Undervalued Beers: Rare '15

Discussion in 'Trade Talk' started by rmpic82, Jul 27, 2017.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
Page 1 of 3
  1. rmpic82

    rmpic82 Maven (1,268) Jan 27, 2017 Kansas
    Trader

    So, after reviewing the trade boards for several months, it's easy to find beers that people undervalue, and beers that people overvalue. One of the most egregiously under appreciated beers, in my opinion, is Bourbon County Rare '15.

    Thoughts from others on most overvalued or undervalued beers? Cheers.
     
    #1 rmpic82, Jul 27, 2017
    JPick likes this.
  2. SammyJaxxxx

    SammyJaxxxx Initiate (0) Feb 23, 2012 New Jersey

    What's rare these days is people under valuing beer. In the case of Rare, I believe it was rare in name only.
     
    #2 SammyJaxxxx, Jul 27, 2017
    Number1Framer, BEERschlitz, stouts4everyone and 8 others like this.
  3. eppie82

    eppie82 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,377) Apr 19, 2015 Illinois
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Bourbon County Brand Stout Rare '15 is 'undervalued' because of the number of bottles that were sold. I think based on allotments and rough numbers, something like 40,000-60,000 bottles were released into the wild, meaning it's not that difficult to find or track down.

    Otherwise, I don't believe in over-valued or under-valued beers. It's just whatever you are willing to give up for beers you want. I get most annoyed when I see Bottle Logic stout 'asking price' because I know the large number of bottles that were released, but I just don't make offers or seek them out so it's not that big of a deal. That maybe just a California trader thing.
     
    #3 eppie82, Jul 27, 2017
    Last edited: Jul 27, 2017
    Vidblain, odcardinal, montman and 2 others like this.
  4. rmpic82

    rmpic82 Maven (1,268) Jan 27, 2017 Kansas
    Trader

    For me, the number of bottles produced/available just doesn't "move the needle". I don't have to try it if there are only 200 bottles produced, and I don't ignore or discount it if there are thousands of bottles produced (Bottle Logic). 40,000+ bottles of Rare is a shockingly high number, if accurate, but it's all about how good the beer drinks. Rare '15 has world-class density and mouthfeel (for me) which is a priority for my tastes.

    I am with you...value/beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but there are certain standard-bearers within each style category (stouts - Bourbon County, BAA, Handjee, J Wake/AC/Cycle, whatever is your personal Stout Mecca) that clearly differentiate their brews from other producers. Of course, circling back to your point, that pinnacle will be different for a great many folks.

    I guess the underlying emphasis for me - and perhaps the unspoken point of the original post - bottle counts matter to a degree, but the way the beer tastes should be the focal point, which I believe is true for the majority. Thoughts?
     
    #4 rmpic82, Jul 27, 2017
    JPick likes this.
  5. eppie82

    eppie82 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,377) Apr 19, 2015 Illinois
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    If you were in Chicagoland during this past Black Friday release (in 2016), you would have been shocked to see how many Rare '15 were around and all the places you could buy them. They sat on the shelves at many of the Binny's for months, and there were even a few Target stores selling them for the same price as Goose Island during Rare '15 Day (at $60/bottle) with a 5 per person limit! There was such a huge number of them.
     
    #5 eppie82, Jul 27, 2017
    Thirst_trappist, KBlodorn, Beer_Economicus and 2 others like this.
  6. John_M

    John_M Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,849) Oct 25, 2003 Washington
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    I had the 2015 Rare last November, and while I found it enjoyable, the $60 price tag struck me as absurd. At least to my palate, the beer tasted like the regular BCBS, with some high quality bourbon dumped into the blend. I didn't pick up any of the extended barrel aging the beer was supposed to have undergone. Given the opportunity, there's no way I would pay that kind of money for a second bottle, and frankly, I feel confident in saying that would be true even if it came with a more realistic/reasonable price tag (maybe $20?).

    It's obvious your experience must have been different from mine, and I think it's great that you derived so much enjoyment from it. However, as I think @SammyJaxxxx and @eifster82 alluded to, GI made an ocean of the stuff, it was spendy to begin with, and many of us were not all that "wowed" by the beer. For that matter, the fact the beer is made under the Ab-InBev umbrella may play a role as well (where I live there are plenty of folks who won't buy or trade for anything made by Ab-InBev just on general principle).

