I meant to talk about the new evidence that biofuels are a bad idea when Brian first wrote about it, but I forgot. Today Matt mentioned it, and I was reminded that virtually everyone is ignoring a key aspect of the biofuel land use debate. If I may quote the beginning of the cover story in the current issue of the excellent Mid-Atlantic Brewing News:

Blame drought in Australia and rain in Europe. Blame increased interest in ethanol as an energy source.

Even blame the growing popularity of beer in China.

Those—and more—are reasons to expect higher beer prices in 2008, and why some brewers will be unable to make some beers no matter how strong the consumer demand. Craft brewers face what more than one calls "a perfect storm" of higher costs and reduced availability for both the hops and malt used to make their beers.

"Prices are going to go up... there's just no doubt about it," predicts Jim Busch of Downingtown, Pa.'s Victory Brewing Co. "And some brands will disappear. Other brands will just totally change in their character."

"Brewer owners are going to have to raise their prices," agrees Russian River Brewing Co. founder and brewer Vinnie Cilurzo in Santa Rosa, Calif., "just to stay in business."

"I think this year will be, to use the Chinese curse phrase, 'interesting,'" comments Hugh Sisson, president of Baltimore's Clipper City Brewing Co.

The threat is real, people. You know Tupper's Hop Pocket, right? Well, not this year you won't — ingredient prices have made it not viable to produce.

So, to summarize: changing global climate; baseless biofuel enthusiasm; and the terrifying prospect of a nation's worth of people who look different from use dragging themselves out of poverty — all of these forces are conspiring to make your favorite brand of beer marginally more expensive and/or taste a little less like pine needles.

And what are our prospective presidential nominees doing about this looming crisis? Nothing. There was only one man prepared to stop global climate change, approach biofuels with appropriate skepticism, and exact merciless economic punishment upon the Chinese for drinking beer (instead of attending to human rights). That's right — it was Dennis Kucinich: the Beer Candidate.

Unfortunately for our nation's future, this truth has become apparent too late. Hell, I would've done my best to support a Department of Peace with a straight face if only he'd explicitly pledged to keep beer prices low. I used to think it was just the former that couldn't occur without the latter; now I see that it works both ways.