Bourbon County MA

Vanilla Rye was $29.99 in Quincy

 

22.99 and 28.99 in Barnstable for regular. Did not find and BW.

 

Which stores? Might be heading out soon.

 

Wegmans in Burlington had about 10 or 12 cases of regular sitting on the floor tonight, $21.50 or so for a 4-pack. No limit. I picked up a couple of 4 packs, and they were the 14.4% version.

 

They were selling coffee and barley wine for 22 a 4 pack this weekend as well (2 4 pack limit). That place looks amazing I need to try the food some time.

 

No, Cambridge Wine & Spirits.

 

To quote Pete Campbell, "Christ on a cracker!"

 

That's surprising. I never noticed their jacking up prices on anything before. At least not so blatantly.

 

Did this ever come to fruition?

 

I'm sure it "broke" in the same way the King Henry "broke" during the GI migration week. I expect a lot more breakage as craft's aftermarket keeps growing.

 

Checked yesterday and it still had not arrived at local shops.

 

Did a bunch more searching and nothing this week. Final stop was Walpole Wine...so excited and then almost $14 a bottle. I don't fashion myself on the cheap side when it comes to beer but I couldn't do it just on principle...such a bummer. They said their Vanilla was $27.95 and one person snagged the 3 bottles they had.

 

That is crazy pricing. Out in Western Mass 2 bottles are less than $14. Also surprised they didn't limit the Vanilla to one per person. But I guess I don't own or run a store so what do I know?

 

Honest question:
How much of a beer is enough? For instance, let's say you walked into a store and there were 20 cases of this beer and no limits and money wasn't a problem, how much would you buy? I've been looking around these Bourbon County threads all across BA and I've seen people grabbing one or two bottles, one or two cases, all across the spectrum. Is there a limit? And at what point would you think, "Holy crap, I'm out of control" or would you even feel that way? For some people, this is probably their very favorite beer, but probably not for everyone that spent their black friday driving around their cities.

 

Think it comes down to the simple question of are you a dbag or not? I'm not one to strictly believe in Karma, but like to think of the person coming to the store after me and being thrilled to find a bottle of that special beer they've been looking for. Screw my potential trades, bottle shares, etc. I'd rather grab a bottle or two, and leave some for the next guy to enjoy.

 

Similarly, if cases of Vanilla Rye BCBS sat in the woods and nobody found them, would they still be rare? Some of life's greatest questions may never be definitively answered.

 

@mattosgood

Generally speaking, it depends (not a sexy answer I know) and of course to each his own. If I drive a long distance and don't know if/when I'll be back again, like HF etc., I would buy my one time through the line limit.

Speaking to Black Friday beer, first sentence above applies, but I really wasn't feeling it this year. I was excited for it, but then chose not to spend a day off running around.

I mentioned early in this thread that I bought 1-4 pack of BCBS at Wegman's ($22.19). It was a casual in and out. They had cases by the registers, but I didn't even ask if there were limits. I also lucked into a Vanilla Rye, but that was due to a very generous friend who is in beer. So, 5 bottles total. The VR will be shared with my drinking buddies.

I guess I'll try for coffee, haven't seen any yet, since it's one of my favorite beers. I'll also do the same for BW, but that's because I have some from last year and I'd like to compare them.

Bottom line, while I may shake my head (part envy, part dismay) at these Black Friday hauls and the like, I can't begrudge anyone on how they choose to spend their time and their money. It's not my place nor can I excuse myself from buying TOO much beer at times over the years. Just one man's opinion.

Sorry. TL;DR

 

I have 2 thoughts on this. If a brewery release has no limits and people want to take advantage of that, go for it. But, if you're going from store to store and wiping out the product to acquire about a case for the sole purpose of trading, you're a dick.

 

When I dropped $30 for a bottle of VR im thinking that was my sheeeeesh moment!