Yesterday, in an effort to incentivize continued COVID vaccinations, the Governor’s office announced the launch of the “Shot and a Beer” Program, allowing people to get a free beer at participating New Jersey breweries. Unfortunately, this program was enacted with input from only a small sector of the New Jersey craft brewing community, which unfortunately led to the majority of the breweries in this State seemingly excluded from participation. There are two trade organizations that represent the craft brewing industry in New Jersey, The New Jersey Brewers Association (NJBA) is the larger of the two organizations representing over 60 NJ breweries. The Brewer’s Guild of New Jersey (BGNJ) represents about a dozen breweries.

The BGNJ never sought input from any other brewery in the State with regard to the program or the rollout. This led to the unfortunate release of information and reporting that only members (though not all members) of the BGNJ were participating breweries. Once the Special Ruling was issued, it was clear that, despite the initial messaging, ALL New Jersey Breweries were invited to participate in the program.

We would like to thank both the ABC and Director Graziano as well as the Governor’s Office for working quickly and efficiently to clarify that this opportunity was not limited to the BGNJ’s list As they have been throughout the pandemic, the ABC and the Governor’s Office were responsive and thoughtful. They sought the best way to help the industry survive these difficult times.

What we do find perplexing is how the rollout by the BGNJ is contrary to the efforts the NJBA made to include all New Jersey Breweries in its efforts related to Covid-19 Pandemic relief.

Indeed, during this time, the NJBA made a decision to share all of the information that we had from the ABC, DOH and the Governor’s office with the entire brewing community rather than just NJBA members. Many of the BGNJ members took advantage of this shared information to help them navigate the shutdown and keep their businesses stable. Sadly, the BGNJ does not seem to share the same sense of community – one which we always have believed is at the heart of the craft beer industry. Indeed, we believe that talking over craft beer unites, rather than divides us.

As an organization, we support our members who choose to participate in this program and recognize that some cannot – we support them too. Many of our member breweries are just getting back on their feet from the Covid shutdown and likely are not in a position to offer a free beer to everyone who presents a Covid vaccine certificate. No member’s choice should be interpreted as a political statement, as they simply may not be in a financial position to participate and we ask our community to be understanding of these issues.

We do believe that everyone should get vaccinated and many of our members and their employees have already done so. The NJBA also understands that a Covid vaccination is a personal choice and a medical decision between you and your healthcare provider. This decision should be kept private and should not be subject to outside influence. We are therefore taking a neutral position on this program, allowing our individual members to make the choice on whether or not to participate.

As of today, the following breweries have opted to participate in the program. Stop by for your free beer, and please continue to support all of the breweries. Your constant support has helped us and will sustain us through these challenging economic times.

Any questions regarding this press release can be directed to board@njbeer.com.

13th Child Brewery Alementary Brewing Angry Erik Brewing
Carton Brewing Chimney Rustic Ales Czig Meister Brewing
Death of the Fox Brewing Departed Soles Brewing Double Nickel Brewing Co.
Dr. Brewlittle’s Beer Co. Eclipse Brewing Eight & Sand Beer Co.
Forgotten Boardwalk Brewing Four City Brewing Hackensack Brewing
Man Skirt Brewing Montclair Brewery Neck of the Woods Brewing
New Jersey Beer Co. Tuckahoe Brewing Co. Untied Brewing Co.

Westville Brewery Zed’s Beer