Beer release line control?

Numbered tickets handed out to people when they got in line. When doors open, they sell in order of your number. Hard to manage it when you have so many people, lots of them holding spots for friends, etc.

 

Numbered tickets are the only way. You get in line, you stay in line, you get your beer.
All the saving places, and cutting in line at the last minute, is complete bullshit, and anyone that does it deserves a good thumping by everyone they jumped in front of.

 

Raise prices so they're actually somewhat close to where demand and supply intersect.

Expand your brewery and increase supply.

 

Heavily armed security guards.

 

I like the lottery based line. Haven't seen it done with breweries yet, but back in the day, before ticketmaster, when i was waiting for concert tickets, the venue didn't want overcrowding lines. So they warned people that it isn't first come first served. Take a number and at a designated time they will randomly draw a number and thats where the line would start.

 

I've thought that's a great method, too. My concerns are that the brewery, or wherever, needs to staff the front of the line for a longer time period. Also, I've always thought that it would simply shift everything earlier and the potential for line shenanigans would just be at an earlier time.

 

How does the line look overall? I've got a friend there who potentially is gonna grab me a bottle or two of beat, line permitting....

 

Have a pre-release lottery for said beer. If your name is selected you get a reserved time to go and pick up your beer. This negates the need for a line and keeps people from having mules go and pick up even more for them.

 

Oh, so Toppling Goliath should sell KBBS for $100 a bottle. What a solution...

 

Pre-release is the way to go but lottery isn't IMO. I think the best way to handle limited beer releases is the way Wicked Weed does it:

Pre-sale will allow for one purchase per person of a minimum of 6 bottles and a maximum of 12 bottles. Purchase of a full case (12) will include a Golden Angel glass and an 8oz pour of Golden Angel, while purchase of a half case (6) includes a Golden Angel glass. Purchased bottles will be available for pickup in person during two sessions; May 23rd and 24th beginning at 12pm both days at Wicked Weed’s Funkatorium. Golden Angel is scheduled for a 12pm tapping on Saturday and Sunday in the Funkatorium Tasting Room with Golden Angel glassware available for purchase.

They devote a certain number of bottles to pre-sale and then the rest are sold on release day in the normal fashion. They also do the numbered wristband thing and I believe they also scan your ID so that the same person can't buy bottles more than once. Also, the people that show up before the designated line-up time are turned away. Smart. Of course, if the bottle count is extremely low, this method is mostly useless. At that point, all you can do is go 1 bottle per person, hand out numbered wristbands and hope everything goes smoothly.

 

Fixes the problem I am sure... also I am sure there's people already doing that...

 

if its a big beer- I like the approach that Central Waters did for Black Gold. Pre purchased tickets for your allotment.

 

Side Project counts the people in line a few minutes before the release and bases limits on that. This means that if you are in line at the release time you get an allocation.

 

People selling rare beers on websites for 10x the price they paid are one thing. Those people are the epitome of what's wrong with the state of the craft beer industry today but, yeah, it's gonna happen so there's nothing that can be done about it. The brewers themselves, though, should not crank up the price of their beer to insulting prices just because the demand is so high. This guy sums it up quite well:



Skip ahead to 1:55 to get the main point.

 

I actually liked the way Alesmith has released their last two limited beers by using Brown Paper Tickets. You go online at the predetermined time, buy your tickets, print them off, then show up at the brewery to pick up your beers. No standing in lines, no line cutting, holding places, etc. And you get the convenience of showing up when its convenient for you (within the given time parameters of course) to pick up. I also think that breweries would be at an advantage with this as well, as it eliminates the need for setting up crowd control, security, etc. I know some on here will crucify me for this but hey, if you would rather fight the crowds then so be it. And @Immortale25, I agree wholeheartedly. Tickers who buy the beer intending only to profit off of it is pure BS. Also jacking up the price by the brewery insults the many of us who show love by purchasing the brews. I have passed on many a great beer because of either exorbitant pricing or the fact that secondary markup by these beer scalpers was pure adulteration of the craft. If I miss out on a special release I can always console myself with the plethora of many great beers, readily available to me at reasonable pricing.

 

Get the beards from Tired Hands, they do a great job.

 

Me too. I'm just mad that I missed out on the ticket sale last week!

 

Well said in that video! There is a certain trust factor between buyer and seller, if either side violates the trust, there is recourse for each side. When people do d-bag things, it will reach a breaking point and it won't be good for anyone.