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Freshness significantly influences the packaged beers I buy. Regular buys are St. Arnold or Austin Beerworks six packs considering they're $6-7 a pop and within a week or two out of the brewery. I mentioned Jai Alai earlier - it's being canned at Oskar Blues in Austin, so it will always be super fresh. Limited releases? Feels great to not need to give a gently caress anymore, other than maybe Atrial. Jester King has achieved their goal of always having their fruited and spontaneous beers available, so there's no need to fuss about it these days.
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Jan 18, 2018 19:43
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Mahoning posted:Zombie Dust is one of the beers I go after whenever I can get it because we only see it in my area maybe 4 or 5 times a year, and the bottles are maybe a week old when I get them. Three Floyds is a pretty drat perfect example of how a brewery was cool 10 years ago is still cool now because they didn't grow too fast. They'd be passe as hell by now if they were in 33 states. Same with Russian River.
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Jan 18, 2018 19:57
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nah posted:Three Floyds is a pretty drat perfect example of how a brewery was cool 10 years ago is still cool now because they didn't grow too fast. They'd be passe as hell by now if they were in 33 states. Same with Russian River. See your user name. Russian River sours are still great.
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Jan 18, 2018 20:20
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Being passe doesn't mean they'd be bad, it just means people wouldn't really give much of a poo poo. Russian River and Three Floyds are very good but they'd be "just another brewery" if they expanded rapidly
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Jan 18, 2018 20:43
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nah posted:Being passe doesn't mean they'd be bad, it just means people wouldn't really give much of a poo poo. Russian River and Three Floyds are very good but they'd be "just another brewery" if they expanded rapidly I would agree with this. It seems there is a sweet spot that you can hit as a brewery where you're big enough that enough people know about you and you can get your product in enough people's hands (and mouths) but not so big that your product ever becomes just another beer sitting on a shelf. Obviously a lot easier said than done, and who knows how profitable being in that sweet spot even is.
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Jan 18, 2018 20:51
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nah posted:Three Floyds is a pretty drat perfect example of how a brewery was cool 10 years ago is still cool now because they didn't grow too fast. They'd be passe as hell by now if they were in 33 states. Same with Russian River. Dark Lord was *the* beer to acquire and trade when I was getting into beer in the mid/late 2000's. 10+ years later and I can't remember the last time I drank DL, or saw someone I know bring DL to a tasting or event. Yeah, people talk about the DL variants you can get at Dark Lord Day, but I'm pretty sure that's just because morons pay hundreds/thousands of dollars for them on the secondary market, and not because they're actually good. By all accounts DLD is consistently a poorly-run event where people go to get utterly shitfaced/trade their whale$ once a year. Those other 364 days a year, Three Floyds barely makes a blip on any of the craft beer social media sites that I participate in. I live 3hrs away from Three Floyds and couldn't even tell you if they distribute to my state, either I've never noticed or just didn't care enough to buy their product. There's over extending your business and then there's stagnating. Three Floyds is already "just another brewery", imho.
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Jan 18, 2018 21:46
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nah posted:Being passe doesn't mean they'd be bad, it just means people wouldn't really give much of a poo poo. Russian River and Three Floyds are very good but they'd be "just another brewery" if they expanded rapidly I'm not arguing that Surly is anywhere near as good a brewery as either of those, but I think they're a pretty good example of expanding into just-another-brewery status. It was exciting when they came to Iowa and later Nebraska, but after awhile, it's just like "Ehhh, I can get something almost as good for a lot less $$$" God, come to think of it, I don't remember the last non-Hell keg I saw on tap around here.
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Jan 18, 2018 21:49
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The "just another brewery" phenomenon is frustrating since more and more breweries keep trying to distro to Texas despite how the battle for shelf space is already brutal, then of course they end up pulling out. Allagash pulled out like a decade ago and having them back here is definitely at the top of my wishlist.
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Jan 18, 2018 21:54
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Sirotan posted:Three Floyds is already "just another brewery", imho. In the Chicago area, they're still the brewery that will come up when you're talking to someone with only a vague interest in beer. "Oh, you like craft beer? Have you had 3 Floyds?" They'll have that for a long-rear end time and it does good for their sales, which are probably 80% from people with that level of interest in beer. So good for them! Personally, I'll very rarely pick up something from them. Maybe a bottle of Behemoth every year (ages awesomely). But with Rev's new wheat pale ale, anything Half Acre brews, and a few other options from places like Pipeworks, Marz, and Maplewood, there's really no reason to buy anything from them. I wouldn't say they've stagnated. I just think there's better options than there were in 2008. E: Surly at least has something like Coffee Bender which is unique. I also think fresh Furious is still one of the best IPAs you can get.
