Summary: Here at 1 Beer 1 Song HQ, one of the things we pride ourselves in is timely reporting, which is why we've decided to tackle a craft beer topic that was in the headlines almost three months ago. I mean, the topic will remain one of ongoing discussion for the foreseeable future, but this specific story took place in January, 2015. The short version: Lagunitas filed suit against Sierra Nevada over the design of their Hop Hunter IPA packaging, specifically the typography of the letters I-P-A, claiming the design was too similar to Lagunitas's own IPA packaging. To commemorate this bizarre day of scorching hot takes and general bizarreness, we drank both Lagunitas IPA and Sierra Nevada Hop Hunter IPA. Spoiler alert: Of all the things we find frustrating and confusing, the packaging of these beers is not one of them. This is a complex legal topic and one that forces the craft beer industry to look inward and decide how to balance the interests of its individual businesses with the ongoing interests of a growing industry that likes to think of itself as a happy family where everyone is looking out for everyone else. You could easily build an entire podcast series around this topic. Thankfully, you don't need to build an entire podcast series around this topic because we have it all wrapped up in one 42-minute maelstrom of sarcasm, armchair legal analysis, and hyperbolic accusations. Oh, and Russ picked Social Distortion from the board of songs. SOME SHOW NOTES: Just to calibrate your expectations, we don't even start smelling or tasting the beers until around the 15-minute mark. Sorry not sorry for the digital audio weirdness from 16:04-16:12. Buy me a new computer. 18:10 - The "pale stout" I'm referring to here is the Master Of Disguise Imperial Golden Stout from Stone's Stochasticity Project. 23:44 - Somehow the audio cut off a secind early while introducing the song. That explains the "abrupt" transition. 32:56 - Brendan Palfreyman can be followed here: @bpalfrey10. [It's crazy that there were nine other people with a bpalfrey handle who signed up before him.] Seriously, if you're at all interested about craft beer legal topics, follow him.
