Freshness vs. Price

I wish they would just brew smaller. A beer not being there every time I may want it, but always being fresh when it is in is far better than what is going on with a lot of IPAs.

 

What? My SN torpedo costs $13.00 a 12 pack. I don't buy lunch but prefer to drink fresh, drink local. MA is full of small to medium sized breweries cranking out good fresh beer at mostly reasonable prices. Be Hoppy anyone? Maybe set your sights closer to home for fresher brews.

 

A world where Torpedo is 16:99 sounds like a nightmare

 

I bought a bomber of Maharaja yesterday for 3.99. I could not find a date, but it is almost certainly past its prime at that price.

 

Agreed 100%.

 

I wish distributors would stop forcing unwanted product on the retailers

 

Anyone who wants to learn more about beer freshness should read this thread which several professional brewers (Victory, Firestone Walker, A-B, and Sierra Nevada) gave a lot of great information about the science of beer bottling/canning and freshness.
http://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/old-ipas.177842/
It starts getting good around Page 2.

 

THIS.


By the time the beer hits the shelf it has already been bought and paid for to the brewery. It's the drive-by salesperson that can scratch an order out by taking a WAG that causes this. It's not always completely their fault either because they are being pushed by quotas. Yet another reason why breweries should have the ability to distribute without paying through the nose. That and several other complaints I have with three tier system that I won't go further into..

 

I look for fresh beer and I admit it freely. Price is a consideration for me as well because of budget and because of that I often buy a sixer of seirra nevada over my own locals, fresher or not because it's cheaper. It's disappointing when I go to the local shop and get all excited over something I see on the shelf only to leave it right there because it's out of date. I encourage you to buy a sixer of your favorite hoppy beer and put one under the counter for six months. Drink those five and then after that time try the last one. Fresh beer please and at a good price too =)

 

So do I, but distributors are in business also. And it may not be that they force it, it's more like the way they force it. Or they way you have heard they force it.

 

For me, there is enough selection available out there that I can find something fresh and at a price point where I feel I'm getting my moneys worth. One of the things about capitalism and competition is that it tends to keep the prices down [unless you're in the petroleum business]. Yes, it's disappointing when I'm in the mood for something particular, but most of the time, it's something that's readily available. If it isn't fresh one time, I don't give up - I'll just check again the next time I'm in the mood. And there are plenty of seasonals I am interested in as well so I don't need to be on the lookout for everything all of the time.

 

Maybe not necessarily how much they brew, but at least what format it's delivered in.

Not in any way saying HF has the ideal business model (from an availability perspective), or is remotely close to being "accessible" for 99.99% of the country, but I do like the way that their hoppy offerings are growler-only, and it's the styles that are less dependent on freshness that get bottled. In principle I like that idea.

 

A related question. Does anybody have input on how much beer goes back to the brewery or is destroyed due to exceeding freshness? Who takes this initial cost? I know we consumers eventually for for it in the end.

 

Be Hoppy is brewing under demand. What happens when they don't anymore? The same thing that is happening to a lot of Hopnius Union. It sits.

 

Freshness is both the most ignored and over-hyped aspect of buying beer. Millions of people buy beer while never noticing the date and they are fine. It's just beer. Then some BAs won't buy hoppy beer 6 weeks old? That's nuts. John Kimmich says Heady is best at 10 weeks, and I agree with him. It isn't as good the day I pick it up as several weeks later. It's also damned good at 3 months, just as good. Some beers fall of faster, packaging matters. I check dates...but won't reject an IPA a couple of months old, especially if it is in the cooler. Studies show refrigeration slows the rate of change dramatically. Now the warm FW or Firestone 5 months old? No thanks. Got Limbo bottled 9/8 yesterday and it was spectacularly fresh.

 

There is some waste in this retail stuff. How much does a grocery store throw out? You are thinking of an ideal situation when one does not exist. Look at the date, buy fresh. What other options are there? I support my stores that have a curated supply and have good turnover.

 

There is a constant struggle to balance supply and demand. Add in the element of freshness and things get even more complicated.