New Glarus' Deb Carey goes behind the scenes of State of the Union address

White House Press

New Glarus Brewing Co. president Deb Carey sat between Apple CEO Tim Cook and Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber, a row behind First Lady Michelle Obama, at the State of the Union address Feb. 12.

It?s rare for someone outside of Washington, D.C. to get one-on-one time with both President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama, but New Glarus Brewing Co. president Deb Carey shared special moments last week with both.

Carey was part of a select few invited to sit with the First Lady during her husband?s State of the Union address Feb. 12 at the U.S. Capitol building. She sat between Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook and Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber, a row behind the First Lady.

But before the State of the Union address, Carey and her husband mingled and ate appetizers with the First Lady?s other guests at the White House, while a musician played piano in the background. Carey rode in a motorcaid to the Capitol for the speech, while her husband watched from a White House theater.

The First Lady explained that there would be a lot of back-and-forth between standing up to applaud and sitting down during the speech. Carey responded that she would start the wave, like crowds do at sporting events.

After the speech, Carey talked more with the First Lady and met with the president for her second time.

She chatted with the president about the samples of beer brewed in the White House that Obama sent Carey home with in November, after he met with Carey and the rest of the White House small business council to discuss the fiscal cliff.

In 2011 Obama bought a home brewing kit for the White House kitchen. The White House believes the honey ale, brewed with honey tapped from beehives on the grounds, is the first alcohol brewed or distilled on White House grounds.

Carey later sampled the White House brew with a group of military veterans that work at her brewery. They posted video of the tasting on YouTube.

Jeff Engel is The Business Journal's reporter covering the manufacturing industry and technology.

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