Super Bowl LI (that's 51 to you) is this Sunday, pitting our New England Patriots against sort-of foes the Atlanta Falcons. There are limitless storylines to follow: Will Matty Ice a.k.a Matt Ryan, a Boston College alumni, finally win a ring in his first-ever Super Bowl appearance? Will Tom Brady win his fifth? How epic will Lady Gaga's halftime show be?
The list goes on and on. But since you asked, yes: There is another thread to follow here. And it involves beer.
Because a Super Bowl isn't a Super Bowl without a little friendly competition off the field, some purveyors of craft beer in Atlanta and Boston have decided they won't be selling some suds from the rival city until the dust has settled and an on-field winner has been declared.
A gas station in Gainesville, GA, put up a sign in their store last week reading, "We will NOT be selling any Sam Adam's [sic] until after the Super Bowl. #RiseUp."
To their credit, that is a troll job of Super Bowl proportions. Apparently, and not surprisingly, the move came after the aptly named Viral Chhadua, a store manager, read a piece on the Boston Globe written by the original troll, Dan Shaughnessy, under the headline, "It's hard to get pumped up about a Super Bowl against ... Atlanta."
"I was already pumped that we were in the Super Bowl and matched up against living legends in Bill [Belichick] and Tom [Brady]," Chhadua told ESPN. "Then this article pops up and belittles our sports teams and fan base. I was irritated at the shots this guy took at the fan base and Atlanta as a whole."
Boston Beer founder Jim Koch doesn't seem too fazed.
“We know what it’s like to be superfans of your hometown football team, so there’s no hard feelings,” he said in a statement. “This isn’t the first time we’ve been banned before the big game (eh hem, four rings), and we hope it won’t be the last. We’ll be toasting our hometown team with Sam Adams alongside New England fans everywhere.”
Koch – or whoever is running the Sam Adams Twitter handle – also had a fun exchange with Atlanta-based Coca-Cola, telling them they won't be taking the slight out on them.
Not to be outdone, the Craft Beer Cellar in Fenway put a sign out front taking the boycott one step further.
To be sure, there's no shortage of fantastic local beers to choose from here in Massachusetts. But for what it's worth, Georgia produces some truly excellent beer, too. Just saying.
Screenshot via Facebook.
