The Bruery (2024)

They did the painted label on Petit Provisions... But then the second batch this year went back to plastic labels. Yuzu Radler was also painted.

I'm a fan of the painted labels because I think they're recyclable? Otherwise you have to cut off the plastic wrap first, which is still making extra plastic waste.

 

I was puzzled to see Black Tuesday 2023 on the shelf at a local shop in STL (The Wine and Cheese Place). Price was $49.99. I thought Black Tuesday did not hit distro? Does this happen often?

 

I believe last year was the first time

 

Doing Tuesday right with 2020 BT Reserve. Bottled March 2020 I think? Shit, hope the alcohol killed any wandering covid in there...

Anyway, it's great. No surprises. Bold strong flavor yet very mellowed.


Oh, had an Apple Falls Far over the weekend. Love that beer. The slight smokiness is just perfect for tempering the apple sweetness.

 

2020 BT Reserve is my favorite of the "recent" iterations (I'm guessing it's comparable to 2015, but it's been a long time and I only had a little of the 2015). Really looking forward to the upcoming BT reserves this year.

In other news, I think I'm now caught up with the 2024 releases:

Fuego Fresa Especial - The strawberry pops up front in the taste (but not the nose), accented by the vanilla and presumably the marshmallow (which are more prominent in the nose), with the lingering peppery heat only really felt in the finish. Did not expect to enjoy the pepper, so that was nice, even if I still think these types of offerings could do with, like, one fewer wacky ingredient. Anyway, this was decent and better than expected!

 

Several additions in Untappd... If they're all dropping in May it's gonna be a monster month.

 

Visiting the TR tomorrow. Hoping they put next month allocations on tap.

 

As expected, new allocations are not up until tomorrow. But I did get a preview of chocolate dynasty— exactly what it sounds like. Rich and deep with chocolate and vanilla. Only other comment is mother floater is actually pretty good. Root beer elements float along nicely on top of the deep vanilla barrel.

 

Anyone order recently from the Bruery? I’ve been waiting 3 months and no sign of shipment coming yet.

 

They currently can't ship to a handful of states, MI (you) and NC (me) are on that short list. I have been told for 2 months now that it is a licensing issue with their new shipping partner, and they are working as fast as they can to get shipping back to all states. I ended up having my beer from March and April shipped to a contact in IN. But I am pretty upset by the situation. I 100% would not have paid for Reserve this year if I knew this was gonna happen. At this point I am not spending another cent at the Bruery, and at the end of the year I will have my Reserve included beers hopefully shipped to NC, if not to IN. I am not sure what they plan to do for people that don't have other shipping options.....

 

To be fair once I changed shipping to Indiana, everything shipped the next day, and it took about a week to be delivered. That is what I was used to prior to this year. Just unlucky that I am in one of these states I guess. Just a mega bummer. I want to order some Chocolate Dynasty, cause Chocolate Rain and Chocolate Reign are two of my long time favorites, but I just can bring myself to order more when I will either need to pay shipping twice, or wait til I make a trip back to Indiana.

 

Same boat, looking for current alternatives of friends family members who visit MI a few times a year

 

As far as shipping progress goes - ordered this month's allocations early Wednesday morning and the beers are already in transit. Pretty pleased with that!

 

I’ve never had an issue with shipping in CA. Ordered Monday night. Delivered Thursday.

 

I'm in CA. Ordered Tuesday afternoon. Not shipped yet. The black box remains mysterious...

 

That’s good to hear since I ship to same state. One bummer is that cellar shipping costs have increased to $30 (up to 6 bottles) and $40 (7+ bottles). Maybe this was previously mentioned. I only have 12 bottles, so not sure if we can still get $15 in the same shipper.