Oregon Beer News (2020)

That's Chad Eaton. He does great work.

 

I think GN has two delivery options depending on your address. Closer in it's their delivery and not UPS. Not exactly sure the cost because Beaverton is apparently too far and falls into the $20 delivery.

 

FTFY.

 

Some of you I suspect are judgy just to be judgy

If you are having beer shipped across town, or to the burbs even, $20 is the price of convenience. If you live down state $20 is a good deal. I’m willing to bet none of us could figure out how to ship a case of beer for less than $40. Especially using UPS.

 

Sure I could. Just box it up, tell them I'm shipping vintage snow globes or artisanal olive oil and be on my way!

But I jest. I wish Great Notion nothing but success. These are hard times for independent businesses and anything that keeps them afloat is welcome in my book, even if the price isn't right for me. It's just some of us being curmudgeonly because we are of a certain age, or like to pretend like we are.

 

12x12oz cans fit into a USPS medium box, 3-4 day (usually, things are weird right now) for$15.50. Use 2 boxes, and your case of beer goes anywhere the post office does for 31 bucks.

 

I moved to Portland in the summer and was happy enough to pay the 20 bucks a 4-pack to try out a lot of their beers- the shakes, IPAs, etc. and I do really like Ledge Bier, have drank a case plus of it at this point. It's very convenient as I work not far from Great Notion so it's relatively easy to add a short detour in my commute after work.

I'll say that I'm now getting some serious wallet fatigue. The more I drink of their beers and the other beers in the PNW, the more I realize that I'm not getting more for my buck compared to say, Von Ebert. While Pilsner Urquell at my local store is about $2.50 more expensive per 4/6 package than it was in Wisconsin (It is around $12.50 at Zupan's Burnside vs $9.99 for a 6-pack though admittedly Zupan's prices are not competitive at all, I need to explore more beer retailers in the NW district), it is still a relatively decent bargain compared to Heater's $15 Pils/other 4-packs and Great Notion's $15 Ledge Bier 4-packs when considering that I more or less consume these on a daily basis. Wayfinder in particular will continue to get my money, selling Hell at $70/case.

While Double Stack and Blueberry Muffin are still fantastic (they're what put Great Notion on my radar when I was still living in flyover country), I'm finding that a lot of their beers are just *good*, not *great* especially compared to what other breweries in town are doing.

Modern Times (I know, technically not local, but locally available in PDX) is still relatively unparalleled in terms of monstrous pastry beers that I have access to and I've really liked some of the lagers they've put out (Dort is pretty awesome). Yes, they are expensive as hell at $32.50 a bottle for a Modem Tones adjunct variant or $12.50 for a Monster's Park Espresso Macaroon can, but I'll be damned if they aren't delicious. Even more so, Drekker cans occasionally drop here and their fruited sours (Chonk, Braaaaaains) are on a whole other level compared to Great Notion's that I consider them worth the small premium on top of Great Notion's premium. I only have enough room for such indulgences and Great Notion isn't living up to what I expect for their pricing model. And I would say most casual drinkers aren't consistently spending this kind of coin on beer, especially in this town.

I think what will happen is that they will continue to expand their shipping and new locations (e.g. the ones in Seattle are probably already bearing some fruit) people will immediately buy and ship a case plus of GN beer, maybe buy one more time, then stop. Then they'll keep expanding to continue growth, but it's pretty much chasing the dragon at this point- and they'll be able to make it work for a while, especially when they are able to expand shipping to California, that's a big market of thirsty craft beer nerds used to paying big money for beer.

 

I think we actually agree here. I think there will be the novelty of being able to buy Great Notion cans and have it shipped directly to you without having to trade or arrange a mule/proxy pickup. Again, these are people who apparently line up at Moonraker and Alvarado Street, so they'll bite in the beginning. Then after the first shipment or two (or first couple cans from the store, whichever comes first) they will probably move onto the next new thing, California isn't any different other than the fact that there are tons of beer nerds who will provide them with a big cash infusion initially.

They'll get that big influx of orders which will probably peter off and then its onto the next market- New York? Colorado? Pennsylvania? At some point, I am guessing they will figure out some other way to rope more folks in for a bit. They don't even have a stable flagship beer series that's available year round, so there's no real consistency or go-to beer that they offer. The app was nice in the beginning, especially during the pandemic, but I notice things are selling out less and less quickly nowadays.

 

Deschutes 2021 release calendar just showed up on Twitter and it's kind of bonkers.

Black Butte cans!
Peach Dissident (this was a Reserve Club beer and it's my favorite of any Dissident)
More variety packs.
Collabs with Bitbrrger, Stone, and Alesong
YEAR-ROUND ABYSS

On the tails of this fantastic Good Beer Hunting piece on them the other day it seems like they have a plan.

 

Wut is this madness!!!!!!!!

 

I don't know how I feel about year round Abyss. I like having Abyss season, which is right before Dark Star season and distinct from KBS season(or used to be) and Narwhal season. Year round Abyss will have me confused, partially due to a near permanent stupor.

 

Great Notion Double Stack cans go for $8+ish in CA. I can see a group of 4 people going in on a mixed case for $6-7 a can shipped, especially if Great Notion adds some app-only one offs, or make it extra convenient.

@Stevedore , your earlier post captures my thoughts exactly.

 

From Barley Brown's Facebook page:

SledWreck!
16oz 4 packs
Available at our pub now, other places soon.

 

FYI - Johns mkt in multnomah village has bottles of Santiam brewing Jean Peche on sale for $3.99. its a peach wild ale.

ive never had it, so cant vouch for it. but as of 6 months ago it was $15 per bottle most places. reviews seem to be pretty good on BA and Untappd. grabbed one for science!

 

It varies. It is alright , but has been better. It was overpriced to begin with. And i like Santiam.

 

Barley Browns CHAOS CDA on tap at Apex.

love that beer. angry and bitter. might have to swing by....