Reporting Old Beer

I don't need all that info, just tell me when you bottled it and I'll figure out by style if I'll buy it. I don't care about best by dates, that's arbitrary. I don't care about expiration dates either, hoppy stuff is long past prime, and for the most parts sours and BA Stouts are exempt here.

 

That stinks and I feel has a lot to do with the issue. The owner is not a beer guy, he sees his money from liquor so the beer is actually a hassle for him in a way. It is a tough spot since he is cool to order you guys your beer but he is getting hosed with old crap and probably does not really understand it, to him it is liquor and never goes bad.
I guess only thing to do is ask him to stop taking old items but again he may just say this is more work than I want and just end the beer. You should take advantage of this and you and your buddies open a killer beer store and stock all the good stuff, sounds like demand in area and Zero supply, could be opportunity if play cards right and have some coin to do, just saying.

 

I can watch the shop keeps eyes glaze over as you try to educate them. Because good chances are they are pretty well aware of all of this and are stuck with old product due to how distribution works. Also, too.
Breweries can try to step in here. But, honestly. When you are a solo salesperson with a district that is a few hundred square miles, or half a state even and the brewery you work for is on the other side of the country, and you have never met any of your fellow staff, much less visited the brewery itself. You tend to cater to the people who put the real money in your paycheck, not the dribs and drabs who put the change on the end. Also, and more importantly. Sales is about selling. It is not holding peoples hands who order too much product and are not turning it over because they don't have someone who is passionate about talking it up and selling it.

 

I have been buying a wheat ale that has a fairly hoppy finish. The batch that is around was brewed on Aug. 20.
I notice a decrease in quality and it pisses me off because the price sure as hell isnt less. If your making beer and canning it and selling it like this people are going to try your brew and never buy it again.
Some of the craft beers in stores are a year old and they SUCK. If your a distributor tell your breweries that you must have fresh product. Otherwise dont sell it.

 

OP, have you tried contacting the brewery, the distributor or the store? I think we can all empathize seeing old product on shelves but I recommend reaching out to the parties who decide what's on the shelves, when it's on shelves and for how long it's on the shelves.

 

OP, I think you're pointing your comments about your favorite beer at the wrong place. It's the distributor that usually controls what is on store shelves, so the beer that you like may not be as well liked by others, thus the stock doesn't sell fast enough to get refreshed with new stock. True, it's possible that the brewery has not brewed more fresh beer for the distributor to be able to send it out to the stores, but I'm guessing the fault is with the distributor, and to a lesser extent the store owner for not insisting to the distributor to replace the old stuff with new. Just an alternate viewpoint from me.

 

As a person who works in a bottle shop I can tell you that sometimes distributors will deliver beer that is less than fresh. I have had to send the same beer back over and over because it kept coming in with the same BB date. Also as stated above maybe the beer you like doesn't sell well, therefore they don't get to replenish stock often. If I had my way every time a beer went over the 90 day mark I would write it off but the manager of the store I work in just isn't down for that and im sure its the same for your bottleshop

 

Anger issues--tsk tsk tsk

So easy these days--so much avail and in date. No need to buy old.

 

It's the distributor. I have seen beer delivered to the store already passed it's sell by date.

 

Best to write an e-mail directly to the brewery, be nice, show concern and you might get a free t-shirt!

Or perhaps they'll make it right with the vendor. I have had success reporting dirty tap lines and to my surprise, they responded by removing the beer from the bar. I think that's a good thing.

The problem is the distributor and breweries don't care as long as they get paid. There is craft beer and there is Kraft beer

 

Wait a minute...won't the distributor, shop, and/or brewery completely disregard the OP in ths case? We are talking about a wheat ale canned on Aug. 20th!? Now, many of us that look at dates might be reluctant to buy it...fair enough. However, we are talking about a beer that is barely 3 months old...not something that has sat for 6, 8, 12+ months. This isn't exactly an example of the supply chain failing. There are plenty of legit examples out there...this ain't one.

 

distributor issue. not the brewery.

first in last out.

best bet is to purchase beer in growlers or cans fresh from a local brewery and cut the careless middlemen (distributors) out of the picture completely.

 

I am surprised you return to bars with dirty tap lines...

 

Thanks for that honest and clear perspective. Truth is, "old" beer can come from a brewery, a distributor, or simply languish on the retailer's shelves, having been sold fresh. As many ways as one may imagine, "old" beer happens. Over-production, over-selling, over-buying, changes in buying habits, bad inventory management at any level of the 3 Tier System, and on, and on. Check dates, find a retailer to trust, and only take chances (no dating noticeable) on bigger beers. Other than that, to all of you, have a beautiful Thanksgiving! I've set a firm dictum for my household this year: Thou shalt not speak of anything but POLITICS!

 

this thread kind of confused me for a second as I have seen numerous posts from you in the homebrewers forum.

if you reside in a disparite beer marketing location, that is all the more reason to upgrade your home brewing gear/system and stop waiting on distributors to move outdated stale product to your vicinity.

One of the great things about the US is how easy it is to purchase/access certain types of grains, hops, yeast strains and brewing gear. Probably better than any other country on the planet. Which I didn't quite realize until traveling abroad to numerous countries and seeing how limited brewing resources are because its such a tiny demographic elsewhere. Sometimes we take for granted just how good we have it here.

 

I walked thru a store last week checking dates on hoppy stuff and some Pils. Not surprised to see July canning dates on quite a few. I go to Bestway Grocery 90% of the time, I work in Greensboro live in Burlington. The Lowes foods here has a 5 tap station you can drink in while you shop or do growlers. Also wine. The lady who runs the beer dept is on top of it.

 

You have two problems, but only one recourse. The distributor is not going to listen to you. You are similar to a boil on his butt, a pain that is ignored.

Your only solution, previously mentioned, is to educate the shop owner. If possible, meet with the owner when he is not running the store. Sooner or later he will have to take a stand. Get him to order just once case at a time when possible. And refuse bottles that have a layer of dust.

 

Just bought a 12 pack of 12th of never canned mid-July....It actually tastes pretty good....

 

Not framiliar with that particular beer, but it's tough to see hoppy beers that old on the shelf. I hate malty IPAs that have turned.

 

Totally agree. As long as you are flexible as to brewer and style. And if everyone did that it would help sort things out.