Ordering specific brands

That sounds more than fair to me. I couldn't understand why he would not agree to that.

Cheers!

 

I think this would only be useful if I could make certain that the beer I was purchasing was fresh. I like the idea in theory, but there is no guarantee the beer hasn't been sitting in a warehouse for months. At least with the way it is now I can check dates and make my own decision. If you order a specific brand and it's fairly old, well, you ordered it. @JackHorzempa makes mention of FW, and I too have much trouble finding fresh FW beer. I would love to order a case of Pivo Pils, but am I going to get a case that is 4 months old? Unless the beer is seasonal, I would be very concerned buying year-round beer by the case without knowing the age. The uncertainty alone is enough to make the entire idea fall on its face imo.

 

I would only be happy with this if I could be guaranteed the beer was fresh, but I doubt a retailer could guarantee that. The beer might not sitting on their shelf, but small quantities like that are probably just aging at the distributor instead and you'd be paying a premium. I'd rather see the product and check the dates myself before I buy.

 

This is how we handle it. It may not be ideal, but if we discontinued a beer it was probably for a very good reason, so if you want some you'll have to get a whole case.

 

Going to disagree here. I've been preordering cases for years with the stipulation that if it isn't fresh don't get it for me. The guy I work with is fine with that limitation and has sometimes gone out of his way to ensure that I got a fresh case. For example I've had a case of DFH 90 min within 5 days of bottling. I've had a case of Stoudt's Pils that was less than a week in the bottle when I got it. My most recent, a case of Troeg's Cultivator was only a few days old when I picked it up last week.

So you simply explain you want it fresh or not at all. Then you are under no obligation if he screws up.

 

I just call this BS-ing with the beer guy . I have a regular shop that has always been willing to carry something on a trial basis if I bring it to their attention. Sometimes it becomes a regular item, sometimes not, but at least they will give it a chance. Naturally, I'm not bombarding them with requests every time I'm in there- discretion tends to go a long way with stuff like that.

 

I communicated clearly and openly with my local beer retailer. I specifically stated: "I would like to buy some FW Union Jack if you can get it fresh. I am interested in the beer only if it is less than 2 months old". It took me a long time (about a year) but my retailer contacted me when he received some fresh Union Jack (less than 2 weeks old).

Maybe the terminology of "order" is the issue here? Rather than using the word "order" just have a conversation like I posted above.

Cheers!

 

Yea, I'm a person who can "lock in" to terminology at times and it can throw off my perception a bit. "Order" makes it seem much more of a commitment than simply having a conversation with my local retailer. Perhaps I will give it a shot the next time I stop in and see where it goes from there. I'm well-liked and a regular at my store, so I'm fairly optimistic. Cheers!

 

Best of luck!!

This is an example of how we, the end customers, can play a role in the craft beer supply chain of Brewery -> Wholesale Distributor -> Retailer -> Consumer. If we all work together maybe we can make some incremental improvements in getting fresh(er) beer being provided to the end of the supply chain? IMO it is worth a try.

Cheers!

 

Is this some hypothetical where there would be no beer in a store and you just give an order to wait a week or two or three or it just never shows up. Because that is obviously insane.

Otherwise it already happens all the time.

 

I have to order a lot of stuff that I want from online retailers because local stores either have a limited supply and run out the instant it hits a shelf or don't carry it at all. I have no problem ordering beer from a shop. My only concern would be the volume that would be required to purchase for an individual beer. While I might want a few bombers of something I don't need a whole case.

 

yes but you live in Denver, Montana is a different story

 

Try this all the time at the one local shop that mostly deals in wine. Most times they don't get what I wanted or it takes months. This would be awesome for those of us living in the barren wastelands of availability. I for one an not walking out with one of their 100+ Belgian shelf turds just to catch a buzz.

 

Well in my situation I often preorder a case of something my beer guy can get but would not normally stock because he doesn't otherwise expect it will sell. (I also explain that I want it fresh so he won't get me something that's six months old and will pay attention to the date before accepting delivery.)

As for it happening all the time, I think I disagree, given the very large number of folks I know and large numbers of people on this site who don't even realize it can be done.

 

Well what you can arrange will then depend on whether or not your retailer thinks they are able to sell the rest of the case that you don't buy. If it's something they don't expect to sell then you won't get it. If it's something they haven't had before they might just be willing to give it a trial to see if it sells.

 

100% this - I would be happy to special order a case at a store, but if what got delivered wasn't less than 2 weeks old, I would reject the order. It is going to take me at least 4-6 weeks to drink the case so unless I was throwing a party, I would need really fresh beer for it to last in my fridge.

Even if it wasn't a case, and I could order a 6/4 pack it would still need to be really fresh when it came in. For pale ales and IPAs I base almost all my purchasing decisions on freshness. I am an invariant date checker, and I will almost always go with whatever is freshest. It is a rare visit to the store that doesn't yield a 90+ point APA or IPA that is only a week or two old, so I let freshness dictate my choice.

There are so many great beers out there now, I don't miss certain brands - they will be fresh on a visit to the store once or twice a year, so I just get them when they are delivered fresh!

 

If you are going to order beer to your local beer shop, it should be understood that you are buying the case outright as soon as they let you know it is in.

 

...and the large number of posts from people who apparently drive all over looking for a beer - "I've never seen it in the stores I frequent...". I mean, either a beer is or is not carried by the local distributors, but when it is, just have your local retailer order the damn stuff. And when it's not, that same retailer will be able tell you that, too.

Not always the case, but it should be agreed upon before ordering, for both the buyer's and the retailer's sake.

 

Which is exactly why my beer buy knows to only accept delivery on a fresh case of what I order. I place a conditional order--fresh or not at all. No problems. No hassles. Lots of fresh beer.

Edit: The only time there was a problem was with a brewery that was using a cryptic date code and he trusted the distributor. However, the distributor delivered a year old case of a seasonal. (They said "by mistake.")

End result: Lots of apologies. My beer guy got to keep the year old case at no cost. We both got a t-shirt from the brewery. I got a free case of one of that brewery's different fresh beers out of the next delivery from that distributor, courtesy of the distributor.

 

FYI, I was the 25th yes vote to send the results into a 25-25 tie. You're welcome.
I'd be satisfied, because I'd prefer to do most of my shopping this way. It would be helpful if the retailer had a beer list of what you can order, so you don't need to know the exact beer you're ordering when walking in the door. Also, the customer may see beers on the listing they forgot or didn't know about and be interested in ordering. Also, the retailer would avoid situations where the customer wants to 'special order' a beer the retailer can't even get (i.e. everybody can't special order BCBS, etc.). And it takes into account seasonal or special releases that may be available in larger quantity.