Final Gravity: A Beer Zine
Final Gravity is a quarterly print zine about beer and the culture surrounding it published by David Nilsen and Melinda Guerra.
We still think beer is cool, and we still think there are amazing stories to be told in this space. We can’t wait to tell them through Final Gravity.
A new avenue for beer publishing.
When we say “zine,” we don’t mean a typical glossy magazine; we mean an old school, staple-bound, 8.5” x 5.5” paper zine produced in the proud DIY zine-making tradition. This format keeps production costs down, allowing us to pay our writers and artists, but despite this grassroots approach, Final Gravity features professional editing and clean and attractive formatting.
Personal & immersive stories.
Final Gravity exists to tell personal, human-centered stories from the beer world. The zine mostly stays away from reporting and more newsy, industry-level coverage—there are already several great publications providing that—and features writing that is more focused on people, places, cultural intersections, and the holistic ways we interact with and around beer. These stories may be written by freelance beer writers, writers from other fields, or professionals from the beer industry itself who want to tell their stories.
A Commitment to Diversity
We are working hard to make sure Final Gravity represent the true diversity of the beer world and the world at large through stories by and about members of traditionally marginalized groups. Through ten issues, 60% of our writers have been women or non-binary, and 39% have been persons of color. It's quite a contrast from the industry norm.
Giving back.
For every issue, we select a different non-profit in the beer or hospitality industries to support. Our hope as readership grows is to be able to donate a portion of each copy of an issue we sell, but we’re aware early on that might be a really small number. Instead, we’re initially making these donations at a set amount each quarter, and highlighting the organization we’re supporting with you in our pages.
Speaking of support…
How are we funding this whole thing? Great question! This is where you come in. There are a few great ways you can support the dynamic beer writing we publish through Final Gravity:
Order the zine!
The first way you can support us—and yeah, this is kind of obvious—is by ordering the zine. We are also working with breweries, zine shops, and other retailers to stock the zine, so if you see copies out in the wild, please do purchase them there!
2. Subscribe!
Whether you’re an individual, library, taproom, or bar, you can subscribe to receive every issue of Final Gravity as it comes out. We currently offer one-year subscriptions, and you can choose to begin your subscription with our most recent or upcoming issue. You can choose to have the covers laminated—we know how easy it is to spill beer!
3. Patreon!
Probably the best way you can support us is through our Patreon. Our Patreon has multiple tiers to fit different budgets, and they all come with… *drumroll* ...PERKS! You can get beer-related cards and prints, stickers, exclusive Patreon content (that we actually post, we promise), and more. And they all come with a subscription to Final Gravity!
BIG shout-out to our Sponsor level Patreon supporters—Shan Escobar, Alex Rhinehart, and Jackie Holsten, and our Pro Sponsors Fifth Street Brewpub, Gravel Road Brewing, The Beer Scholar, Cocoa Supply, The Beer Blog Villain, Cincinnati State Brewing Program, and Brewing Is Ag! You can get mentioned here, in the zine, and on the Bean to Barstool podcast when you sign on as a Sponsor, our highest level of support.
4. Spread the Word!
We know this sounds perfunctory, but we mean it: you can support us by letting people know about Final Gravity! The idea of a staple-bound beer periodical is somewhat new, and we need to get the word out. Share it on social media, ask your local zine shop, bookstore, or brewery taproom to carry it, tell a friend…It all helps.
5. Become a Stockist!
If you own one of those establishments we just mentioned, we’d love to talk with you about stocking Final Gravity! We can work on either consignment or wholesale, and we have very low minimums, so get in touch. You’ll be supporting independent publishing, freelance writers and artists. Woohoo! Email davidnilsenbeer (at) gmail dot com to get the process started.
6. Advertise or Sponsor!
Final Gravity reaches a passionate and engaged audience of beer writers, brewers, and beer lovers. It’s a small audience for now, we’ll admit, but they love beer. We offer advertising in the pages of Final Gravity and audio ads on the Bean to Barstool podcast, and we offer pro-level sponsorship opportunities through Patreon that include both advertising avenues and social media mentions. If you believe craft beer benefits from independent beer journalism, consider having your brewery, ingredient provider, or related business sponsor or advertise with us! Email davidnilsenbeer (at) gmail dot com to get the process started, or sign up for sponsorship directly through Patreon.