Rusty Nail Release

Considering how limited this beer is and how great the demand, I'm surprised by their restraint. Knowing Apex, if you had asked me to guess on their take out price, I have to confess I would have guestimated $50 or more.

On a more reassuring note, I did see that they recently kicked up their PtE price to $9 a pint. I was getting a bit worried there for a bit, as they were starting to get dangerously close to no longer charging the highest price in town for Pliny.

 

I rarely go over there any more, but at one time I was a fairly frequent visitor, and was on good terms with some of the staff there. At one point, I even asked them about some of their pricing strategies. The bartender told me they were trying to encourage customers to be more adventuresome, and to try new beers outside of their usual comfort zone. Beers that weren't the usual, overhyped stuff that everyone else is drinking (one of the "other" reasons I was given for why they charge such a high price for pliny). I mentioned that it sounded as if they were trying to punish customers intent on buying nothing but the super popular, over hyped beers, by charging an exorbitant price for them. The bartender acknowledged that was certainly one way to look at the situation.

Obviously, there are plenty of other ways to encourage patrons to try other beers (like I don't know... maybe refuse to even carry PtE and similar overhyped beers), so it was kind of hard to swallow that particular story. Also, there are plenty of beers on tap there that aren't pliny and notorious (for example), that are hugely marked up and over priced as well. Though again, as you mentioned, there are also plenty of beers on tap there that are quite reasonably priced.

I confess I've long since given up on trying to figure out their pricing strategy and/or business philosophy. It doesn't really affect my life anyway. I haven't been there since last summer (met a friend from work who lives in the area), and have long since stopped even looking at their online taplist, to see if they have something I just need to have.

 

I knew someone would point that out.

The last time I checked was several months ago (the price apparently went up a while ago), and I can't even remember now why I was looking it up (I think it might have been in the context of the GN thread - you'll recall that ElijahSF loves the Apex, and he said something along the lines of how lucky we were to get pliny at all, and so why were we griping about the price of pliny there).

I really try not to bring up the Apex at all if I can avoid it, as their indiscriminate pricing, uneven service, and some of their other annoying practices, always gets me wound up. I've found the best way not to get wound up, is to avoid going there and avoid talking about them. However, when I saw the recent take out price for the RN, I'm afraid I took the bait and dove in.

 

It's really not all that great a problem here either.

As was mentioned in a previous thread some time ago, in other parts of the country you'd just shut your mouth and put up with the nonsense Apex keeps on perpetrating, because their beer selection is just so good. However, there are so many excellent places in PDX that are as good, or at least nearly as good as the Apex, that it's really no skin off my teeth to avoid going there. Every once in a while they'll get in something that I can't find any place else, but that's become increasingly uncommon, and I've found that it's just not worth my time and energy to put up with their nonsense in order to try one or two special, select beers there. Frankly, I really don't miss going over there any more.

Of course, this is just my opinion, and as always, YMMV.

 

Any purchasing limits? I'm at GG at the moment and plan to head right over.


Edit: Never mind. As it turns out, there were NO purchasing limits. However, I showed restraint, and when I left, there were still at least 3 bottles left. :-)