The Half-Acre thread (2018)

The line for this has to be shorter than last Friday's, right?

 

The line for GDDC was ridiculously slow. We were just around the corner and it took us over an hour to get through the line. Half Acre needs to do a better job with these releases. There should, at a minimum, be separate lines for growler fills and for people wanting to purchase bottles only. How hard is it to bring in a 2nd register for these releases?

 

Yeah, I'm amazed at this as well. It almost makes me wonder if they like the 'scene' created by the release. When I drove by around 3:30 on Friday and saw the line to the end of the block, I decided to go do other stuff. I'm glad I did that and came back around 8 when there was no line outside.

 

They must. I can't believe there was still a line like that at 3:30!

I was at the Other Half release the next day in Brooklyn (cans only, so I realize it's not quite the same) and they got through roughly 4 city blocks worth of people in 2 hours.

 

Vanilla Big Hugs had two lines on a Sunday morning...so they definitely can do two lines if they want to

 

I assume so, yes. I don't think Beer Hates Astronauts has the same "brand recognition" as DDC (or GDDC), so hopefully that'll work out for those of us who love this beer.

I came by last Friday for GDDC, saw the line out the door, remembered how long it takes them to do this all with one register, and told my gf that we could go get tacos instead (she was hungry and wanted to punch me for suggesting a last minute drive to HA). They should definitely either get a second register or do what's called "line busting," where someone with a smartphone/iPad/etc. goes through the line with a credit card swiper attached to the device, and helps do sales.

I've said this before: I love Half Acre, but their big releases are ridiculous, given (sometimes) the caliber of beer being released. I like Big Hugs fine (I like it more than a lot of coffee stouts, although that's not saying much), but there's no way it's a "wait in line for 1 or 2 hours" type of beer. Hell, you could probably get all the BCBS variants from LP Binny's on Black Friday in that time period!

I'd wait in line for an hour if I had to for Beer Hates Astronauts, because it's one of my favorite beers, but the knowledge that I'd be doing so simply because the checkout process is super slow/1 person is a little obnoxious.

 

The single register made for one hell of a bottle neck at GDDC. 105 minutes in line, then more than two hours to get 20 miles back home thanks to all the construction....

 

Just show up at 8pm. They always make enough of their beers to last until the next day, and by 7.30 the line is maybe I0 people deep.

 

I was able to go there late afternoon (sometime between 3:30 and 5, I forget the exact time) last year for BHA and have no problem with walking right in pretty much. I tried the same this year with GDDC and it didn't work out, but then showed up at 8 and that was fine. I'm crossing my fingers that BHA can be had in a similar manner this year - it's much easier for me to get there in the late afternoon than later into the evening.

 

I went by at 7ish, and it was still pretty long. The issue was mostly that my brother came by to hang out after we picked up tacos, so I didn't have a chance to go back (because I did figure it would be much shorter soon enough).

 

It's all about the tacos with you, isn't it?

 

Go figure. The one weekend I'll be out of town. I've been waiting for his one to come back since last summer. Bummer.

 

Reading back from the last few days. Makes me chuckle when people are bothered by waiting in line at a beer release - at HA, in this example. I don't think Half Acre owes their customers an extra register or any special way to expedite the line for their beer. Why should they incur an extra spend to make sure Joe Beer Nerd waits 30 minutes instead of 90 when the beer everyone is waiting in line for is going to sell through regardless?

 

Well other breweries get through a line MUCH quicker than Half Acre does, both with and without incurring extra charges. They don't "owe" anyone anything, but it's typically in a business' interest to make things as simple as possible for the consumer.

Binny's LP has a special set up for the Bourbon County release. Other Half tore through a line in a fraction of the time it takes Half Acre without doing anything special.

 

Obviously, binny's LP on black friday doesn't belong in the same conversation as a pale ale release at HA. Nobody is camping out for 2 nights for a HA release (I don't believe). I'm sure there are some cost efficient steps that HA can consider to help things move along, you're right - I just don't think it's very fair to think negatively of a brewery when the people unhappy are making a conscious decision to stand in line.

 

But it's the same concept. Those people are choosing/making a conscious decision to camp out for two days. Just because it's bigger doesn't mean that Binny's owes the people in line anything. Like someone else said, they had multiple registers at the Big Hugs release, so it's something they have done in the past.

When other breweries do take simple steps to improve the process during releases, it will shine a negative light on a brewery who chooses not to do so.

 

Introducing the phrasing of "owe" into the discussion is just nonsense. Customer service matters in any business. When it comes to interactions with customers, Half Acre is really as good or better than any brewery you're going to find. Specifically the people working in the checkout/ID/growler lines are very friendly.

They can improve at servicing their customers in a more timely manner during bottle releases. It's ok to say that a really good brewery needs to do this one thing better. Yes they will sell out of these beers either way. However, a more efficient release increases the likelihood of a customer sticking around to grab a pint or two in the taproom. And that *does* matter

 

Not *nearly* as much when we're talking about limited release/high demand/great beer. Which, is my point. If it did, then 3 Floyds, a brewery with what might be the worst service reputation I can think of, would have a difficult time selling through a batch of Zombie Dust in a few days.

 

They could take the 'bouncer' that stood at the front door all afternoon and put him on a register. No extra cost incurred to Half Acre. He basically stood in the doorway telling people when it was time to go in. Give me a break.

 

I will admit that tacos are a driving force in my life.

With that sort of logic, why should a company do literally anything that doesn't maximize instant profit?

Don't get me wrong, I have no issues with HA, and am not mad at them. I simply think that in the interest of customer satisfaction it's a good idea if they open up at least one more register. Besides, happy costumers are usually more loyal/spend more, so it's really in everyone's interests.