18th St Barrel Massacre 2017

It can't be both: You're either paying to get the chance to get the bottles, or you're paying for the pours.

We know the first one isn't true because you're paying for pours/event with the opportunity to buy bottles. Even better, if you hate the pours, you don't HAVE to buy the bottles.

I'm unsure about the function of your liver but I do not believe 35oz will get you plastered over 4 hours. He's hosting a festival which is (allegedly) the only way to get the bottles. He's offering pours included in the ticket price to the event.

Or you could get no pours, no ticket price, show up when bottle sales are announced, and ride the line ride.

I'd rather pay $50 and enjoy the pours rather than waste 4 hours of my time getting in line early to ensure I got a bottle, but hey, different strokes.

 

I sound like a shill - if you think its a rip off, for you it is. I don't begrudge you not partaking.

I am concerned about the 35 oz plastering you though.

 

I thought they were 10 oz pours? 7x10 would be 70, and at several being (I assumed) > 10%...that would do it for me.

If they are instead 5oz pours, then that is different.

 

They're 5 oz pours. At a 10% average, a 175 lb male would be just under the legal limit after four hours. This assumes that all of the alcohol was consumed at the beginning, though.



It's safe to say one could definitely get drunk, depending on weight and tolerance. Especially if they're pouring more than 5 oz or allowing more than 7 total pours.

 

I don't think their beer has gotten worse, just the hype has died down.

Some thing with Pipeworks. I recall when every single Double IPA and adjunct stout they released sold out immediately. Now, everything but their barrel aged beers are fairly easy to acquire.

18th St started with a very similar lineup, good DIPAs and adjunct stouts, people were lining up for them. Now that production is up and their beers are in distro the hype has died down.

I think with Pipeworks people are sick of spending so much on bombers, and the cans are in high enough production that there is no need to wait in line for them. 18th also has much more beer in distro now, and also I agree about the prices being high.

The beer is good, people just realized you don't need to line up for it.

 

Don't forget that PW increased production quite a bit once they started canning. I don't think their demand has decreased quite like the situation we've seen with 18th Street.

 

18th did increase production. They opened Hammond. 2nd brewery allowed them to distro Chicago. No need to drive out to IN to buy the beers.

 

That's true. I just don't think 18th and PW are the same situation. Maybe that's because I'm more a fan of PW than 18th though (and I'm not an 18th hater, just don't buy as much of their stuff).

 

I am wondering if 18th Street has a release planned for Dark Lord's Eve. They would be stupid to not try to attract some of the money passing through town and treat it like just another day.

 

Exactly. They're simply "old news" now; the beer is still as good as it's ever been. I much prefer it this way actually; I like being able to swing by the bottle shop to grab a sixer of Under Crown or Villain whenever I want, not to mention stuff like the Shadows beers and Zero Discipline lasting more than one day. I'll happily let the neck-beards and tickers / traders go line up right now in IL or MI for Special Sauce or Juice is Loose and just go grab some in six months when production is up and the hype is down. Evidently my palate can't detect the subtle notes of "rare" that 18th Street used to be masters of before they passed the torch on to others.

 

They're almost sold out of Zero Discipline (as of last night anyway, it might be gone now) at the extremely high price of $20 / 4 pack with no DLD to bump sales. I don't think that it matters much honestly provided the beer is great (and Zero Discipline was IMO).

 

Aside from one poster, I don't think anybody said their beer isn't good. I think many would agree they are a little static in their releases. I enjoy most of their beer.

And I fail to see a direct correlation between last week's release selling out (or almost selling out) and planning for a potential influx of customers May 12. Actually, I was suggesting that they have extra beer on hand or a new/special release.

 

I just meant to say that I don't think that DLD really would have a major effect on releases at 18th Street or anywhere else here in NWI. Maybe the breweries' tap rooms will be more crowded Friday night, but that's probably about it IMO.

 

Everyone does something special with all the tourists in town. Flossmoor has their Wooden Hell comeback release the day before. Beer Geeks does special tappings, as do most other beer bars. Wouldn't be surprising to see all the local breweries with a rep kick something out on DLD eve.

 

I made the point in the Midwest NE IPA thread that $20 is what you'll pay for Juice is Loose. If Zero Discipline is great, as you describe, is it not worth JIL pricing?

So, Is 18th St high, or are they pricing to the market? The fact that they are near sell-out of Zero Discipline tells me that 18th's beer isn't priced out of whack - people are buying it! Now you may think it's too expensive (and I respect that) - and if enough people think like you do, and their beer sits on palates in the warehouse, then they'll adjust their prices down. This is basic economics - as a producer, why should 18th charge a lower price, if they can get more?

To be honest, and I'm not singling you out nor saying that you're guilty of it, but I'm growing tired of the constant harping here on 18th about their pricing. Either you pay the freight, or you forego the product - and eventually their pricing will reach equilibrium.

Most of the resentment here towards 18th is really due to one event, and one event only - last year's Barrel Massacre. That event was ridiculously priced, and the market reacted, with poor sales and bad press / public reaction. This year, 18th reacted - the event was more reasonably priced, and the window was expanded to a 4-hour window with only one session. Was it enough? I don't know - I chose to not purchase a ticket, but a lot of folks did. At the end of the day, I'm guessing that next year 18th will react again based on this year's event, and it will change accordingly.

This is how market's work.

Rant over.

Continue on, as you were.

 

I'm growing tired of the people who constantly throw out the free market bullshit. Look at the average price of craft beer. Is $20 at the high end for a 4 pack? Yes. The average 4 pack of craft beer is significantly less, therefore it's expensive....It doesn't matter whether there are people who pay for a high end car, compared to the average it is expensive.... Just look at Ballast Point. People bitched and complained and didn't buy it at the 50% price above everything else and they dropped the price to comparable position. 18th and Transient aren't going to be able to scale a $20 beer at those prices. They can sell limited amounts now, but with increased competition for style, that pricing will eventually catch up with them and they can either sell a limited amount of high priced beer or more of the reasonably priced stuff....

 

So you agree with me, because that's exactly what I said. It is just economics - the current pricing might piss you off, and you may not think that 18ths or Transients beers are worth the current price (and did you note that I passed on the Barrel Massacre tix? - What the product was wasn't worth the value - for me), but markets are made up of multiples of you and me - each with their own idea about the value of a good. 18th will adjust when demand falls off to the point where they are sitting on their beer. Same as at Ballast Point, or Floyds, Pipeworks, Founders, or any other brewer in the land. They are doing it to make a profit, not for some altruistic notion that beer should be affordable for the masses.

We are saying the same thing, aren't we?

I'm growing tired of agreeing with people who think they are disagreeing with me, but really aren't. Or something like that.

 

Oh these high percentage beers would put me on my ass. 35 oz in four hours? I'm 6 foot 180 pounds... I need to pace and consume water constantly.

 

I liked the 18th Street version of Zero Discipline better than the Transient version (by a little bit) but despite saying that I would bet that this release flying out the door has more to do with the hazy IPA craze vs 18th St's quality.

I think 18th Street's beer is ok but living in MI it's not worth the 1.5 hr drive for me because none of their beer blows me away enough. I made the drive several times when they were the hyped brewery but after several meh releases & some infection issues, I just don't feel the need to go anymore

 

I think this is sound logic; I wouldn't either.

I believe that 18th's production has ramped up from around 2-3,000 bbls in year 1, to somewhere around 20,000 bbls by year 3 - no way that it is "rare" any more, and i also would expect that they would suffer from growth problems, as it's very hard to ramp up production levels without a drop off in quality, at least in the near term.