Brewing Up Some Business For Texas

Without the immigration reform bill, Belgian-born beermaker Pierre Celis, 66, would probably never have launched his new brewery near Austin. By his estimate, the Celis Brewery should cost $7.5 million before the first pale beer starts to flow, a sum he says he would not have invested without the assurance that he could stay in the U.S. to supervise the business.

If the project lives up to Celis' expectations, he could be a model of how the new law can help the U.S. economy. The plan is to use American ingredients to produce a Belgian-style white beer that will compete with imported beers. Meanwhile, the city of Austin gets jobs, a potential tourist attraction and a local beer -- something it has not had since 1878. Celis finds Texas appealing because it is well located for shipping to both coasts, not to mention that the Lone Star State has plenty of beer drinkers.