The "grass is greener" mentality

Yes, at the hands of the PLCB.

Edit: But in all fairness, PA does have its fair share of good breweries, like Victory, Troegs, Weyerbacher, etc. So it's not all humbug and frowns.

 

This, exactly this. I haven't been able to try even half of the year-rounders in my local area (within 30 miles). I've probably tried 20% of the seasonals. There's way too much around here to get involved with trading for beers elsewhere. There's probably 20+ breweries in Colorado I have yet to try anything from and that's not without trying! When I travel, I always try as much as I can from that area... but AM usually a bit disappointed.

 

So much new distro in Minneapolis with more on the way not to mention Brewpubs/breweries now canning/bottling grass is real green on my side so much great brew available sitting on the shelf ..good post IMO

 

In rochester we get pretty solid distribution but there isn't a great brewery close to us. I would love having a world class brewery that I could just stop into on a Tuesday and have a great beer from the source.

 

So going to the store to pick up a few bottles is the best way to enjoy a beer? Who knew?

 

I mean I think the grass is def. not greener, unless you're talking about stuff like Alpine or Red Peak

 

The grass is sometimes greener, sometimes not. But it's not so green to warrant the premium (i.e. shipping costs) to get it.

Of course, we all have our one or two exceptions.

 

Good post OP. I am right on the fence with this. I keep telling myself there are so many beers I want to try available in the Chicago area. That said, I still order online and trade. But I find that I am asking myself more often if it was really worth it. The answer for now is that I am narrowing the list of what I want to trade for/buy online down. There are certain beers/breweries that I want from time to time - Surly, RR, Westbrook, Loons and other sours I cannot find otherwise, etc. Would still like to try more from HF. Best of both worlds? Maybe. I am happy that I have so many great options here like Revolution, Half Acre, FFF, Pipeworks and so many new ones that it is hard to keep up.

 

Things are pretty damn good in my part of PA, not far from Philly. Lots of quality breweries in state plus access to Deschutes, Bruery, Alesmith, Russian River, Half Acre, Mission, Hill Farmstead, Central Waters, plus something new all the time. Not mention world class imports.

The grass is dank, sticky, and bright green here imo.

edit: Yeah we have some wierd laws, but it seems like EVERYONE wants to distribute here.

 

The availability/quality of world-class imports is a pretty key factor to me, and often seems to get overlooked.

One thing I love about being on the NJ/NY border is access to both states' distribution systems- each of which isn't too shabby to begin with. If there is a 'fence' I guess I'm just happy jumping over it all the time. In terms of what we can't get here, yeah I may want to try a few things that I haven't had just for curiosity's sake, but other than that I'm really satisfied with what I have access to.

 

I think a similar statement could be made about WI/IL. There's a fair amount of overlap between WI and IL, but enough uniqueness that I'm glad I have access to both.

 

I go through phases where I want to try anything new (like now), or times where I mostly get stuff I like (like two weeks ago).

 

It's not for lack of trying, sadly.

 

Theres enough going on right now that I can usually get a ratio of 1:1 newreviously had and never feel disappointed with what I have available to me here. I almost never get the urge to trade for beers I can't get here.

 

I'm in Philly and I can't complain. We have Monks cafe, Tired Hands and 1 of the 7 Russian Rivers distributors in the country. There is very few things that you can't obtain just by walking out your door if you know where to look. The stuff I can't get is stuff EVERYONE has problems getting ie Dark Lord Day.

 

I try to have a balance between buying beers that I like and trying new beers. Also, I'm fortunate to live in CA where there are ton of great breweries (SN, Russian River, North Coast, Stone, AleSmith, Firestone, BallastPoint, etc.). So, I can go to a BevMo or a couple of liquor stores who specialize in craft beers and easily get great beer. I don't need to trade or keep a cellar. At the moment, DFH is the only brewery outside of CA that I buy consistently...

I do like trying new beers. While I'm not new to craft beers (been drinking them since the 80s), I tended to stick to common styles (ESB, pale ales, browns, porters, stouts) rather than trying a lot of different styles. At the moment, I like trying different styles whether it's a Strong Belgian Dark Ale or a Scottish Ale.

 

Problem is that you're always paying a big mark up on bottles unless you're buying by the case. Damn Pennsylvania LCB.

 

I agree with much of what has been said, but I ask this question: Do you remember what it was like the first time you tried your favorite beer? This is what keeps me searching, tasting, trading, reading, etc. What if my future favorite beer is out there somewhere? The grass is not greener on the other side, it is green everywhere, but you probably still have a favorite place to enjoy the green grass. I guess I just want to know what I am missing, while not putting myself out too much to do so. Good post.

 

I'm not sure you can blame inflated bottle shop prices on the PLCB. Some chain grocery stores are beginning to sell beer (at seperate registers of course) without a huge mark up.

And maybe more sales by the case are why so many breweries skip neighboring states to ditribute here. I don't if thats true, but I fear unintended consequences from major changes to our beer laws.


And besides, how many people wouldn't gladly shell out a couple of extra dollars for RR?