Good Gourd

I guess it just depends on how much you want that Good Gourd. It sounds like you have a pretty steady stream of 077XX, so I personally wouldn't have any problem trading some away for a beer I really wanted.

Do you want to focus on "getting what you want" or "getting maximum value" - this is the question you need to ask yourself, and no one can answer but you.

As long as the money is close, I tend to worry less about "rarity" and focus on making sure both people in the trade are happy. Then I just drink my beer and enjoy.

 

I got a Good Gourd for a Stone Xocoveza Mocha Stout and threw in a Steel Toe Size 7 to even out $4$. I guess I lucked out.

 

In all fairness good gourd comes off the shelf pretty quickly as well and its only made once a year as opposed to year round for the 077 (I think)...I think $4$ on those is a good trade but that's just my opinion

 

You are trading a "World Class" DIPA for a "World Class" pumkin beer. I have traded several good gourds and always went $4$. They are very easy to trade as they are relatively tough to get and run out fast. The question you need to ask is are you trying to win the trade or trade some good beer for a good beer in return.

I always think if you are generous with your trades the beer karma will come back to ya.

 

If $4$ is close and you have year round access to a beer and want a yearly release why not? Simple imo.

 

I vote get over it. However fair & reasonable it is the trade doesn't appeal to you. I'm sure the other person will easily find a happy home for the Good Gourd.

 

fwiw, good gourd was much harder to get this year. ccb hype train is at full steam and a lot of places were only doing one bottle limits.

 

As someone on the FL side of things I think what you've been offered is quite fair. I might even argue that its generous of the FL trader. From my seat, I've had absolutely no problem getting Carton with CCB's regular offerings like Jai Alai, Invasion and Cubano Espresso. I've gladly seen Carton brews at virtually every tasting I've visited in the past few months. I don't see this scarcity that you speak of and I'm 1,000+ miles away.

Good Gourd came and went in no time and wont be released again for 12 months. 1 bottle per person was the norm when you found it at retail. I work a matter of minutes from CCB and managed only 3 bottles this year which went out to my regular trading partners leaving me with not one bottle for myself. I'm a huge 077XX fan but I'll go out on a limb and say more 077XX is produced in a typical two week span than an entire years worth of Good Gourd. In terms of relative scarcity I think the Gourd is far more difficult to acquire.

If you have an inside track for Carton, the trade you've been offered seems like a no brainer to me..

 

I don't understand why you would complain about going $4$ when you would be getting the higher rated and rarer beer. Not to mention you have "easy access" to Carton & Kane.

Even as an IPA/DIPA guy who really liked 077XX, I wouldn't send 2 GG's for 8 Carton cans. I also don't have any GG because the few I got my wife drank already!

 

I agree with some of what you say but keep in mind Carton is still a very young / small brewery and I really doubt they're making more 077XX in two weeks than CCB makes of Good Gourd. They can, what, 2 beers? 3? And the only things they bottle are waxed / capped growlers? I don't live anywhere near Carton so I don't know what the distribution is like, but I'd imagine it's sparse at best. Why would you assume it's easy to get? The fact that you're 1,000 away isn't a solid point. I'm many thousands of miles away from Florida and I had no trouble getting 2 Good Gourd as extras. Does that mean there's no scarcity? Point is, Carton is NOT CCB scale.

I think you and other Florida traders benefit from the national reputation of CCB versus the more limited rep of Carton. Getting some CCB is something every new trader will want to do and so far I suspect Carton is still more niche though they're certainly not under the radar for beer geeks. And their rep is deservedly growing at a rapid clip. Give it a few more months and those CCB deals might be less easy to get done, at least for stuff like Invasion. To flip this around, how much Invasion and Jai Alai do you think is produced relative to 077XX? Probably a LOT more ... and yet you don't have second thoughts about being on the higher production side of the trade.

My point, I guess, is that though it's a fair trade - close on $4$ for desirable breweries / beers - it's worth while trying to empathize. Put yourself in the other guys / girls shoes and ask how you think they feel about it? 8 beers for two? Tiny brewery for bigger brewery? It may not be a given that the other person is thrilled with a deal even though it's "fair." Maybe they shouldn't do the trade then you could say ... but I guess I'd rather just try and find a way to finish trades with people thinking it was "great" rather than "fair."

Cheers!

 

Guess you can wait til next year and try again. Stuff flies off the shelf. Sounds to me like you're more concerned about winning or losing. Up to you but your missing out on a great one.

 

It's really pretty simple. If you want Good Gourd, trade for it. If you think you will enjoy the shelf beer you have, drink it.

 

Sounds to me like your a bigger IPA fan than pumpkin fan. I've been lucky enough to land 2 Gourds this year and can't think of any IPA's I'd rather have instead. That being said, I am not a big IPA fan. Is there a Pumpkin ale that could beat out or match your IPA in your mind? That's for you to decide, but I will add that the Gourd is my favorite Pumpkin ale hands down. Seems like whichever route you go, you'll have good beers either way.

 

You do realize that a 1:1 trade on heady:077XX would be equal $ wise
The reason your not going to trade for GG is because it doesn't fly off the shelves?
GG is rated the #1 pumpkin beer on multiple lists.

Hassle some dude to trade his "shelf beer" for your "fast moving shelf beer" at half price.
Good luck with that.