 beers, only two are available here. Alabama has some of the most restrictive liquor laws in the nation still on the books years after Prohibition. Free the Hops (FTH) is a grassroots, citizen-driven organization trying to change that. For the second legislative session, the group will try to get state lawmakers to literally free the hops by increasing the limit on alcohol content allowed in beer. But first they have to battle with Birmingham Budweiser.
FTH has asked its members and supporters to join a formal boycott of Birmingham Budweiser products. In an e-mail sent late Tuesday night, new FTH president Stuart Carter says the leadership at the local beer distributor is “still working against the interests of both Anheuser Busch (who, in addition to Bud, brews dozens of beers that are currently illegal under Alabama law) and Alabama consumers. They have indicated that they will again work to prevent our bill, freeing the hops, from passing in the Alabama state legislature.”