Toppling Goliath Brewery appreciation thread...

If there's one thing I've learned from DDG and this thread, it's that people will hunt for and find reasons to bitch about anything.

 

There's an old adage that goes something like, "Run into an asshole in the morning, you ran into an asshole. Run into assholes all day, and you're the asshole."

 

Glad you said this, I almost put something in my post about how I am more inclined to believe a customer is the rude asshole than a bartender, server, etc. etc. But then again I work around the restaurant/bar industry, so perhaps I'm biased.

 

To me that is not an organizational issue. Especially because in your own post you listed announcing releases and organizing releases as two separate things. So again, how else should they organize their release than line up and buy it?

And as I said, it's easy to figure out when beer is being released in Decorah. But whatever.

Final thought, if you are just buying your beer and going home then that failure is on you. Not at least going to PR and C&C is flat out dumb.

 

Basically, what the Illinois guy wants is for TG to not sell bottles that are a few hours old, but instead hold on to them for a few days. No thanks.

 

Just hoping a version of Term-Oil is on tomorrow, which it sounds like it will be. King Sue bottles would be nice, too, but not a necessity.

 

No, he wants them to announce ahead of time when bottles are going on sale so that he and thousands of other people can plan a PTO day from work, line up a couple of mules, and make the trip to Decorah.

I can't imagine what a pre-announced KBBS release would look like without a ticketing system. Knowing that people flew in for the MD release I'd imagine there would be 10's of thousands of people descending on Decorah 2-3 days in advance of the release and a line forming around that time.

 

I love the fact that TG puts out the beers the second they roll of the line, and have had nothing but great experiences with all of the staff. Frankly I'm amazed that they are able to tolerate all the BS they have to deal with on a regular basis (including people complaining about the drive, limits on bottles, release dates on bottles, if they have any KBBS on tap, etc.). So props to them.

As for the releases, the last MD release was run exceptionally well in my opinion. Random twitter alert to sign up, a great share at C&C before hand (from what I remember), smooth sailing to get the bottles, and an open tap room afterwards with MD on tap for those who didn't get bottles. For having such a small place, they pulled it off wonderfully.

The last few King Sue releases were absolutely busier because you had a flood of people coming down at once, but given the limits (6 - 12 bottles depending on release), it was worth the effort. I think if they tried scheduling these in advance -- even by a few days -- you'd have more people heading down there and as a result either 1) lower limits on bottles, or 2) more people who walk away empty handed. Part of the draw of the sudden "it's here!" tweet is hopping in your car, heading to Decorah, and meeting a bunch of other people who all did the same thing. It's exhilarating.

And as to Term Oil, I tried glasses from the first two barrels. What really blew my mind was the differences between the two, and the importance/skill that goes into blending to make a consistent product. Regardless of the base beer debate, my first thought in drinking Term Oil was that it tasted like Assassin. Not the same, but similar enough that it stood out. Later that day, I did Term Oil side by side with SR and Assassin, and thought the same thing - but that it was closer to red or yellow wax assassin instead of gold. And tasty AF.

 

Final thought, if you are just buying your beer and going home then that failure is on you. Not at least going to PR and C&C is flat out dumb.

I know of Pulpit Rock but what is C&C?

 

Exactly, he seems to want it to work out better for him. They release it as they are still bottling their beer. That is fresh!
I mean, Surly released Todd and it was over a week old already. That was not "organized" either.

Imagine if they announce that King Sue will be release starting at noon on Saturday... what a mess. Tell us when it is on the line and will be at the tap room. It has worked for years. No need to save it for a convenient time for certain people. Good for the breweries that do that, I'm glad it works for them. Everyone doesn't have to do the same thing.
I don't think anyone needs to hold them accountable for doing what they want with their brewery. That is not being a Dick.
Plus, you gave an example of bartender saying "everyone drives four hours" rudely and now everyone there is an assholes?

This is why I hate people.

 

So I've only been around for a couple years... There are some famous "tales" that I never got to experience or be a part of....

1) The Dumpster Fire at Surly
2) The days of BCBS shelf turds
2) BB Batch 9K at Stub and Herbs for like $3


BUT although some will say it never existed I did get to experience the Assassin thread of 2014...

AND now this thread is slowly creeping in that direction... #TGthreads4life

 

Courtyard & Cellar @DecorahNM

 

Cellar & courtyard, def worth checking out while up there. Pretty sure they open in afternoon though.

 

3PM I believe

 

TG, Pulpit Rock, C& C and get some whippy dip and Mabe's to pair with your beers. That's how you do Decorah! #norse

 

As a fellow FIB, I don't see how those are any better. New Glarus isn't in the middle of nowhere? Lining up hours before Binny's opens in the freezing cold on Black Friday to get BCBS variants is better (probably the night before if you go to LP)? Waiting several hours on a Friday morning get GDDC is better (especially considering I got one via distro)?

I'm not going to to lie, I would prefer ticketed events so I know I am getting beer before I make that drive. That's a pain in the ass though, so I can see why they don't do that, especially for something that comes out a few times a year. If they announced it earlier, you would just have to camp out a lot earlier, giving people something different to bitch about.

 

Hearing @mnbearsfan talk about Cantillon shelf turds is painful to me. Must have been rough, buying up BCBS and Cantillon off the shelf and trading Darkness for whalez.. #oldmoney

 

Wow, some serious whining. I've only been trekking to Decorah for TG stuff for about 16 months, but I can only think of one time they tweeted that they'd release bottles on a given data "if all goes as planned" (or a similar disclaimer) where they didn't then release on that day. It was this spring and their labeling machine screwed up.

I drive 2.5 hours each way to go and I drove up on the infamous Saturday "Plenty of KS left" day and came home without any. Shrug...went to Mabes, Pulpit Rock (they had Loopy Linn, which is better than KS anyway) and I had a great time.

Some of you need to lighten up and enjoy the journey. If the way TG does things (ultra fresh release, etc.) is too stressful, feel free to go somewhere else. I love the beer, the people have been extremely friendly (but I don't whine about how long a drive it was) and the process work as well as any. Different? sure, Worse? Only if you don't like fresh beer IMO.

 

Damn! You people need to lighten up.

So the dude has a dim view of TG. Who cares? Nobody kicked your dog, called your kid ugly, or stole your D&D dice.

 

I care... Nobody puts TG in a corner! Wanna fight Corey?

My thought is that if you're going to post in a TG Appreciation Thread, better be prepared to get jumped if you're posting something negative.