The concept of beer "entitlement"

The world owes me nothing, and if person X doesn't want my dollars, he can keep his product.

 

......puts feet up on desk and waits for the lulz to commence
i feel i am entitled to drink good beer anytime i f@cking want to.......my wife often feels otherwise

 

When someone puts in the time and money to frequent a brewery, then sees the brewery either conduct a bottle release or other type of event that's not conducive to them and other locals getting a crack at attending ("How could Blankington Brewing Co. make the bottle release the same day as the Blankington Taxidermy Festival?!") or the brewery expands making it harder to get their limited releases because they have to then allocate certain amounts to other markets (i.e. the Chicago hate for Goose Island or the Grand Rapids hate for Founders), there's an inevitable backlash where people feel like their loyalty is no longer valued by the brewery so they feel disenfranchised.

 

I, personally, do not feel entitled to beer. If I am able to get a rare or high-rated beer not found in my area, I feel excited, lucky, and grateful. It's fun to seek out the good stuff, and I understand not everything can be available everywhere at all times.

To your second question, I would say "yes" that breweries should take care of their core. I think it's good practice to accommodate your regulars by starting a release in the taproom before it's available anywhere else in any form. I know of many breweries who do this already, and I think it's a fun way to kick off a new beer or celebrate the return of a seasonal specialty.

 

Anyone who thinks they are entitled to anything, whether they are a local or beer club member or what the fuck ever, really needs to "check themselves" Nobody is entitled to anything. Work hard for your money and spend it how you will, but you don't deserve anything more than anybody else. Everybody acts like they are the stupid ass Kardashians and they deserve everything and I for one am sick and tired of it!

 

I'm a relatively newer (3 years) craft beer drinker and I kinda just try everything. I've had some hard to find stuff that I didn't care for personally, and I've tried some things that are low 80's/high 70's on here that I've loved. To me it's all subjective to your taste.

 

While there are more than enough 'entitled ______' everywhere, the whole concept is just another one of those fad words and phrases, IMO. Like seemingly every piece of news unfavorable to a public figure is now called a scandal or when over-the-top hyperbole is used to massage a story.
But getting back to the OP's curiosities, in the beer instance, entitled doesn't necessarily mean being given something, as in free. It seems to mean entitled to receive a limited supply beer for a price the buyer deems reasonable. Personally, and with the exception of a trip to TreeHouse for Julius [which I knew I could get], I wouldn't wait in line for a beer that I wasn't sure I could get. And most of the time, if I can't pick it off the shelf or out of the cooler, I don't bother. I'm patient enough to decide that at some point in my life, I will be able to pick it off the shelf. I don't need it today; it won't make a big impact on my life if I have something today or in 5 years.
And as far someone objecting to a business which takes care of its loyal customers? Really?

 

Call it what you want, but people need to stop mercilessly dogging breweries for not perfectly executing every single release. Pretty much all of these "whale" breweries are less than five years old - the people who run them by and large are beer people, not logistics experts.

 

I dont think these breweries owe anyone anything. They would be successful anywhere in the country if they are that good. I remember people in the Dinner line bitching that MBC should do a weekday release to make it easier for locals to get. My money is as good as theirs and MBC would being doing just as well in my area.

 

waiting for all the entitled people to join the thread haha

"I'm not the entitled one" haha. Of course you don't think you're entitled. No one thinks they are entitled

 

Entitlement means that something is "due" you. Unless you've paid/won/been assigned the beer, you are not "entitled" to it.

 

What I consider "entitled" and what drives me up a wall is when someone goes to a brewery or beer release for the first time, and immediately has to critique it and explain how they think the brewery should run things, most of the time just so that they can get their beer faster/easier/cheaper. People don't stop to think about all the hard work and planning that goes into daily beer production and/or beer releases, they just want their beer now.

Using Tree House as a recent example. I can't recall if it was on this website or a facebook group, but there were people seriously questioning why TH didn't just pre-fill all the Good Morning growlers before opening for the several hundred people who would be coming through the door that day. They never stopped to take into account the time it would take employees to fill the growlers, where TH would store 300+ filled growlers, the extra cost of new glass for each customer, and a bunch of other logistics, instead it was just "lets come up with a way for me to get my uber whalez quicker."

Breweries should run things however they deem fit, and it's up to us as the consumer to decide whether or not getting our hands on their product is worth our time and money. You don't deserve something because you are local, because you drove the farthest distance, or because you missed out last time. Simply, with varying degrees of time for each, show up, wait, pay, get beer.

 

I live in New Glarus, and have some close friends that work at the brewery. No humble brag intended, just saying that even with all that said I don't feel entitled to any of their beer, special release or not. I don't even attend the R&D releases becuase most of the time it's for a style of beer that I'm not into. I figure I should leave it to everyone else who actually does enjoy it.

To me I guess it comes down to how you interpret the word entitled; do other people who actually live in New Glarus, and Wisconsin in general, feel entitlded to that R&D release over someone who drove up from Chicago? Probably. Does the jack ball who brings three changes of clothes feel entitled to his 16 bottle limit, doe? He probably does. Should New Glarus feel entitled to sell their product to whomever is willing to stand in line to get it, local or not? Absolutley.

 

I support the right of a business to sell their beer in any way that the law permits.

I have found it annoying when local shops are inconsistent with their policies. This year for BCBS I went to a shop to buy some and was asked if my name was on a list of people they were holding it for, then two weeks later I called the same shop to ask them to hold a bottle of Surly Darkness for me and they said they don't hold beer. Maybe it was a change in policy or a different staff member. I don't know. Either way, I view is as more of a customer service failure than me being wronged by anyone.

 

I believe and understand that, in the current climate of beer, breweries will need to develop more efficient beer release protocols that leave the customer happy. That's just a fundamental way of doing business if you want to be successful (certain breweries notwithstanding). I just think there's a general lack of knowledge or understanding of the industry, and that is evidenced by the litany of outrage towards not scoring the next BA vanilla stout that just released.

 

Nailed it.

If a store owner wants to 'gift' or 'reward' his most loyal patrons, good on him. No one should walk into the store and expect any favors.

 

I'm entitled to exactly what I pay for.

If a brewery makes purchasing a product onerous through lotteries, long lines, advance ticket sales, pricing above what I consider reasonable, etc... I will no longer buy that product.