The "beer lawyer" talks about community in craft breweries, giving back
Upon graduation from Georgia State University with honors and a degree in political science, Taylor Harper (B.A. ’05, J.D. ’09) knew what he wanted next: a law degree and a career in the military. But life and the law profession had other plans for the adventurous Atlanta native and son of Georgia State Law alumna Lisa Harper (J.D. ’91).
“I was pretty sure I was going into the Marine Corps or Army JAG,” he said.
JAG, or Judge Advocate General Corps, the legal branch of military justice, is some distance from the alcohol and beverage industry where Harper practices now. He represents suppliers including distilleries, wineries, breweries and importers in administrative, regulatory and litigation matters. Harper’s affection and advocacy for the art and business of craft breweries have earned him the moniker “the beer lawyer.” He even writes a popular blog on beer and the law.
An associate at Taylor, Feil, Harper, Lumsden & Hess, he finds himself once again following in his mother’s footsteps: She is a shareholder in the firm.
While in law school, Harper was on the Moot Court board and part of the student Triathlon Association. He enjoyed being taught by some of the same law professors who had instructed his mother years before.
The 35-year-old husband and father hasn’t always been a craft beer connoisseur. He discovered the joys of small batch brewing during a trek to Africa.
“I went to Kenya and had a two-day layover in Belgium,” he explained. “All I’d had up to that point in my life was a Budweiser or a Coors Lite. At a café they brought me a Belgian Tripel. I can remember tasting it and thinking, ‘What is this?!’”
He noted the vast differences there from a normal beer run in the United States: the bottling, the serving and the carefully constructed choices.
“They treated beer as if it were wine,” he said.
When his JAG aspirations didn’t work out and he graduated from law school as the economy was in a serious dip, Harper found himself at a crossroads, wondering where to put his considerable focus.
He’s working both professionally in the beverage industry and personally to lift children out of dire conditions in Africa.
Harper is the chair and president of Maji Mazuri USA, a nonprofit fundraising branch of the African community organization Maji Mazuri (“good water” in Swahili). The funds he raises help children and families mired in poverty in Nairobi, Kenya, by supplying food, education, counseling and health care. The group also provides small loans for local entrepreneurs to enrich the community and promote independence.
Harper enjoys helping others, whether it’s aiding and educating brewers and suppliers or supplying children in Kenya with opportunities for a better life.
“Sometimes people ask why we should help kids over there when kids over here need help,” he noted. “I want to say something. There’s a huge disparity between kids here and there. There are fewer to no resources there. A dollar goes a lot further. If you put a child from Kenya and a child from America side by side, you would see the difference. But I understand. If your heart is open to kids in Kenya, great. If it’s kids in Atlanta, great. Both, even better. There’s no wrong way to help.”
Even while volunteering in Kenya, he found the beauty of brewing beer alive and well.
“They produce Tusker, a lager,” he said. “I remember observing how proud people were of their local product. They drink it everywhere over there, and I realized people can commune around a local product and around beer.”
His growing enthusiasm for craft beer led to being an advocate and local legal eagle for artisan brewers.
“It’s almost like the stars were aligned,” he said of the marriage of his personal passion and legal purpose.
Harper’s recommendations for enjoying a local brew during Atlanta’s fair fall weather: Divine Bovine (a milk stout brewed with organic chai spices) from Atlanta’s Red Brick Brewing Company and Autumn Defense by Wild Heaven Craft, brewed in Avondale Estates.
“Craft beer is an art,” he said. “It’s not about funneling 21 Budweisers. It’s about the taste.”
He also suggests the aptly named Taylor Harper Oatmeal Porter, a beer occasionally tapped from 5 Seasons Brewery. It’s a tip of the hat — or a tap of the keg — saluting Harper for his work in helping the small batch beer market grow in Atlanta. He penned the legal arguments that eventually allowed local brewpubs to sell growlers to-go. Previously, a tangle of restaurant and alcohol laws with the Department of Revenue didn’t permit establishments like brew pubs to make “off premises” sales, except through wholesalers. While Harper gives credit to pub owners and the Georgia Craft Brewers Guild for their efforts in getting the DOR to sign an amended regulatory interpretation in March, 5 Seasons Brewery owner Crawford Moran has been quoted in local press saying Harper is “a saint” who “should never have to buy a beer in this town again.”
Learn more: Taylor Harper’s beer ‘n‘ law blog: georgiacraftbeerlawyer.com; Maji Mazuri (Africa): majimazuri.org