‘Think Local, Drink Local’ raises awareness,
emphasizes importance of shopping locally

By Matt Jordan
KyForward contributor
 

The West Sixth Brewing Company played host to the recent “Think Local, Drink Local” event. The Lexington business alliance Local First Lexington sponsored the event to raise awareness for the positive impact shopping at locally owned businesses can have on a community.
 

This event was part of the national “Independents Week” celebrations that encourage people to support their community by shopping at independently owned businesses like West Sixth.
 

Local First Lexington’s Sara Wood organized the event in part to highlight the group’s new member West Sixth, but mostly to raise awareness for what the group is trying to achieve in the community.
 

“We want to get the public involved in Local First Lexington,” Wood said “and show that it’s not just for business owners.” She drew parallels between West Sixth’s push for locally made beer and other stores’ drive to promote music, art and goods made in the community.
 

The Morris Book Shop's Wyn Morris was one of six "celebrity" guest bartenders at Tuesday's event.

People who stopped in for a drink of West Sixth’s original brews might have been greeted by one of a half-dozen “celebrity” guest bartenders, Lexington independent business owners and Local First Lexington members such as Wyn Morris of the Morris Book Shop, who tended bar from 5-6 p.m. Wyn responded to an open call for LFL members to step up and pour beer at the event – even though he had no previous experience doing so. “I worked as a busboy at Dudley’s years ago, but that’s about if for my food service experience,” he said. Wyn added that his only preparation for the event was getting there early to watch fellow LFL guest server Brian Turner of Cricket Press pour beer.
 

The guest bartenders’ friends and customers stopped in over the course of the day to show their support and enjoy some of West Sixth’s original brews. Those looking to come away from the event with a bit more local pride could spend a little extra and take home a West Sixth/Local First Lexington pint glass (both of whose logos are designed by Cricket Press).