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Jan 18, 2018 21:56
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On top of all that, Dogfish Head is beginning distro here next month and I could not be more ^ ^
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Jan 18, 2018 21:57
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120 just sits on shelves everywhere here! Oh yeah, I should add one key thing about Jester King: turns out it's clever on their part to have double digit bottle count magnums, aka bait that the shitlords eat right up. The limited releases will still sell out, except it doesn't happen as quickly. Win win all around.
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Jan 18, 2018 22:02
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i hear that GF's location in Virginia Beach is really nice and i'm sure the people who work there are great, but at the Virginia Craft Brewer's awards last year i remember a lot of wtf looks when they won a medal, and Alpine and GF are straight-up shelf-turds in Richmond. Smuttynose Baltic Porter, though- that's my shiiiit
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Jan 18, 2018 22:06
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I got a bottle of Dogfishhead 120 minute IPA last time I picked up some beer and holy poo poo this is the best IPA I've ever had. I would drink only this and Rochefort 10 if I could afford it.
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Jan 19, 2018 02:17
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Moatman posted:Dogfishhead 120 minute IPA, holy poo poo this is the best IPA I've ever had. 
Spanish Manlove fucked around with this message at 02:44 on Jan 19, 2018 |
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Jan 19, 2018 02:42
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air- posted:Ballast Point somewhat did the same thing loading up shelves with all those lovely Sculpin variants Regardless of what people think of the variants, Sculpin is still a very good IPA and it seems like people are still enjoying it, even in IPA-saturated places like Portland. The problem with Green Flash West Coast IPA is that it was never that good, which didn't give it much staying power when tastes shifted.
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Jan 19, 2018 03:01
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Am I a horrible person for liking the heat roulette that comes with drinking bottled habanero sculpin?
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Jan 19, 2018 03:27
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Klaus Kinski posted:Am I a horrible person for liking the heat roulette that comes with drinking bottled habanero sculpin? Not at all. I’m super into it.
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Jan 19, 2018 03:33
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Klaus Kinski posted:Am I a horrible person for liking the heat roulette that comes with drinking bottled habanero sculpin? Do the bottles vary that much in intensity? I've only had it once and it was reasonably spicy - about raw jalapeno levels.
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Jan 19, 2018 05:06
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Habanero sculpin tastes gross as hell but it's one of the best cooking beers I've ever used.
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Jan 19, 2018 05:33
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Aramoro posted:It's problem in the UK as well, though not as pronounced as we seemed to have less hot trends that dominate the scene. Small Breweries do great but bridging that gap into mid to large scale without getting labelled a sellout is really hard as Camden Town Brewery found out after being bought by AB InBev. Ironically being called out by arch hypocrite James Watt of BrewDog. Even being stocked in Supermarkets can be enough for some folk to drop a brewery entirely. Saw that exact thing happen with Vocation Brewing up here in the Northwest. soon as Tescos started selling them, they stopped getting bought in the pubs, and thereafter, dropped as a result. Part of the problem with the frankly insane amount of breweries we have ni the UK, and unlike the US, you can get anything from around the country with relative ease.
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Jan 19, 2018 10:49
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danbanana posted:I think what this indicates is that a significant portion of beer nerd culture is heavily focused on trends. That's an issue for a brewery that hits on a trendy beer, booms, and then is left in the wind when the next trend hits. That's doubly an issue for a nationally distro'd brewery because as a general rule, people are going to drink local. If I want a dryer pale ale, I'm not going to get something from a West Coast brewery when I can have a similar- if not better beer- from a local place. I think this is where Brewdog have actually done pretty well. By having a split of their own beer and local and/or international more out there offerings, they make themselves a bit more resilient to people getting bored of Punk IPA and the like. ..also they need to bring back East Coast Crush, because a <5% hazy IPA is a cool and good style.
