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The Society of Beer Advocates (SOBA) notes that, as a result of police intervention, festival glasses will not be used at this year’s Blenheim Blues, Brews & BBQs and is encouraging its members not to support the event.
SOBA, whose chief aim is to promote the appreciation of high quality beer in New Zealand, argues that beer, like wine, is best enjoyed when sampled from appropriate glassware.
SOBA is also concerned that the abandoning of glasses at Blenheim Blues, Brews & BBQs may have the reverse effect to that intended. It argues that the use of non-glass substitutes (such as plastic or polycarbonate) will devalue the event and alienate many genuine beer lovers who previously attended the festival to sample a range of beers. SOBA feels that any cheapening of the event in this manner will only enhance its reputation as a ‘piss-up’.
Although news of the glass ban came only recently – and well after stallholders had applied to participate in this year’s event – already a number of craft brewers have expressed a strong reluctance to present their beers in anything other than glass vessels. Some have also stated an intention not to participate in future Blues, Brews & BBQs events.
Meanwhile SOBA feels that the police’s attempts to minimise trouble and maximise safety would be better served if they followed the licensing and policing model employed by the Mount Maunganui Blues, Brews & BBQs - an event which attracts twice the number of people as the Blenheim festival.
While the Blenheim Blues & Brews runs from midday until 7pm (with bars closing at 6pm), the Mount Maunganui event runs from 2pm until 10.20pm (with bars closing at 9.45pm). SOBA asserts that the early finish in Marlborough is in itself a major problem: potential troublemakers don’t stop drinking at 6pm on a warm summer evening, on exiting A&P Park they walk along Maxwell Road to continue drinking in Blenheim’s pubs and bars. SOBA argues that if the event was scheduled to finish after 10pm, as at Mount Maunganui, by then the ambient temperature would have dropped and the vast majority of festival-goers would go home.
SOBA also identifies another advantage to a later finish: policing the event during the evening would be far easier if the crowd - including any potential trouble-makers - was contained within the confines of A&P Park.
Furthermore, although the majority of glass that has to be cleared from the streets around A&P Park after the event comes from broken beer bottles, SOBA notes that nothing is being done to prevent people from drinking on their way to the festival. A liquor ban on the streets of Blenheim on the day would go a long way to alleviating this problem.
Mindful of the money raised for local charities by the running of the event - and the $30,000 loss sustained by the purchase - and subsequent wastage - of this year’s festival glasses, SOBA recommends that those who chose not to attend this year’s Blenheim Blues, Brews & BBQs should consider making a donation to the Round Table instead.
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