Toppling Goliath Releases and Updates

My guess is that they'll use the Scorpius bottling to figure out where the market is for their limited hoppy beers.

I could see $15 per bomber based on previous pricing of this beer, and they'll probably still move it at that price.

 

Could totally see this, which sucks cause it's my favorite IPA from TG. Would love to buy a bunch, but at that price point it's kind of ridiculous. Could get better NEIPAs shipped for the cost of a few bombers...

 

These comparisons are getting a little ridiculous. TG has several quality canned options available at competitive price points. If they want to do a special release of a DIPA in bottles at a higher price point, there are plenty of breweries doing the same thing. We just heard the growlers cost $30-35 and this is the first time they have bottled it.

 

I am actually a little surprised that there would be so much push-back for a $15 limited release anything.

$15 for a shelf IPA bomber is a lot. No doubt. But $15 for a limited release (say it's once a year) doesn't seem crazy. Even if it cost them no more to make it than others, it's a once a year thing. Similarly, I wouldn't pay $25 for a BCBS variant once a week or most likely even once a month, but I'd certainly pay that for a once a year, or 3 or 4 times a year.

Are these apples and oranges? Sure, but the point is that a price jump for a limited release beer that is very high in quality (which is what everyone seems to say of this beer) seems extremely reasonable.

 

Where's the price per ounce comparison? Haven't seen the hard numbers--I essentially never get to buy these retail outside of few and far between trips, so let's be realistic, use a comparable TG can and break it down...if anyone cares to.

 

I'm not sure there is a comparable TG can though. Wouldn't the closest thing be King Sue? So, $10ish to $15ish for a bomber?

 

I don't really see any pushback here. Just a discussion of price points and value.

FWIW, I probably wouldn't buy a $15 Scorpius bomber, but that's because I don't think it exceeds the canned IPAs enough to warrant the difference.

Pompeii/Nugget/Sue are $.14 per ounce. $15 Scorpius is $.68 per ounce. That's 5x times as much. I do believe the market will bear it, and thus it's hard to really get mad at TG for pricing it there if they do, but that's the math on it.

 

Yes, I would think it would be difficult to compare any of the current canned lineup to the bomber lineup. Pretty consistently the bombers are more intensely hopped...at least in my experience, hence the price increase. The price difference between Scorpius and King Sue isn't as drastic. If and when they start canning these bigger ticket items, then we might be able to have a valid comparison, if indeed the physical bomber itself increases some cost where cans don't.

 

What would constitute a pushback? I see phrases like "ridiculously expensive" and "mini protest" just a few posts up.

 

A lot of breweries, especially those that specialize in NEIPAs have made a switch to cans or started out that way. I don't blame TG for doing what they do because they sell out their limited IPAs releases every time in bombers and they're set up for that packaging format. As a consumer, I just wish they canned everything like many other breweries that do small batch IPA releases. Just prefer the format of 16 vs 22 oz if I'm just wanting to have one beer. Usually get a little more bang for your buck in a 4 pk, even if you spend more overall, but for me that convenience of that size makes up for the extra money spent. Just one man's opinion. Obviously it's their choice and they can do what they want just doesn't make sense to me that you can get 64 oz of a limited IPA for ~$17-20 at other breweries and not with them. Again, I'll stil be buying some because I enjoy it, but just wish they would make the switch to cans for everything instead. I know the previous price point and that it's their first time bottling it, so I'm happy to just be able to get it in bottle this time around. Just hoping for a change in the future I guess, but don't foresee that happening anytime soon.

 

I see it now. Just missed it earlier.

 

TG is fully set up to can now, so I'm hoping they make that switch for everything but BA stouts.

If they don't, it won't be due to a lack of capability. It's that they can charge more for bombers.

 

Scorpius will be 11.99 according to what I heard when I was down last week. King cans will be out beginning of May.

 

$12 is reasonable, even if it's still not can level affordability.

 

King cans???

 

Where was it mentioned that this is a limited release? Especially given that they're distributing it everywhere in their footprint, don't see why this would end up limited.

 

Limited has two meanings - one in terms of quantity, and another in terms of occurrence or frequency. KBS is a great example of the 'frequency' definition. It's considered a limited release because it is once a year. Whereas, Consider a brewery that might have a wide-footprint, but distributes a BA beer (that they made a shit-ton of) only in-city (or, perhaps in state) rather than their entire distribution.

 

Understood, but wasn't sure where the limited verbiage even came up with all together. What brings people to think this won't make the regular rotation of bombers?

 

History.
It has always only been brewed once per year, for TG's employee Morel hunt. Doubt they will change that as TG understands the benefit of rare releases.

 

Cost per ounce definitely is a useful metric but it's also somewhat overrated in these discussions/forums. $ spent per transaction/visit is a better indicator of a health for a brewery.