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Jan 19, 2018 10:57
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Spuckuk posted:Saw that exact thing happen with Vocation Brewing up here in the Northwest. soon as Tescos started selling them, they stopped getting bought in the pubs, and thereafter, dropped as a result. It's weird because it's largely down to prevailing opinion rather than facts. Like people really rate Beavertown and Cloudwater but both were setup with huge amounts of cash. I read the heartwarming tale of how Logan Plant had to slave away as a rock star for 10 years before he could setup the Brewery he always dreamed of. Or Cloudwater with their £10 million starting investment who's consistency is so bad they just give their beers different names instead, oh yes this is an issue 9 DIPA nothing to do with us being unable to make the same beer twice. But Vocation which was setup up be a life long brewer is suddenly a sell out because you can buy his beer in Tesco.
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Jan 19, 2018 10:58
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I have never had a Beavertown I like, like, at all. I cannot explain it.
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Jan 19, 2018 13:56
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Cloks posted:Do the bottles vary that much in intensity? I've only had it once and it was reasonably spicy - about raw jalapeno levels. Yeah, it can vary from hints of spiciness to a pleasant heat that builds up over time to you realizing you've made a horrible mistake on the first sip. quote:sculpin gross I like normal sculpin, it's a good beer that's available pretty much everywhere and habanero sculpin is just that with a slight fruity habanero taste and heat.
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Jan 19, 2018 14:08
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Sculpin is ok Habanero is gross Grapefruit is worse
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Jan 19, 2018 14:14
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unfiltered sculpin tastes like: sculpin
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Jan 19, 2018 14:17
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Mr. Squishy posted:I have never had a Beavertown I like, like, at all. I cannot explain it. I do like Neck Oil on draft, it's a decent safe beer if you're going for a pint down the pub.
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Jan 19, 2018 14:34
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Papa John Misty posted:Sculpin is ok where does the pineapple one rate on your scale?
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Jan 19, 2018 15:03
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I'm generally a fan of watermelon in beer (see: Anderson Valley) but Watermelon Dorado was a borderline drainpour for me E: Yeah that's spot on \/ Real Name Grover fucked around with this message at 15:45 on Jan 19, 2018 |
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Jan 19, 2018 15:38
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Someone here described it as dollarstore candy dissolved in rubbing alcohol and that's honestly pretty close. It's always impressive when a 10% beer is more alcohol forward than vodka.
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Jan 19, 2018 15:43
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Papa John Misty posted:Grapefruit is worse  I like the grapefruit.
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Jan 19, 2018 16:24
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Nth Doctor posted:
Heretic!
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Jan 19, 2018 16:29
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Nth Doctor posted:
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Jan 19, 2018 16:35
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Real Name Grover posted:On top of all that, Dogfish Head is beginning distro here next month and I could not be more ^ I like dogfish head because they make gimmick beer without being godawful like rogue. Im definitely not a repeat customer though.
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Jan 19, 2018 17:41
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Speaking of large breweries, I have a variety pack from Sam Adams in my fridge and I dont think Ill ever stop buying those. Its cool that everyone goes in on IPAs and boston beer co is still just pumping out lager variety packs to fill a niche nobody wants to compete with.
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Jan 19, 2018 17:44
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Control Volume posted:I like dogfish head because they make gimmick beer without being godawful like rogue. Im definitely not a repeat customer though. i cannot remember the last time i saw their beer on tap or in someone's fridge, but i guess it's still getting sent here because i saw cans of Dead Guy recently
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Jan 19, 2018 17:56
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Mr. Squishy posted:I have never had a Beavertown I like, like, at all. I cannot explain it. When they started out, it was pretty hard to get a good US style IPA, and I drank a lot of Gamma Ray. they were also the first UK people to put decent beer in a can... Yeah, that's all I got, their beer is pretty meh.
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Jan 19, 2018 18:23
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funkybottoms posted:i cannot remember the last time i saw their beer on tap or in someone's fridge, but i guess it's still getting sent here because i saw cans of Dead Guy recently I've seen that hosed up pink bottle of donut beer rotting up a few shelves across the UK. I've never even met anyone who's shown the slightest interest in trying it.
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Jan 19, 2018 18:25
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Spuckuk posted:I've seen that hosed up pink bottle of donut beer rotting up a few shelves across the UK. I've never even met anyone who's shown the slightest interest in trying it. It was disgusting by all accounts. Aramoro fucked around with this message at 11:20 on Mar 23, 2018 |
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Jan 19, 2018 18:27
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Have they done one since Grape Guerilla? A bottom-three beer for me
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Jan 19, 2018 18:28
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