Nathan Berrong works at CNN's satellite desk and writes Eatocracy's beer column, "Berrong on Beer." He Tweets at @nathanberrong and logs beers at Untappd.

The beer world has been up in arms this week as word spread that established brewery, Magic Hat, was filing a lawsuit against newly formed West Sixth Brewery, out of Lexington, Kentucky. Both breweries have weighed in and countless others have opined online.

The storyline sounds like a typical one: big corporation bullies the mom-and-pop little guys in order to get their way. But, when you look at both sides, it’s not so black and white.

Here’s the Cliff's Notes version of the story. Magic Hat out of Burlington, Vermont, has been a brewery since 1994 and makes a beer, their flagship, called #9. West Sixth has been brewing beer for about a year in Lexington, Kentucky. The brewery and beer names have little in common but, you don’t have to be a graphic designer to realize the labels are similar.
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Nathan Berrong works at CNN's satellite desk and writes Eatocracy's beer column, "Berrong on Beer." He Tweets at @nathanberrong and logs beers at Untappd.

American Craft Beer Week has come to a close but it’s not the only beer holiday on tap. May has been deemed Session Beer Month, a month-long beer celebration of...restraint.

American brewers have trended toward the extremes in recent memory. Session Beer Month seeks to change that and remind imbibers that beer can be low in alcohol and still maintain the desired complex flavors and aroma of craft beer.
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Nathan Berrong works at CNN's satellite desk and writes Eatocracy's beer column, "Berrong on Beer." He Tweets at @nathanberrong and logs beers at Untappd.

American Craft Beer Week kicks off today, a seven-day event celebrating the awesomeness of craft beer. If there’s ever a week of the year to slow down, take a breather, enjoy yourself with some good company and support something that is truly American, it’s ACBW.

The beer holiday, in its eighth year, should prove to be the biggest yet, with hundreds of events taking place all over the country. The celebration has become so prominent that the U.S. Congress has even passed two resolutions supporting the ideals of ACBW. And although this week is a big deal to beer nerds, the vast majority of people are mostly unaware of it. Here’s to changing that.
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Nathan Berrong works at CNN's satellite desk and writes Eatocracy's beer column, "Berrong on Beer." He Tweets at @nathanberrong and logs beers at Untappd.

Forget the tuba and accordion. Put away the lederhosen, and keep the beer steins on the shelf. The vast majority of today's beer festivals have little in common with the traditional Oktoberfest celebration.
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Nathan Berrong works at CNN's satellite desk and writes Eatocracy's beer column, "Berrong on Beer." He Tweets at @nathanberrong and logs beers at Untappd.

I’m always looking for better beer. I’m not content with run of the mill breweries and with the continued growth of craft beer and new breweries popping up daily, there’s really no excuse for drinking bad beer. But getting the beer from source (brewery) to destination (mouth) isn’t as straightforward as one might think.

Luckily, designers and brewmasters are working together to improve vessel technology. Here are three design innovations to optimize the beer drinking experience.
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Nathan Berrong works at CNN's satellite desk and writes Eatocracy's beer column, "Berrong on Beer." He Tweets at @nathanberrong and logs beers at Untappd.

Today is Good Friday, a day on the Christian calendar that calls to remembrance the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. For Christians, this is a day of sorrow that is often marked with fasting and contemplation in order to bring a constant awareness of Jesus’ death. It marks the last days of the Lenten season - a time in the life of liturgical Christians who deny themselves of something for roughly 40 days as a penitence to Christ.

On Sunday, Christians all over the world will join together in praise marking the resurrection of Jesus and the beginning of the Easter Season, a 50-day celebration filled with feasting, or as my pastor puts it, "eating good food and drinking good wine and beer."

That got me thinking about the Easter season in a totally different way. Although my faith is routinely being challenged and reworked, there are definitely things in the Bible I can fully commit to and support. Love God? Love your neighbor as yourself? Love your enemies? Turn the other cheek? Thou shalt not kill? Eat good food and drink good beer and wine as a way to celebrate the goodness of God? I’m totally on board!
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Nathan Berrong works at CNN's satellite desk and writes Eatocracy's beer column, "Berrong on Beer." He Tweets at @nathanberrong and logs beers at Untappd.

Last week, a class action lawsuit was filed against Anheuser-Busch InBev, claiming that several of the company’s beers had been watered down with the intention of lowering the alcohol level. If the allegations are true, the alcohol percentages advertised on the labels are incorrect, which is a violation of state and federal laws.

CNN affiliate KSDK and other media outlets conducted their own tests on several of the beers in question and found the ABV to match what is listed on the label. This would seem to make the lawsuit bogus, but the plaintiff's attorney, Josh Boxer, stands by the suit and will continue to defend his clients’ allegations.
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Nathan Berrong works at CNN's satellite desk and writes Eatocracy's beer column, "Berrong on Beer." He Tweets at @nathanberrong and logs beers at Untappd.

Monday marks the 57th Presidential Inauguration, where President Obama will once again assume the duties as commander in chief. Many people will judge President Obama’s next four years on how well he handles issues like gun control, the economy, education and our involvement in the Middle East. But for me, I’ll be judging his presidency on what the future holds for the next White House beer.

Last year, the White House released recipes for two of its home-brewed beers under the Freedom of Information Act. When the recipes were released, complete with a video showing the brewing process, I learned a very important thing about our President - the man cares about his beer! And, he shares three very important things that all Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent and Green Party craft beer drinkers care about - where the beer is from, how the beer is made and the quality of the beer.
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Nathan Berrong works at CNN's satellite desk and writes Eatocracy's beer column, "Berrong on Beer." He Tweets at @nathanberrong and logs beers at Untappd.

2012 has been yet another milestone year in the world of American craft beer. There are currently more breweries in operation in the United States than ever before, even surpassing the alcohol boom of the late 1800s. Outdated beer laws are beginning to change and will benefit both brewers and consumers, and a debate began between the little guys and the big boys about what exactly defines craft beer. Oh yeah - there were also some incredible beers made in the last 12 months.
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Nathan Berrong works at CNN's satellite desk and writes Eatocracy's beer column, "Berrong on Beer." He Tweets at @nathanberrong and logs beers at Untappd.

The end of the world is just a day away, and as the crazies prepare for it by stockpiling canned goods and jugs of water, I’m more concerned about which beer I’m going to drink to celebrate the future. You see, the world isn’t really going to end and the Mayans didn’t even predict it would. December 21, 2012, is just the final date on one of the Mayan calendars. According to scholars, the ancient Maya created several calendars and when one ended, another began.

For the Mayans, the end of a calendar cycle wasn’t about death and destruction but about rebirth and newness. December 21 should be about the celebration of what’s to come, not about the doom and gloom of a bygone world. Regardless of which view you lean towards, there’s a beer for you!
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