Still more bad news for small businesses as the craft brewing industry has been bottled shut by the government shutdown. For these small hardy businesses the government shutdown means no new brew–and new brew is what craft beer is all about.

Quote:

“The shutdown has closed an obscure agency that quietly approves new breweries, recipes and labels, which could create huge delays throughout the rapidly growing craft industry, whose customers expect a constant supply of inventive and seasonal beers. The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, or TTB, is a little-known arm of the Treasury Department. The agency will continue to process taxes from existing permit holders, but applications for anything new are in limbo. “One could think of this shutdown as basically stopping business indefinitely for anyone who didn’t have certain paperwork in place back in mid-August,” said Paul Gatza, director of the Brewers Association, which represents more than 1,900 U.S. breweries.”

Full story: “Trouble Brewing: Shutdown means no new beer for craft brewers” (knoxnews.com)

(Photo: nettsu via Flickr)