A glimpse at the man behind the beverage

Author: Kacie Sherman

His is a face you'd recognize - you might even know his first name - and if you know either of those, you definitely know his American League allegiance. Joe Controneo is the owner and all-around personality behind Middlebury Discount Beverage, more commonly known as BevCo. Controneo has been a Vermonter since the age of thirteen, previously worked as a beer salesman for the Baker conglomerate (vendor of Coors, Miller, etc.) and bought BevCo five years ago. Controneo only laughed when I asked him to share some of the funniest scenes he had witnessed over the last five years, making it clear that interacting with "the kids" is his favorite part of his job. That, and seeing a group of guys carry a keg concealed in a hockey bag out of the store.

As fun as it might be to have college students as clientele, Joe can't say he has much respect for students' taste when it comes to beer and wine. When asked what his best selling product was, Controneo didn't hesitate. "Busch Light, and I have no idea why," he said.

Controneo's years spent in the industry has given insight into the rise and fall of different varieties' popularity. One of these trends is the development of the thirty-rack - as its concept spread amongst manufacturers, different brands and brews reached new levels of popularity. Whatever the reason, be it taste, price or convenience, College students' choices, and those of all patrons of Discount Beverage, have made Middlebury the second-largest Anheuser-Busch market in Vermont.

The Middlebury Campus: Granted, college students have poor taste, but what is your Discount Beverage of choice?

Joe Controneo: Guinness, it's by far my favorite.

TC: Let's try matching your products with local cuisine…what would go best with Ramunto's legendary garlic pizza?

JC: I haven't tried the pizza myself, but I'd recommend a Heineken - something that can bite back at all that garlic.

TC: Noonie's Purple Pleasure?

JC: Noonie's has my favorite sandwiches. I'd say a nice glass of Chianti.

TC: Curry from Taste of India?

JC: Not a restaurant that I know very well - let's go with Heineken again.

TC: Mae Garden Lo Mein?

JC: I think you'd need a Miller Light with that. Or water.

Controneo's meal and product pairings may have been previously unknown to the average customer, but it is impossible not to know that he's a Yankees fan. And a proud one, too. Growing up in New York (twenty miles from Yankee stadium, in fact) is a valid reason, but Joe admits that his loyalties come out of necessity, too. "I used to get beat up on the school bus when I moved here from New York, would get called a flatlander. I couldn't back down from where I came from".

His foundations of fandom are solid, but Joe is willing to admit that at least half of his public support of the Yankees is for "antagonism's sake." His public allegiance can get him into trouble too, though. After the AL East Playoffs in 2004, Joe had to take a few days off work and start screening his phone calls because of the (good-natured) attention he was getting from Sox fans.

TC: Baseball is a moot point, but do you have a favorite football team?

JC: No, I don't really follow football - the season is too short, and it is too time-consuming. I prefer spending time with my kids. I don't hate the Patriots or anything, though, like I hate the Red Sox.

TC: You're a good golfer yourself, do you have a favorite pro?

JC: I have to say Tiger Woods, he's the only one that's a real athlete, not a fat slob.

TC: This might be a stretch, but what about World Cup soccer?

JC: I had never watched before this summer, but I was rooting for Italy. That is mainly because my brother-in-law is German and we were watching the final games at his house. It's all about antagonism.