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Name Change at Yankee Stadium a Win for True Craft Beer

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“The people have spoken. Change has been made…”

Those were the words of Stone Brewing Co.’s CEO and founder, Greg Koch after reading the Deadspin article “Yankee Stadium Has Renamed Its Craft Beer Stand That Doesn’t Have Any Craft Beer” which announced that the stadium had changed the name of one of its beer stands following outrage from craft beer and ball fans.

The topic even caught the eye of NPR writer, Bill Chappell, who titled his post on the subject, “Beer Bust: Yankees Rename ‘Craft Beer’ Stand At Stadium.”

You might have caught wind of the controversy on Major League Baseball’s Opening Day when Deadspin published “Everything Sold At The Yankees’ New ‘Craft Beer’ Stand Is Owned By MillerCoors, And Half Of Them Aren’t Actually Beers” calling out the stadium for naming the stand “Craft Beer Destination.” The inspiration for the post came from a tweet by Amanda Rykoff, who elaborated on the tweet on her blog: Amanda’s World.

The controversy follows the Craft vs Crafty statement made by the Brewers Association, which called for: “…transparency in brand ownership and for information to be clearly presented in a way that allows beer drinkers to make an informed choice about who brewed the beer they are drinking.” Opinions on both sides of the issue can be followed on Twitter (#CraftvsCrafty).

Later on April 13, Rykoff tweeted that the stand name had been changed:

While the name has been changed to the less contentious “Beer Mixology Destination,” promoting the MillerCoors’ beverage blends available at the stand, but the change does nothing for the craft beer fans at Yankee Stadium who would prefer to support craft beer. A beer stand with true craft beer from New York’s small and independent craft brewers would be a home run.

Koch says, “Now let’s speak up and demand real craft beer!”

Andy SparhawkAndy Sparhawk, the Brewers Association’s Craft Beer Program Coordinator, is a Certified Cicerone® and BJCP Beer Judge. He lives in Arvada, Colorado where he is a homebrewer and avid craft beer enthusiast. On occasion, Andy is inspired to write on his experiences with craft beer, and if they are not too ridiculous, you might see the results here on CraftBeer.com.

Andy Sparhawk, the Brewers Association's acting editor-in-chief for CraftBeer.com. Andy is a Certified Cicerone® and BJCP Beer Judge. He lives in Westminster, Colorado where he is an avid craft beer enthusiast. On occasion, Andy is inspired to write on his experiences with craft beer, and if they are not too ridiculous, you might see the results here on CraftBeer.com.

CraftBeer.com is fully dedicated to small and independent U.S. breweries. We are published by the Brewers Association, the not-for-profit trade group dedicated to promoting and protecting America’s small and independent craft brewers. Stories and opinions shared on CraftBeer.com do not imply endorsement by or positions taken by the Brewers Association or its members.