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By Khaleda Rahman
National Correspondent
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A Wisconsin brewery has hit back after officials moved to revoke their permit to operate in the state over alleged tax violations, in the latest challenge for a company whose owner has received criticism over a social media post that appeared to mock the attempted assassination of President Donald Trump.
“Don’t worry, folks. Try as they might, no one can keep the Minocqua Brewing Company down,” the Minocqua Brewing Company wrote on Facebook.
In a July 26 newsletter, Kirk Bangstad, the owner of the Minocqua Brewing Company, stated that he had received a letter from the Wisconsin Department of Revenue that said it was revoking the company's permit to operate in the state. According to Bangstad, the revocation is scheduled to take effect on August 4.
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In the newsletter, Bangstad called the move an "absurd act of heavy-handedness" over minor tax violations.
He vowed to fight the decision. "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 wrote.
Bangstad has since shared multiple posts to social media, asking for support and donations to a legal defense fund. “We’re no strangers to fighting against government to simply do business in our town, county, and now the state of Wisconsin. We’ve ultimately won every battle, but fighting in court costs money, and we simply can’t fight without it,” he wrote on July 29.
The Wisconsin Department of Revenue confirmed to Newsweek that it has issued a notice of a brewer's permit revocation for two of the company’s locations and a notice of an "alcohol beverage warehouse" permit revocation for one of the company's locations.
"The business has until August 4 to appeal and can operate during the appeal process," the department said.
It added that the department's Division of Alcohol Beverages is "dedicated to the fair and consistent enforcement of alcohol beverages regulations in Wisconsin."
"The division is required to follow and implement state law, including ensuring permit holders and licensees follow all applicable laws and regulations," the department continued. "The division takes appropriate actions when these laws are not followed."
Newsweek has contacted attorneys representing Bangstad for further comment via email.
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State Officials Seized Beer in June
The permit revocation follows a dispute that began earlier this summer.
State officials seized all canned beer from the company's locations in Minocqua and Madison in June, alleging it was illegally transported from Illinois without securing the necessary permits or paying the appropriate taxes, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported at the time.
Bangstad said officials seized about $25,000 worth of beer. In a June 14 Facebook post, he said the company sued the Department of Revenue over the seizure.
He wrote that he suspected the move was "just the first steps in attempting to revoke our brewer's permit and put us permanently out of business—not because we're breaking laws, but because we've successfully angered the politically influential alcohol distributors in Wisconsin's Tavern League by selling our beer online, and because I've relentlessly criticized the Department of Revenue's ultimate boss—Governor Tony Evers—for being asleep at the wheel while Trump steamrolls American Democracy."
When contacted for comment, the governor's office referred Newsweek to the Department of Revenue.
Criticism Over Assassination Attempt Post
Bangstad is an outspoken liberal who has become known in Wisconsin and beyond following failed runs for public office and feuds with public officials. He launched a campaign for governor in May but failed to submit enough valid signatures to get on the ballot.
The Minocqua Brewing Company, which he purchased with his late wife in early 2016, has become known for its political branding, including a range of "progressive beer" named after Democratic and progressive politicians.
Bangstad has been involved in a string of legal disputes that have drawn attention in the Badger State and beyond, Wisconsin Public Radio reported last year.
Bangstad, who also founded an anti-Republican super PAC, drew bipartisan criticism earlier this year over a social media post that appeared to celebrate an attempt to assassinate Trump at the White House Correspondents' Dinner in April. The rescheduled dinner was held last Friday.
The post led to agents from the FBI and U.S. Secret Service interviewing Bangstad on April 30.
"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 wrote on the company's Facebook page after the incident. He had previously promised to give out free beer "all day long, the day he dies."
In a response to Newsweek at the time, the company wrote: "Khaleda, you and your colleagues are invited to #freebeerday when it happens. Don't worry, you don't need bullet proof vests. We don't have enough money to hire fake assassins."
In his recent newsletter, Bangstad suggested the move to revoke his company's permit was politically motivated.
"Wisconsin's Tavern League, who represents Wisconsin's largest beer distributors, is known to be a powerful ally to Wisconsin's Republican Party. There's no doubt in my mind that both beer distributors AND Republicans want me out of this state," he wrote.
"Wisconsin's Democratic Party recently disavowed me over a joke I made about giving away free beer when Trump dies," he added.
Bangstad also wrote that during his brief run for governor, the Wisconsin Elections Commission "went through my nomination papers with a fine-toothed comb and invalidated hundreds of signatures which ultimately knocked me off the ballot. Only after I was no longer able to run for Governor was my brewery raided by Wisconsin's Department of Revenue and the beer I made in Illinois confiscated."
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Tobias Meyjes, Shakeema Edwards, and Cristina Diciu.
Update 07/30/26 04:23 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
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