Since well before statehood, the alcohol trade has been big business in Alaska.
According to the Alaska Alcoholic Control Board, Russians traded alcohol for furs as early as the mid 1700s, while some tribes brewed their own elixir called "hootchenoo."
More than 200 years of barely enforced territorial liquor control laws followed giving rise to numerous bars and a bourgeoning bootlegging industry.
By the late 1800s the hootchenoo supply was only limited by the "means of the purchaser," even though it was technically illegal in the territory.
Meanwhile, breweries in Sitka and Juneau operated open saloons without fear of reprisal from local governments.
At the turn of the century, licensed liquor sales became legal in the territory, and the tax on these sales provided communities with 50-80 percent of their revenue.
Last year, this tax produced $25.3 million in revenues for the state.
In Homer, restaurants with extensive wine lists, a local brewery and 11 area bars cater to a growing tourism industry and the local drinking population.
More than 150 people work in the food and beverage industry in town, ranking it the fourth largest industry in Homer behind retail, education, and health and social services.
Lisa Nolan, co-owner of the Homestead and Fat Olives restaurants, employs more than 50 people between the two — 40 of those are busers, hosts, bartenders and wait staff.
At Nolan's restaurants roughly 20 percent of sales are from alcohol.
The Homestead is known to have an extensive wine list and caters to people — both from town and visitors — that enjoy that level of dining experience, Nolan said.
"Before we bought it (The Homestead), it was much more of a bar focus. It was a place to drink and have food. Now it's a place for food and have a drink," she said.
The Homestead would be a dramatically different place without the wine list and full service bar, Nolan said, but alcohol isn't pushed at the restaurant.
"We're all very conscious of alcohol, very judicious in how we pour," Nolan said. For instance Nolan decided against serving virgin drinks — non-alcoholic versions of mixed drinks like daiquiris and margaritas — to minors.
"I think it sets a bad precedent," she said.
Nolan also asks her servers to inform her of patrons who purchase high-alcohol content drinks, like Long Island ice teas.
If need be, Nolan says, she will approach tables and ask questions of the diners to determine their state.
"Alcohol's great, I enjoy the beverages that go with food," she said. "But you need to be responsible."
Dorotha Ferraro, with the Homer Chamber of Commerce, said restaurants and drinking establishments with character enhance visitors' experiences.
"People comment on all the good restaurants here," she said. "They say there's not enough time to eat at all the places they want to."
And it's not just the people from out of state, she said.
"People in Anchorage and other parts of Alaska say it's great to have a meeting or work here because of the great restaurants," she said.
In 2003, Alaskans and visitors to the state bought 1.2 million gallons of liquor, 1.6 million gallons of wine and more than 14 million gallons of beer.
Half of that money generated from taxes is deposited each year into a fund to prevent alcohol and drug abuse. The other half goes to the general fund and pays for state services such as roads, schools and police.
The bulk of the alcohol sold from a liquor store in Homer comes from one of Elizabeth Parmley's five area liquor stores.
Parmley owns the Grog Shop, the Rum Locker and three seasonal liquor stores on the Homer Spit and has been in business for 28 years.
During the winter she employs 11 people at two stores. In the summer she employs 19 at the five stores.
Parmley said her stores have contributed to many nonprofits on the Kenai Peninsula, and nearly every nonprofit in Homer.
"We do a lot of that stuff," she said. "This has been an incredible community. People have been very good to us."
If the number of liquor stores, bars and restaurants in and around Homer is any indication, its residents and visitors are buying their fair share of alcohol.
There are 34 active liquor licenses in Homer — 11 beverage dispensary (bar) licenses, 10 restaurant, nine package store, one club license (Homer Elks), one brew pub (Alice's), one recreation site (bowling alley), and one brewery license.
Many of these licenses were grandfathered in before the state changed its laws in 1985 setting population restrictions for new licenses.
In Homer, for example, under current laws, there is only supposed to be two bars and two liquor stores.
The next time a new license to open a bar will be issued in the city will be when the population of Homer increases by 21,000 people. Currently, it's just over 4,700.
Homer is also home to the peninsula's only brewery, the Homer Brewery, which is looking to expand its capacity soon.
Brewery co-owner Steve McCasland employs five people throughout the year.
During the winter he brews roughly 450 gallons, or 3,600 pints of ale each week. In the summer months, he brews more than 1,000 gallons of beer per week.
With his current three barrel or 94.5 gallon per session capacity, McCasland brews 11 times per week in the summer to meet demand.
"In the summertime around here there are a lot of mouths to feed," he said. "We are just able to keep up during a couple months in the summer. We have a hard time accommodating our market."
McCasland has ordered a new six-barrel brewing system that will double his current capacity and help service his current market, he said.
"Sometimes we have to tell people 'no,'" he said. "In Homer we don't like to do that. We're still Homer's brewery, and we like being the little brewery at the end of the road."
The future expansion of the Homer Brewery fits the pattern of the eating and drinking industry in Alaska as a whole.
The state had 1,811 eating and drinking places in 2000, with sales projected to reach $982 million in 2001, according to the National Restaurant Association.
The average Alaskan spent $1,546 in 2001 at restaurants and bars — the highest per capita sales figure of any U.S. state besides Hawaii.
Employment in the industry has grown 2.8 percent per year during the past decade compared to 1.8 percent for total employment.
In 2001, 17,300 jobs in Alaska were directly tied to the industry, according to Alaska Economic Trends magazine. That translates into more jobs than oil, construction or the federal government.
By 2001 nearly 8.5 percent of all jobs in Alaska were in the eating and drinking industry.
In Homer, that number is closer to 11 percent and doesn't look to be slowing down anytime soon.
The eating and drinking industry employment is expected to grow by more than 2 percent per year through 2012, according to Trends.
And that means the sale of alcohol in restaurants, bars, liquor stores and breweries should continue to be big business in Alaska, and Homer, for years to come.
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