Unknown Brewing????

They also have bombers of their double ipa slapped with a $17.99 price tag.
These bottles are destined for shelf turd city.

 

Yeah, when I can buy a 4pack of HT and still have enough left over for a burger for the same price as a bomber from a brand new brewery, there's a problem.

 

I share the same sentiment. Have had a few of their beers and, like dbrauneis said, they're good but not great. They're definitely gonna have to change their game plan if they expect to compete with this ever-saturating market.

 

Have had a couple cans of on the edge, it's kinda malty for an ipa, decent, not great

 

The edge IPA is alright, my friend tried that velociraptor beer and was pretty disappointed.

 

Agreed here. Don't care for the tap room much, either. Apparently the head brewer left already due to some disagreements with the owner and now the owner is the head brewer (both were brewing before).
The scorpions thing is just ridiculous.

 

I pretty much share the sentiment of everyone that has responded so far. Their beers are average at best and way overpriced. Seems like they're always more expensive in bars when I go out, not to mention 6 packs of Over The Edge are more expensive than 4 packs of HDnR, which is a far superior beer. The double IPA is ridiculously overpriced and the scorpion beer is clearly a publicity stunt (and will probably also be ridiculously overpriced.)

You can't charge a premium for an average product and expect to survive in an extremely competitive market.

 

Y'all realize that Unknown has ZERO control over what retailers charge, right? The government enforced 3-tier system ensures that, as I'm sure many of you know.

As the beer manager for Harris Teeter Ballantyne, I'm selling Vehopciraptor for $13.99/btl, which is the suggested retail price by Tryon AND Unknown. I make roughly 20-25 points of gross margin, which is very reasonable. This was a severely allocated beer by Tryon, so maybe some retailers feel they need to make a few extra bucks? I don't know other retailers' thoughts. But let's be honest here - one pound of hops per barrel isn't cheap, getting to nearly 10% alcohol isn't cheap due to the amount of grain used, and this is a young brewery finding it's way while constantly improving, thus not having many economies of scale. For example...if you had OtE IPA in Unknown's infancy and haven't tasted it lately, you're missing out. They've really improved their recipe, and are becoming more consistent.

Not sure why folks are hating on Unknown...they're doing their thing and trying to make Charlotte an even better beer city.

 

KB-HT: great points on pricing. Thanks for pointing this out.

My issue isn't necessarily the pricing- it's more the attitude and ridiculousness of the brewery. Not my style. Nothing is wrong with being different. If they succeed, then enough people like their beer and attitude.

But it's turning into a competitive market locally. It's my last option to visit and I likely won't be buying their beers on draft or in bottles/cans. I'm not the only one. We'll see how they do.

 

That's not true all. While they certainly can't enforce a suggested retail price, retailers have to make a margin and distributors have to make a margin. Which means that in general if Unknown is more expensive than other breweries its probably because the distributor is buying the beer at a higher price point from Unknown than they are from other breweries. So Unknown definitely has some control over what the final price point is, even if it isn't complete.

I think the argument many have made is that the quality per price, i.e. value, just doesn't seem to be there for Unknown. 'Being local' doesn't cut it anymore in craft beer as there are so many locals in most of the country. You have to be local and provide some solid value for some definition of value out in the market. I haven't had anything by them that made me think them either great or bad, though I haven't had a chance to try all that much of their beer. Over the Edge is the one that I've had multiple times and it was just kinda meh.

 

I really liked the marketing on the Vehopciraptor but when I saw the price I couldnt do it. I might stop in next time I am in Charlotte. I generally make plans to try all the new breweries but always end up at NoDa/Birdsong.

 

Agreed wholeheartedly regarding Over the Edge. It's much better now than in the past.

 

@DWheeler379 Brad is a really fun guy, and while his attitude may not appear to be humble, he's a true steward of the craft beer business. He is a true beer geek at heart; just with a bit of an edge. I would urge you to try their beers to see what he's been doing. You're welcome to find me at my store, and I'll buy you an OtE IPA so you can try it at our bar. I think their beer is improving, and so does Brad. I will be shocked if he doesn't succeed...he puts in a ton of hard work, knows beer, and really cares about the product he's putting out on the market. I think he sees it as a piece of him...which is admirable, in my opinion.

@treznor You're arguing semantics. I bought my 3 cases at the same price as every other retailer who was allocated Vehopciraptor by Tryon. I added 20-25 points of gross margin, and came up with $13.99, which (again) is the suggested retail by Tryon and Unknown. So, again, I say: a brewery has ZERO input in how much their beer is retailed for at the store level. Sure, there's a minimum markup retailers and distributors want, but relatively speaking, perceived value is all that matters. If someone is will to pay $180 for 22oz rather than $18, this is beer is worth? ...$180 to whomever bought it. Simple economics. I have purchased Vehopcirator a few times now, and I feel I spent my $14 wisely. So, to each his/her own.

As for the second comment regarding value, I'd like to point out that Charlotte is still a very young city in terms of beer...not only in terms of accessibility to the great craft beer in the country, but as well as the local scene. We have a long, long way to go. Unknown is absolutely part of the equation that takes us farther along that path, and they bring more value to our beer community in Charlotte than many folks here are seemingly giving them credit. Just because Brad didn't start brewing in his garage in Matthews or Pineville, and got his experience at other big-time breweries, it seems people assume he thinks of himself as some sort of hot shot or gift to Charlotte. Well, he brought his business to our city, because he saw great things in us and our burgeoning beer scene. He didn't have to choose Charlotte...but he did. So keep that in mind when talking about Unknown's value. Brad, Morty, Lisa, Larry, and others on their team are doing a great job, and we are fortunate to be able to purchase/drink their beers...just as fortunate as they are to have us as consumers. It's a good relationship to be in.

 

I appreciate your post and your standing up for Brad and Unknown. I will give them more chances. The beers I've had have been decent for sure.

 

I appreciate your post and your standing up for Brad and Unknown. I will give them more chances. The beers I've had have been decent for sure.

 

Cheers KB-HT!!! I've never wanted an unknown beer more than I do now!

 

I too have had some other OtE recently, and I wouldn't say it's my favorite IPA in town, but I definitely enjoyed it, and would definitely drink it again. I also enjoyed their Vehopirapctor, which I bough for $15.00, but it also came with a "free" Unknown pint glass, which was a cool add-on. I have also met Brad and his wife, who is also very involved in the brewery, and they couldn't have been any nicer to me. They seemed really down to earth, and they genuinely said how happy they were to be brewing beer in Charlotte. I am with @KB-HT on this one.