North Carolina good guy

It's not uncommon that organizations, charities, or other groups might achieve their stated goals—or fail to—but then straggle on, moot or parasitic.

But, sometimes, there are others that find new purpose for themselves—in a fashion related to their original objective—and thrive, and are relevant.

Take, for example, Pop the Cap of North Carolina.

It began as a grass roots effort to amend the alcohol limit on beer in North Carolina.

Successful at that, it has since retooled itself as Pop the Cap 2.0. Its new mission—promulgated by its organizer Sean Wilson—is to celebrate and promote local beer, and to nurture craft beer culture in North Carolina.

Pop The Cap's focus over the next two months:

Produce and print a 2008-09 North Carolina beer guide. The North Carolina wine industry has a very nice map showcasing local wineries; we're going to make one for North Carolina breweries, brewpubs, beer bars and independent retailers. It should be ready by March.

Showcase North Carolina beer at a 1/29 New York City media event. The North Carolina Tourism Department has asked Pop The Cap to highlight four local breweries at a January 29th after-hours party for national travel, food, and beverage writers.

The event, "The Art of Vacationing in North Carolina," highlights the state's great landmarks, food destinations, wineries, and breweries. Confirmed RSVPs include writers for the Wall Street Journal, Travel + Leisure, Gourmet, and a number of lifestyle publications. Highland Brewing Company and Natty Greene's are two of the participating breweries; we'll finalize details with two other breweries this week.

The goal of this event is to get national and regional media coverage highlighting Mississippi, the best beer state in the South. (Hey now, just seeing if you're paying attention!)

Prepare for the 2009 legislative session. It's never too early to start planning. PTC has its eyes set on updating laws governing beer samples at stores and special events such as farmer's markets and festivals.

Not to sound like a broken record, but the NC wine industry has a lot more flexibility to sample and sell their offerings to the general public than does the NC beer industry. Why? Because the wineries wisely formed a coalition and lobbied for laws that would benefit both individual businesses and the industry as a whole.

More of Pop the Cap's blog here.