Bruery 2016 RS/HS Allocations

That's complete bullshit. The Bruery's society system is predicated on selling large amounts of beer to their members, and the quantity @riko described (50 - 75 bottles/year) isn't even particularly high in the context of the RS and HS, nor is picking up 2 or 3 cases of beer considered a large pickup. If the Bruery has a problem servicing their own business model, that's not a sign that customers are doing something wrong, it's a sign that they haven't figured out their own logistics. Things like overselling beers and accidentally giving people infected bottles of Mash & Grind only serve to reinforce that point.

 

I've had 2 same sets of quarterly beers shipped to me instead of my Q1 and Q2.

 

Solid contribution to the conversation.

 

i actually had the opposite problem happen to me on my last pick up. i ordered a 2012 Grey Monday online (it was one of those one-off sales). after i ordered it i was emailed and told that it was a mistake with their inventory, or something, and that they're sorry and they'll refund the price. so, no Grey Monday. no big deal.

when i went to pick up a bunch of beers, on my way home the dude who helped me emailed and said he accidentally put in the vintage Grey Monday in my package, and asked if I would please bring it back on my next trip. i understand mistakes happen, but it could be a while before i get over there. like, a long while. i hope i don't get too thirsty

 

In December I picked up 8 cases of beer from The Bruery and they didn't mess up at all.

 

I've never had a single issue. I always had them ship to SJ when I lived in state with no problem. Picked up 2 cases last March right before moving with no issue. Was in town October and picked up 4 cases with no issue. Since then my trustee has had no issues as far as I know with multiple cases. When I've picked up in person, I bring my own list of what I'm picking up, they bring out their receipts and check the bottles individually and I also mark them off myself. If you're having issues, I'd recommend that approach as a fail safe.

 

went in to pick up my HS card and HS growler, walked out with an RS growler.

 

Well, that's your fault for not realizing the difference.

 

Not his fault. It's the Bruery's job to get it right and it was their fault they screwed up. It was in Kyle2k10's best interest to make sure they got it right (to save him the hassle of having to go back later and get them to fix it) and he failed to do that. But it wasn't his responsibility or fault....

 

I didn't even make it to my car before exchanging it. You totally missed my point, even the simplest orders can get screwed up.

 

there's always the element of human error.

 

I agree with that. At least 1 in 10 times that I order takeout food there is something wrong with the order. And at least 1 in 10 times that they screw up the order, I forget to have checked before leaving the restaurant. I should know better and I guess the lesson learned from this conversation is we should all double-check our beers match what we think they're supposed to be when we pick them up.

 

For the countless times I've gone, for myself or the 5 or so people I trustee for, I've only had an issue once. That was caught by the staff when double checking the bottles so I've never once left with incorrect bottles. The worse that has happened is Rum BT swapped out for Port BT...which isn't exactly an issue.

I'm not saying they don't make mistakes but these guys are human and we all make mistakes. I'm sure you all know people will complain real quick but won't say anything if everything is right. I guarantee for every 1 mistake said in here, there are probably 50 that happen without an issue. Still not an excuse as a business should be correct, but to expect them to never make a mistake is just not realistic.

 

Absolutely, isn't that the message we're trying to get across? These guys are human, mistakes happen. We can avoid messy situations by double checking orders before we leave the fulfillment center.

 

I agree, 100% with this. Also, when they have made a mistake did they not try and make it right? Honest mistakes happen, but it is how a company handles the mistakes is what makes them a good or bad company. I have had nothing but good service and I believe they do listen when issue come up.
Regarding that 2012 Grey Monday bottle, they should give you the option of purchasing it since they did give it to you instead of returning it.

 

I'm sure no one has complained about getting extra bottles they didn't pay for!

 

I once got an extra case of Chocolate Rain and didn't realize it until I got home. I didn't really want that much CR (I have trouble getting through the cases of beer I still have), so I returned it and they gave me a bottle for being honest.

 

When I left and noticed that one of my orders (Mother Funker and something else that was released the same day during the last cellar sale) was not tagged as picked up I checked all the boxes and realized that I did in fact not get it. I also noticed that 2 of my orders I did receive were not flagged as picked up, so I mean I could have gotten doubles at that point.

Quick email to society to let them know of the error. Corrected the orders I did pick up that weren't flagged as such and they are extending the timeframe (past end of march this year) to allow me to grab the bottles that were missing just in case I am not making a visit during March (rather busy month).

So yeah, mistakes do happen, would be weird if everything was 100% perfect. I would likely question that and ask if they are robots. But 2 minutes of effort on my end rechecking and an email and they are making it right by helping me out with a little longer window. I do plan on getting there in March at some point anyways, but it is nice to know that if I can't the bottles won't be surrendered back to the Bruery.

 

Forgive me for not recognizing that a debate about whether or not people make mistakes is a conversation worth pursuing.

I recently got a box of 12 bottles shipped to me. Inside, there were four or five receipts, since it was a lot of small orders aggregated into one. I can imagine that multiplying this by a factor of 3 increases the probability of mistakes. That's all I was saying. I'm not trying to defend them, just offering my (obviously unwanted) perspective on the situation.

As for the quality control issues, I think those are a separate and significantly less acceptable issue. I appreciate that they "often" catch these issues before bottles are sent out, but I am absolutely not pleased when offerings are cancelled.

 

They tried to re-give me three orders that I had already picked up one time, but I realized it and told them as they were printing the slips for me to sign.