Kirk Bangstad, owner of the Minocqua Brewing Company in Wisconsin, posted on Facebook back on January 22 that he'd give away "free beer, all day long the day he dies" — referring to President Trump. He even added a helpful note: "Show us this post when it happens in a few months and we'll make good on that promise."
The Wisconsin Department of Revenue just made good on a promise of its own.
The state's Division of Alcohol Beverages has moved to revoke Bangstad's brewer's permits at both his Minocqua and Madison locations, along with an alcohol beverage warehouse permit for one of the sites, effective August 4. The official reason has nothing to do with his social media posts. According to the department, Bangstad was transporting and selling beer brewed in Illinois without the required Wisconsin permits and without paying state excise taxes. State investigators also cited unauthorized retail sales, shipping law violations, and untaxed beer stored in an unpermitted warehouse.
In June 2026, the state seized canned beer from the company as part of its investigation.
Now, Bangstad isn't exactly a stranger to controversy. This is the guy who founded the Minocqua Brewing Company SuperPAC — because apparently craft beer and political action committees are a natural pairing. After the assassination attempt on President Trump at the White House Correspondents' Dinner in April, Bangstad's brewery posted on Facebook: "Well, we almost got #freebeerday. Either a brother or sister in the Resistance needs to work on their marksmanship or he faked another assassination to get a positive news cycle."
Bangstad, naturally, insists the permit revocation is political retaliation. "There's no doubt in my mind that both beer distributors AND Republicans want me out of this state," he wrote on his Substack on July 27. He followed up with the kind of defiant bluster you'd expect: "We're going to fight the state of Wisconsin tooth and nail, and once again, they'll have to pry me out of my taprooms before I stop selling beer to thirsty progressives who come to visit us."
He also mentioned that each legal battle costs him around $100,000 before he even sees a judge, and asked supporters to donate to his legal defense fund. So the guy who gives away free beer to celebrate presidential death threats needs paying customers to fund his lawyers. Business model needs some work.
The "political persecution" angle is a tough sell when the state's complaint is about unpaid taxes and illegal beer transportation from Illinois. Wisconsin doesn't revoke permits because you're obnoxious on Facebook. Wisconsin revokes permits because you're not paying your taxes and running beer across state lines without proper licensing. Those are the kinds of violations that get any brewery shut down, whether the owner posts about Trump or posts about his cat.
Bangstad has until August 4 to file an appeal, and he can continue operating during the appeals process. The Department of Revenue confirmed as much.
Here's the part that makes the whole thing land. Bangstad spent years building a brand around being the loudest progressive in the Wisconsin craft beer scene. He launched a SuperPAC. He promised free beer when the president dies. He joked about assassination marksmanship. He turned every interaction with state government into proof that The System was out to get him.
Then the state found him moving untaxed beer from Illinois and selling it without permits.
When you build your whole identity around being a rebel, it helps if you're actually following the rules you agreed to when you applied for the permit in the first place.
