Neophyte question here: Why does it seem like all the good stouts and porters are in bombers, whereas IPAs are more likely found in 12 oz bottles? I mean, I know I've seen a few 12 oz porters and stouts, and I'm sure there are IPAs in bombers, but why such a heavy preponderance of bombers being the darker, heavier, boozier brews?
Since breweries are in business to make money, it probably has more to do with maximizing profits than anything else. A lot of the stuff you're talking about isn't produced in mass quantities, and it may not be cost-effective for the brewer to package it in a small format. Around here, we get a lot of Toppling Goliath pales, IPA's, and DIPA's in the bomber format. They usually run anywhere from $6.99 to $11.99, depending on the product. Comparable smaller-format price ranges would be $23-39 for a 12-oz six-pack and $20-35 for a 16-oz four-pack. I'd guess that the smaller-format packaging costs would be quite a bit higher, and the consumer prices would be off-putting to all but a few.
I would like to be the devils advocate just for one moment. Here's how I make a big decision when it comes to beer. How many calories is that? I enjoy all the big stout flavors and IPA flavors too, same as anyone. I also consider the idea that most of the time I am serving my beer with a meal. A stout is not likely to go with my plate of spaghetti. In my fridge now is a baltic porter 10 percent. When I drink it, I will like it but it is not the easiest thing to drink a lot of. A smaller brewery that does bombers exclusively like for instance horseheads may be doing it for a lot of reasons. I don't always think price gouging is at the forefront. The other thing when you switch formats the product might suffer. if you lose customers going from 16 oz to 12 oz then why do it? The stout you drink on sunday cost the same or more than a sixer of a lager. True. What you will not find is a tall boy of an RIS for a buck fifty like a malt liquor. If you go to your local wegmans since the big changeover, you can see the price tags lined up in a way that they were not before. Take a good look at what is expensive. I have seen bombers of lagers in my shop that I won't touch because it is not how I want to drink that style.
I've always seen stouts as a cold weather, "experience" of a beer. They're easy to share, and help warm ya up when the weather is wicked bad outside. They also stay cool in the cold weather. By comparison, IPAs always seem to be more geared toward hot weather, summer drinking. It wouldn't be much fun carrying around a bomber of an IPA in the heat of summer, especially when the beer hits room temperature within an hour. I know it's not a great reason, but that's how I have always seen this issue. Not to say I'm opposed to more breweries moving away from the large format. I'm just not sure I'm ready to see bombers leave either.
I think most people drink one or two stouts/porters, whereas 4-5 IPAs go down at one session. So a 22oz bomber seems more appropriate for the darker heavier styles.
My simple reasoning: I rarely buy a higher ABV (8 and above) in sixers. Only in singles or bombers. That's typically all I'll drink in 1 sitting. My lower ABV are for sixers.
Around here the smallest selection on the bomber shelf is probably stouts. I see just about every style in a bomber with the exception of Pilsners. I'm also seeing more and more stouts moving to the 4-pack 12oz format. But this is all regional I'm sure.
Perhaps breweries are worried about bombers sitting on shelves due to their higher prices per oz, so they're more willing to package stouts in bombers which generally have a longer shelf life than IPAs? True, but this comes damn close at $2 for a 500 mL bottle in my area. Tasty stuff.
