Last month the Fair Trade Federation hosted its annual Conference in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Lucky for us because Wisconsin has some great local breweries so, of course, we went out to enjoy a cool one at a nearby beer garden.

My partners in crime, Jennie from Venture Imports and Robin and Jennifer from Global Gifts in Indiana, enjoyed some New Glarus beers including a Fat Tire and Spotted Cow. On my way back to Chicago last week through the state of Wisconsin, I picked up a 12-pack sampler of New Glarus beers to enjoy and to my surprise, in the sampler was a beer I’d not heard of – the Coffee Stout! Featuring FAIR TRADE Just Coffee! JACKPOT!

Could it be a marriage made in heaven? Beer and fair trade coffee? Local brewery? I admit, I liked it. It’s gotten a mix of reviews but I enjoyed my bottle. Sadly, keeping with its local ties, New Glarus beers can only be purchased in the state of Wisconsin so I’m out of luck in Chicago…but the Wisconsin border is close enough and I’m there often enough that I’ll just have to stock up when I return north.

Hmmm…would a Father’s Day gift be a good enough excuse to drive up to Wisconsin?

What do you think of the beer if you’ve tasted it? And if you haven’t, is this something you’d try? Fair trade beer…I like the sound of that!

Cheers!

~Megy