Ban of home brew ingredients in rural Alaska?
 

Just came across this news story about some villages banning and arresting people making alcohol.

http://www.adn.com/2011/07/18/1973815/home-brew-ingredients-catch-the.html

I understand in certain areas alcoholism can get out of control but this is off the charts.

Didn't know if we had any alaska brewers to give us a little feedback about this or if it affects them getting supplies.

There have been dry villages in AK for years. They all have different levels of bans. Alcoholism is a big problem in small remote communites and while I disagree with the methods tribal governments are trying to combat it.

The larger populations centers do not have these restrictions, it again applies in most cases to very remote villages.

from the article:

" . . . home-brew, a cloudy, intoxicating liquid often mixed with fruit juice."

Sounds like they're just mixing sugar, water, and baker's yeast and going for it. Someone should tell them to get hold of a decent dry ale or wine yeast and ferment the juice. Maybe I'll quit my job and start running yeast and fermenters to the villages.

If it affects them I doubt they'd want to respond.

The article and/or comments points to the fact that the creators of brew in these communities are going for intoxication, not flavor.

I hope to never live in a community where residents vote to have this or similar "moral" control over others.

Yea, I picked up on that. Much humor dies when it hits the web.

As a former resident I can tell you this is nothing new. As mentioned above, in many of the native villages the elders have banned alcohol of any kind. The State Troopers and the Native Police enforce the ban.
You can be fined and imprisoned for bringing alcohol in to the villages. So for years the natives have been making 'homebrew.' This is little more than prison hooch. It's made in trash bags hung under floor, old fuel cans, yes in a least one case in the toilet. All they want is the alcohol.
This is not even close to what we call homebrew.

THIS. And it is a problem that people contributing to this thread are likely going to be unable to relate to in any significant way. This is Native American tribal governments attempting to control what amounts to a cultural plague. It's of no relevance to our culture, and tribal governments are completely empowered by treaty with the U.S. to exercise control in these matters. Discussions by us are both moot and futile.

This is the type of thing that happens when you try to stay in your ancient world surrounded by modernity.