Wisconsin Revokes Minocqua Brewing Company’s Alcohol Permit

A Wisconsin brewery known for its progressive political branding says state regulators have revoked its alcohol permit, forcing a new dispute over licensing, tax compliance and the limits of political speech in the beer business.

Minocqua Brewing Company, based in northern Wisconsin, said it received a revocation notice dated July 15 from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue’s Division of Alcoholic Beverages. According to the brewery’s owner, Kirk Bangstad, the order requires the company to stop alcohol sales by Tuesday. Bangstad disclosed the notice in a post on the brewery’s Substack and said he intends to keep fighting the decision.

The dispute drew wider attention because it came months after the brewery promoted a “free beer” day for when President Donald Trump dies, using the hashtag “#freebeerday.” Bangstad has argued that the state’s action is politically motivated and tied to his outspoken criticism of Republicans and his brewery’s liberal identity.

State officials, however, have cited regulatory violations rather than politics. According to reporting by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel cited in accounts of the case, Wisconsin authorities say the brewery transported and sold beer brewed in Illinois without the proper Wisconsin permits and without paying required excise taxes.

That distinction matters for brewers and distributors well beyond one politically charged brand. Permit rules, state-by-state transport requirements and excise tax payments are basic parts of alcohol regulation, and enforcement actions in those areas can threaten a producer’s ability to keep selling beer. For breweries that move product across state lines or rely on outside production, the case is a reminder that compliance failures can quickly become operational risks and may also draw closer scrutiny from regulators and wholesalers.

Bangstad rejected the state’s explanation in his public statement. “As you can imagine, I’m not taking this lying down,” he wrote. He added that the brewery would fight Wisconsin “tooth and nail” and said officials would have to “pry me out of my taprooms” before he stops selling beer.

He also claimed that political opponents and beer distributors want his company pushed out of Wisconsin. “There’s no doubt in my mind that both beer distributors AND Republicans want me out of this state,” he wrote.

Minocqua Brewing Company has built much of its identity around partisan politics. Bangstad bought the brewery with his late wife, Elizabeth Smith, in 2016. After the Covid pandemic, he recast it as a destination for liberal customers in Wisconsin, marketing what the company calls “#ProgressiveBeer.” Its labels and promotions have featured Democratic figures including Senator Bernie Sanders, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and former Vice President Kamala Harris.

The company has also used social media aggressively to engage supporters and critics. Its Instagram account, which has about 42,000 followers, mixes beer promotion with political messaging and responses to conservative backlash. That strategy helped make Minocqua Brewing Company unusual even in a craft beer industry where branding often leans heavily on identity and local culture.

Wisconsin remains an especially sensitive setting for such a conflict. The state is politically divided, with a Democratic governor, Tony Evers, but a recent history of close presidential contests. Trump carried Wisconsin in 2024 after Joe Biden won it in 2020. In that environment, Bangstad’s business has become both a brewery and a political symbol.

What remains unresolved is whether the revocation will stand and whether the brewery will comply with the order while challenging it. Based on Bangstad’s statements, he does not appear ready to suspend sales voluntarily. If regulators move to enforce the revocation, the case could shift from an administrative dispute into a broader legal fight over licensing authority and business conduct.

For now, the central issue before state authorities appears to be whether Minocqua Brewing Company followed Wisconsin law when it brought in and sold beer produced in Illinois. Bangstad has framed the matter as retaliation against his politics, but the allegations described by regulators point to questions that are common in alcohol enforcement: where beer was produced, how it entered the state, whether permits matched the activity involved and whether taxes were paid as required.

Those questions may sound technical, but they go to the core of how alcohol is sold in the United States. Breweries operate under layered federal and state rules that govern production, shipping, distribution and retail sales. A breakdown at any point can put licenses at risk. In this case, that risk has landed at one of Wisconsin’s most visible independent breweries, where politics helped build the brand but may now be overshadowed by a fight over compliance.