Why is "collecting" beer so offensive to many BAs?

In life there's always the two groups; The Haves and Have Nots. The Haves usually "Brag" what's in their Cellar, while Have Nots feel "Jaded" at these "Brags". I don't care regardless because I drink fresh.

"We all Float Down Here".

 

In life there are always multiple groups doing the same things for different reasons. In beer I think there are folks who have been enjoying fine beer for quite a while who remember when there were no whales, entitlement, trade ******, secondary market/illegal auction sites, fine beer snobs, and sharing was rampant.

I have my moments when I too look with disdain at the folks who collect and hoard fine beers. I think it is because I blame them for the things that have gotten worse in fine beer, such as higher prices, difficulty to acquire beers I would love to drink, and for attracting folks to the hobby, because of this exclusivity, who are profit pigs and/or hipsters and with whom I don't enjoy to interact.

 

I just go to the pub and see what's on the bar. If it looks interesting I'll try it.I have a few bottles at home for when we have visitors but having little interest in bottled beer I tend to buy easy drinking stuff.
There's new beers coming out all the time.Like buses, miss one and two more come along before long.

 

I gotta say, I'm new here and all , but I do sense a lot of jealousy and for some reason ,people tend to want to shame some members for there large hauls, just sayin....but I agree , drink em' if ya got em'. Cheers!!!

 

I used to be a "collector", then I realized that vast majority of those beers tasted way better fresh. I'm still working on some of my shitty oxidized beers from 2012/2013. It makes no sense to me anymore and I have no idea why people really do it besides wanting to "brag" about their old ass beer collections, which is dumb IMO. To each their own, though. Whatever makes you feel better.

 

Oh, but the beer has gotten so much better. I was just thumbing thru my copy of 1995's Good Beer Guide to NYC by the Craft Brewers Guild. In it they rave that a bar has Pilsner Urquell, Fullers ESB and Sam Adams. I guess you have to take the good with the bad.

 

I "collect" for two reasons. One, I like to save a few higher ABV beers to see how they'll taste with some age. Two, I buy more beer than I can drink, so the less hoppy beers have to wait awhile. But I don't brag about what's there and I don't go downstairs and stare at my collection like Gollum stroking the ring. My preciouuuuussssssss.

 

"Collecting" implies one is accumulating the beer only to save it as a "collectible" and not as a future consumable beverage.

If one has a collection of postage stamps or old coins, it is not so they'll have an adequate future supply (or want to see how well the old glue-backed stamps will work in the future or if the laundromat will take Mercury dimes). Coin and stamp collectors don't intend to eventually stick the stamps on their electric bill envelope or put the coins in a Coke machine one hot summer day.

That's why "Cellaring" is a more accurate, and less controversial, term for the people who are buying beer they want to age at home and drink at a later date, as in: "I have a large collection cellar of beer."

 

I have rarely found beers that tastes better after 5 years than they did after 2.

I no longer sit on any beer longer than 2 years unless it's a accessible beer I'm collecting for an extensive vertical to simply prove the poking I mentioned on the above paragraph.

I'm currently doing this with founders imperial, la fin du monde, and saison Brett.

 

cellaring is spot on! me, I cant save anything, I buy what I will drink right this weekend.

 

A lot of people buy more that they can drink.

That's a big problem. People buying beer because of the excitement of something new or for trade bait.

 

Totally agree. I cellar beers, but if you were to compare my cellar now with 4 years ago you will see a whole new group of beers, all of which will be consumed before the next 4 years, and others put in the cellar to rest. I know of folks whose collections only go in one direction, and who will never drink the beers therein, even though likely half+ of them are crap at this point. It's the same to these folks as collecting coins or baseball cards, except those two collectibles don't go bad while they sit.

 

The reason you don't understand why people take offense to this is most likely because you want to do it for the right reason. It's all about perspective. Collecting for personal enjoyment is not likely to garner any animosity. Some people are just holding them so they can sell them and make a profit. The problem is that nobody knows your motivation so they probably just assume the worst. If you don't advertise your cellar you won't have to worry about people commenting on it.

 

There are people who can wait longer than maybe however many days are left until the weekend before cracking open a good beer? I'm calling either shenanigans, or proof of aliens.

 

I often say that it is not hoarding if you can see floor. My basement only shows at bit of cement between the tubs of beer.
Delving into why?, I come up with two motivations. First of all when I started enjoying great beer around six or seven years ago I muddled into some great beers that soon thereafter were not available. 3 Floyd's stopped selling in my part of the state as did DFH ( they have returned) Dark Horse's Three Guys Off the Scale disappeared seemingly forever and soon thereafter GI stopped selling BC variants around here. More recently FW stopped delivering their BA beers to this area. As recently as 17 I as able to buy six.

So there is a hoarding aspect. I also stash silver and ammo, just in case.

And there is an experimental side. I recently concluded that after four years devil Dancer does turn kinda into an ok American barleywine. Last week I bought a 4pk of Double Crooked Tree expecting to drink one fresh and see what happens to the others. Even when these go awry I rarely drain pour.

I know that for similar $ I can buy any of a number of 4pks of ok American barleywine, but I'm curious what happens as the malt takes over.

I have some RIS dating back to 2011. I like the way Expedition picks up a licorice taste and I really enjoy PT5th with 4-5 years. I drank my last 2009 BCBS this winter and it was smooth but still reminiscent of a fresh bottle.

This probably sounds ludicrous to people who don't have a basement and drink almost exclusively IPAs. I get that.

I drink mostly stouts, quads and barleywines with a doppelbock thrown in along with the occasional " best beer on a bad list."

I admit I have too much beer. I'd like to see more floor, but with lady friends bringing 12pks of Blue Moon Gingerbread, and me drinking 6-8 beers in most weeks that's a lost battle. I would like to curate better, maybe I'll find a spare weekend and do an inventory?

 

I think the people chasing delivery trucks, calling relatives/friends or whomever to help them mule, and other crazy obsessive things to obtain a ridiculous amount of rarities are the ones who others find offensive. As mentioned by teromous above, no one knows the motivation behind these acts, so you really can't judge them. However, I have seen videos of beer cellars that are 1000+ bottles strong with many of those bottles that are on the way of being grossly past their prime. For me, that is just plain hoarding. Oh well, different strokes for different folks.

 

My only problem is when people buy a shitload of a rare beer, solely so they can trade it for other rare beers that they don't have access to. Which means someone on the back end of the trade is probably doing the same.

Recently, a local brewery did a bottle release with a 2 bottle limit. It wasn't a beer that needed to be cellared. It was also available on tap. I just bought one. People looked at me like I was crazy. I just figured some one else in line behind me would be better served by my decision.

 

My father-in-law wine cellar is like that. I always give him hell about it, but he just shrugs it off. Many of his wines are 24 years old and have turned to vinegar.

 

I enjoy 'collecting' (for lack of a better word) some celler-able (high ABV) beers for several reasons.

1. Most importantly... it's fun, plain and simple.

2. A lot of my friends are into really good beer, so it's always a great time when you can get together to either have them over and enjoy some great stuff... or meet at their place and do a 'share your best'.

3. I enjoy vertically tasting some of the higher ABV beers.

4. If you happen to meet another beer enthusiast that's looking to do some trading it's always helpful to have something nice downstairs to offer in return.


To each their own!