Politics and the Business of Craft Beer with Tony Magee

This year "Forbes" magazine declared craft breweries “America’s hottest start-up.” But it didn’t come easy. The independents wrestled with Prohibition-era legislation and a distribution system tilted toward “big beer.” One of the major players in the explosion of fancy suds is Tony Magee of Lagunitas Brewing. Magee started his brewery in Petaluma, California, back in the 1990s, opened a Chicago brewery and taproom last summer, and will open a third brewery in Azusa, California, in 2017. The Arlington Heights native is considered an iconoclast among brewers, known for his championing of legal pot and small government. Mark Bazer, host and founder of "The Interview Show" and co-host of "My Chicago" on WTTW joins him for a conversation about the political realities of craft beer.

This program is presented in partnership with the Chicago Reader.