Surly Todd The Axe Man

No feathers are ruffled over here, amigo. I was just pointing out that one man's "best IPA ever" is another man's "meh." For example, I think Todd is LIGHT YEARS better than pseudoSue. Taste is subjective. So your statement "saying Todd is the best is over hyping" doesn't necessarily apply to everyone.

 

Has Todd dropped anywhere besides Surly's backyard yet? For me, It'll be more interesting to hear Wiscy, Illinois, and Iowa folks call it the best IPA in the MW. Or not.

 

If you have had it (and aren't a big fan of uber IPA's that cannot be named) you probably include it in best IPA's in the MW. Is it the best IPA? Like I think @mikevanatta was getting at, I don't really believe in such a thing. Sometimes I enjoy a beer more than other days.

 

Todd is awesome. There are a lot of awesome IPAs/APAs.

For the record, I'd call it the best in Minnesota, and probably the best beer Surly has made. I'd have a hard time putting over Decorah Sue for best in the Midwest, but it's not exactly a wide margin between the two. It's basically neck-and-neck.

But in this era, there are a lot of really good other Midwest pales/IPA (Abrasive, Moon Man, Daisy Cutter, Passe/Mediocre, ZD, any non-Tsunami TG) that belong in the conversation. It's an embarrassment of riches in the Central time zone these days.

 

Whatever. You guys probably didn't even notice my new cooler either. Sometimes I hate this place.

 

This Illinoisan will be able to give his informed opinion tomorrow!

 

I visit MSP about 4-5 times a year and travel to other areas of the country frequently. I drink a lot of different IPA's but know there are many other people here who have drank more.

I will say this about it being the best from MSP..... Todd is one of the best single IPA's I have drank anywhere. It is just a awesome beer and I am so glad they canned it. My cans arrived minutes ago and I cannot wait to try them.

 

Are you traveling to Iowa or Minnesota or have you heard about it being delivered in the Chicagoland area? Everything I've heard points to next week or week after even for us.

 

My MN trading partner is sending me some. I haven't heard when it's hitting Illinois. A few pages back, you'll see that I contacted Surly directly, and they said to just keep checking social media.

 

FWIW, I checked in at Binnys Des Plaines last night and the guy who sounded like he ordered their beer told me it wont be coming this week for sure. At the same time, he'd never even heard of the beer lol.

 

The most important comment I've seen in these eleven pages is that this is a one and done canning, can anyone confirm this?

 

I think I touched on this a few pages ago, perhaps someone in the brewing industry with more knowledge can elaborate on this point.

I was told by someone affiliated with the brewery that the initial investment to have a can designed and the initial production cost are far greater than the ongoing production of said can. This lead my source to believe that had Todd been a one-time distribution offering, it would have likely been bottled. The fact that it was canned, and Surly made the initial investment for the can, likely means it will be a seasonal or rotating offering.

Now...that doesn't mean we will see this again in the near future. We might not even see it again next year, who knows. But based on what I was told, I would bet that this isn't the only time Todd will be canned. Just my $0.02.

Again...hopefully someone in the industry with more knowledge can elaborate on the initial investment versus continued production of a canned beer vs. a one-off bottle run.

I could also be totally misinformed, so take it with a grain of salt.

 

I said this earlier in the thread but I had Todd at the Firestone Invitational and it was one of my favorites from the day. I just placed an order for some so hopefully it's as good out of the can as I remember it being then.

 

Quick question... I'm coming to Minnesota from Rapid City for a few days tomorrow, and how widely available is Todd? If I were to go to some of the bigger places in the west metro (Haskells, F44, MGM, etc.), would it be relatively easy to find or would I have to do some searching? After having it twice at the Surly taproom, I need this beer in my life more than I need oxygen.

 

Based on my experience this week, it's not terribly hard to get. Places are selling out, so you might have to call ahead and see who has it, but I haven't had any trouble at all getting it this week.

 

I took the earlier quote about "one and done" canning of this to mean only 1 canning run for this season/year. I would expect this to return as a seasonal next year, backing up what you had to say around the investment in developing cans. It sounds like this may have been a massive batch, canned over multiple days (hence canning dates from 7/16 to 7/23). It would make sense if they didn't commit to making this in Abrasive type quantities since it is the first time it is hitting the market and they don't have solid forecasts of how much they will sell, so they are taking a cautious approach. Next year, with sales numbers in hand and greater consumer awareness, we might see multiple batches/canning runs.

All just speculation of course. I'm not even close to being someone with industry knowledge of how these things work, just spitballing some ideas.

 

I have it ranked third from surly in terms of beers canned ever... 2012 wet is first, Abrasive still edges it out barely, then Todd. But your point is well taken.

 

I think he just meant will we see more this year

 

I personally think this canning run is better than it is/was on tap, not sure why, but that's my opinion.

 

In that case I have no idea! I think someone earlier quoted another Surly employee saying this would be the only canning this year, and they would re-evaluate next year. I think this suggests what @sembo was getting at - that they'll make some adjustments with more market awareness and knowledge next year, and they might be playing it safe this year.