The Alchemist (July 2016)

Got 2 people? Drop off one to stand in line, other to pick up when done with a cellphone call. Yeah, lower limits, but hey...

 

Any idea if Alchemist has other non-Heady/Focal/Crusher beers planned for the rest of the summer? Is Petit Mutant expected at some point this summer?

 

For non-locals the parking dilemma is really simple: take a taxi. The cost is a small drop in the bucket relative to your trip, removes a lot of stress and helps out some local working people.

 

Just to clarify for those critical.....

I did mistakenly drove up Cottage Club Rd Friday morning 5 minutes before 10AM just to see if they had opened early but did not park there (or anywhere else for that matter) as they asked. I was wrong and admit that!

On Saturday I drove up the Mountain Rd (for those that may not be familiar with Stowe, the main and only main road past with a view of the facility) again just to check on the status of things. There is no other road to drive nearby and I wanted to be as early as possibly so I could be back on the road for my drive home. They did in fact open a few minutes early and apparently quite a few folks were waiting or hovering somewhere else close by. I did not show up early or park/ hover on Cottage Club Rd.

AND my reference to the other person in line needing a new hobby was about someone shouting an obscenity about another brewer at 10 AM with children around. It felt more like being at a bar at 10 PM. I just hope he was not driving!

If spending my hard earned money and vacation time for 4 days in a great area, eating great food and drinking great beers, and buying published daily limits of beers is considered hoarding, then so be it. My friends and family are enjoying every sip!

 

That provides some needed elaboration but, I still think the tone of the post was a wee bit sanctimonious.

 

According to the website, it seems that they usually sell out Crusher & HT but not Focal. Why is this? Isn't FB generally regarded as their best brew? Just wondering.

Also, I'll ask again - are the Spiegelau IPA glasses in stock? To my surprise, ive become a fan of this glass.

 

I believe a portion of Heady is distributed, whereas Focal is strictly brewery only. Also, from their blog post:


Q: Will you run out of beer?
A: We hope not. We are starting out with a limit of 1 mixed case so that we can spread our beer out as much as possible, but still make it worth a trip for beer. If we do run out of mixed cases later in the day, we will have plenty more Focal Banger to sell.

 

There's much more of it than the other 2 beers. Focal is the year-round "flagship" beer of the Stowe brewery. It's being produced in much larger quantity than Crusher. Heady is a small amount that's shipped from Waterbury.

 

Curious for the folks that have gone up this week. What's the limit been on Focal later in the day after crusher/heady run out? I'll be heading out from CA for FoFA and have noticed Focal started making it through the business day (at least per their website). Thanks!

Edit: Spoke too soon. Just sold out....

 

Makes me wonder why they didn't build the brewery in a slightly more out of the way area of VT, a place that needed some economic intercourse more than wealthier Stowe does. That would have helped out some local working people.

 

Probably because they live in Stowe and it was convenient, but knowing John & Jen, they probably thought about what you suggest. However, they are parents as well as brewers so the idea of a 5 minute commute was likely very attractive. Can't blame them for that.

 

Got into town around 6 tonight and went straight to the Alchemist and they had plenty of Focal Banger left. Given this is the one beer I desperately want from them, I'm not sure if I even need to go early tomorrow morning as I had initially planned.

 

Not sure how many 4packs they let you buy, but in the morning yesterday you had the option to buy a mixed case or a full case of Focal. I opted for the latter, Focal is just so damn good and I had no FOMO about the HT or Crusher.

 

Just speaking off the cuff, it's also probably easier to build a brewery where you can tie into water, sewer, electric, etc. more easily than somewhere in the middle of nowhere. Obviously, either can be accomplished (e.g. Hill Farmstead), but presumably it's a bigger PITA to do it in a completely rural setting.

 

I think you should also keep in mind how seasonal Stowe is. A lot of businesses open and then fail in Stowe despite the wealth of residents. Jen and John are committed to helping not only Waterbury, where they first set up, but now Stowe, their home town. The hope is people come in and not only buy at their brewery, but they also eat at local restaurants, visit local bars etc... Stowe has money but its still hard for businesses, especially in a bad snow year.

 

That's a good point. I ate at the place next door when I went (Sunset Grille). I was there solo - but one thing I realized - it would be a good place to visit with family, etc. (outside of the high demand brewery)

 

please...this is a beer forum...not a pinot noir forum.

 

Finally made my first trip to the new brewery today and it was as smooth of a process as the last week the cannery was open to the public.

Tried to time my arrival as close to 10 as possible, but ended up 2 minutes early and they had already opened the lot. They opened the doors and started selling either a mixed case or case of Focal at 10:15. Was back on the road to Killington by 10:30.