eBay and Beer Sales

i'd be pretty surprised if the huge-demand beers are particularly profitable for anyone, at least directly. they usually requires more time and space to produce, and by nature they don't sell as many bottles as flagships.

stuff like founders backstage series has to be more about brand building and/or rewarding fans (loyalty building) than profit, because there's no way in hell the time/space you allocate to, say, CBS, returns as much money as just focusing on stuff like centennial IPA. this is doubly true if a brewery is (like many successful ones) brewing at capacity and incapable of keeping up with demand.

my state's best brewery, NEBCO, just recently stopped canning beer by hand (if they stopped, i'm not sure) and can't keep up with demand for their staples in the few states they ship to. yet, they still bust out amazing one-offs like fuzzy baby ducks (great IPA), a few barrel treatments, etc. if you think about it, there's just no way they don't lose money doing that instead of brewing more sea hag and gandhi bot and such--since they're not even just saying "okay, allocate some space in the factory for the specialty beer," because there is no factory. it's a bunch of guys working their ass off just to approach keeping up with demand.

a lot of BA posters seem to reject outright the idea that brewers make small batch 1-offs out of passion or creativity or commitment to their customers preferences ("EVERYTHING IN LIFE IS DONE DIRECTLY FOR PROFIT, HURRRRR") or to reward locals. but this is the only explanation that doesn't posit widespread brewer stupidity.

 

Everybody stop replying to this thread so I can catch up...

 

beer is a biz, passion is there I am quite sure, but reality always gets you in the end. that's life. You know a small biz brewery cannot afford not to have revenue. I read many an interview and I have chatted with many brewers. Cash flow is king.

passion is great but it does not pay the bills.

 

You're quite ignorant.

 

ISO: money FT: beer

 

Sounds like advocacy to me too. There are certainly people with far greater resumes than mine when it comes to craft beer. However, I have found that for the most part, people tend to find individuals within a given radius of a brewery to be more entitled to their beer than those outside of it. I don't know where that comes from or why...but it's simply an observation. You can't even reason with them that they live there, and can therefor enjoy the beer all the time. Why not share the wealth? It seems like a completely unacceptable practice to "deprive the locals" of their beer. I still have beermail from a couple people on this site (and one in particular), who consistently feels the need to grill me for buying full allotments of beer at releases, only to trade a vast majority of it away. I mean...how did any of us make our way into trading to begin with? Didn't we ALL have to go out and buy beer with the intention of trading it? There seems to be absolutely zero consensus when it comes to defining just what "advocacy" means. From what I can see, most people define in such a manner to describe their own personal approach to the matter. Seems more philosophy than etched in stone principle.

I dunno...this thread has really spread out to cover far more than just eBay and the sale of beer on the secondary market. I'm glad the thread hasn't been closed and that there seems to have been a lot of leeway and latitude afforded to everyone. The fact is, trading beer is done in a manner that provides mutual benefit for both parties. Mutual benefit is experienced too by those who buy and sell the stuff. Again, it seems people's opinion on the matter is reflective of how it impacts their own personal habits.

 

Was just looking on EBAY and found a guy trying to sell some GI Bramble. The wording was a new unopened bottle that would be shipped empty unless "otherwise stated". So the seller buys a Bramble, someone buys it on auction, doesn't specify to leave it unopened, the asshole drinks it, the buyer gets an empty bottle for 40 bucks. Don't read the print and you get ripped off, I E- mailed the guy, couldn't resist calling him on a sham. I'm not against EBAY per say, they're no worse than some online stores, but this is ridiculous.

 

Capitalists = Mad
Socialists = Happy
To each their own.

 

Because I mistakenly assumed you weren't commenting just to state that grass was still green..

 

Well, there you have it, more proof that when you think you shouldn't post because you may have had too much too drink you invariably are right.

 

Some beers up for sale on EBAY but the language has changed, sellers will find a way to sell, simple as that. Change that they took that bottle of Bramble down, sellers will still find a way to sell, it might take them awhile though.

 

People keep trying, and they keep coming down, it just takes some time. If Ebay stays diligent, eventually the sellers will tire of trying to find tricks that ultimately have the very intention of what Ebay doesn't want. (Selling a full bottle for drinking)

I'm a capitalist and happy with this decision. I just don't see the world so black and white. I view Ebay sellers as leeches operating outside the strict system of rules put in place for the sale of alcohol, which is not very capitalistic at all IMO. If breweries could just put up a web site and run their own auction and directly sell and ship their beer to anyone in the country, then we can talk about Ebay being a capitalist's dream. Until then, it's just exploiting an inefficient system caused by legalities outside of the control of brewers.

 

It's easy to patrol this stuff, it sticks out like a sore thumb. Google HT, and then you shut it down. If they start putting beer into sporting goods it will be harder to locate for everyone, but you could call them Footballs HT I suppose. I'm still kinda neutral on EBAY, if someone wants to spend the money that should be their decision. The legality is crossed here with trading which I do, I circumvent state laws on shipping alcohol, and perhaps even breach ABV limit law too depending on the state, so if you trade you can't complain abut that aspect.

 

Actually, I imagine that in the time it takes eBay to notice and take down the banned posts, the seller can receive enough contacts from potential buyers to arrange a private sale. Few if any auctions will run to completion, but that will no longer be the point.

 

I find it to be a good thing. What people were doing with beer on ebay was scalping. Its absolutely horrible because you have people with no interest in the beer, AND WHO CONTRIBUTE IN NO WAY TO THE CRAFT BEER CULTURE. I think thats the main issue to think about.

Were the massively inflated prices contributing to this thing we are all so involved in and care about? My opinion is no, it has been hurting it.
---(risking sounding like a hippie here)--

OUR culture of this beer is one of community, respect, and sharing of company over our beers. Lets keep it that way by fueling the bottle sharing and the honest trading. Simple enough.

 

Contribute no way to the craft beer culture. Regardless of what you think of these people, and the entire reason some of them show up to releases...they put beer into the hands of people who'd otherwise have zero friggin' chance of trying it otherwise. Contribute no way to the culture? Bullshit. No way that benefits or otherwise makes YOUR experience better...probably.

That's the real issue here. People's likes and dislikes are about nothing more than what benefits themselves the most. That in and of itself, speaks nothing of community.

 

false. i think ebaying hurts the community, but it makes no difference to me personally. don't let your cynicism about human nature blind you to the arguments of people who disagree with you.

 

Gee, and here i am walking around thinking beer is for drinking.

 

Too many problems begin with people who think they need to try everything. We can romanticize all we want about getting beer to those who would never have the chance otherwise but it is not the warm cuddly image we build up in out head.