    Those are all going to be factors when it comes to how desirable or sought after a beer is going to be, and I assume explains why the 2015 Rare's trade value is so low.
     
    #6 John_M, Jul 27, 2017
    Last edited: Jul 27, 2017
    kingsleyr, jrnyc, FBarber and 1 other person like this.
  7. rmpic82

    rmpic82 Maven (1,268) Jan 27, 2017 Kansas
    Trader

    I hope there is an ocean of the 2017 lineup. Have a lot of intriguing choices...might try to make the Chicago trip to score a set. I haven't purchased a bottle of Rare to date, but I have been able to get a few bottles via trade...maybe that makes it more palatable.

    Side note: Rare Day was limit three, but as you mention "unlimited" thereafter
     
    #7 rmpic82, Jul 27, 2017
    eppie82 likes this.
  8. eppie82

    eppie82 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,377) Apr 19, 2015 Illinois
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    You're correct. I was at Rare Day and it was a great event, where you could purchase up to 3 bottles. I think that year, the impression was still that it was quite limited. But it was really during 2016 release that people realized just how much of it was bottled.
     
    #8 eppie82, Jul 27, 2017
    FBarber likes this.
  9. FBarber

    FBarber Grand High Pooh-Bah (7,325) Mar 5, 2016 Illinois
    Mod Team BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Rare day at GI had a limit of 3 bottles. But once it went on sale to the public in particular after this past year (2016) most places had no limit with the only deterrent being the price tag. There were literally cases of it sitting at Binny's for several months after the 2016 black Friday release.
     
    #9 FBarber, Jul 27, 2017
    eppie82 likes this.
  10. JPick

    JPick Pundit (799) Sep 7, 2013 Missouri
    Trader

    If Rare were readily available and sold for $20 apiece, I would buy all the Rares. Like seriously...it may cause marital consequences on my end for the quantity that I'd buy.

    Agree that the $60 price tag is ridiculous, but the Bourbon County bashing that takes place on these boards is laughable. Yes, they had the one disasterous year with the infected batches, but it's amazing how, even though they did the right thing and refunded everyone's money, they're still mercilessly trashed. Others that have had similar problems don't get this treatment (see Bottle Logic's Byzantine for example).

    I guess because they're owned by the evil empire (AB), it really doesn't matter what they do. I'm just looking for great beer though....I don't care who brews it.
     
    #10 JPick, Jul 27, 2017
    bubseymour, WIBeerSnob, KBlodorn and 2 others like this.
  11. John_M

    John_M Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,849) Oct 25, 2003 Washington
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    For me it's an opportunity cost issue. In other words, what other BA stout am I giving up by buying Rare? Even at $20 for a 16.9 ounce bottle, there are better options at that price point, and they're a lot easier to obtain than the 2015 Rare. At least that's the case where I live.

    Of course that's just my opinion, and just looking over the BA reviews, it's obvious that there are plenty of people who feel the 2015 Rare is the greatest thing since sliced bread. If you really feel that way about Rare, then of course you're going to be happy to pay $20 for a 16.9 ounce bottle, and arguably even the $60 price tag might be justified.

    As for all the BCBS bashing, I can't really comment on that. A number of breweries have had problems over the years with infected bottles, and my feeling is that if you're willing to give those breweries a pass, or at least forgive them, then it makes sense to do the same for GI. My impression is that this can happen to the best of breweries, no matter what precautions are taken. What matters to me is how a brewery reacts once the problem is detected, and in that regard, it seems to me that GI did all that you can ask them to do.

    IMHO, there are plenty of reasons to despise AB-InBev, and not drink their beer if you so choose. However, a one time inadvertent infection of one of the BCBS variants isn't one of them (again, IMHO).
     
    #11 John_M, Jul 27, 2017
    Last edited: Jul 28, 2017
    johnyb and dmbforever like this.
  12. montman

    montman Maven (1,444) Mar 10, 2009 Virginia
    Trader

    I would have loved Rare at half the price I paid for it, however at that cost point I paid when it came out, it just wasn't worth it for me. But that's the beauty right, we all can under/over appreciate things at our own pace.

    Trying to trade for different things, it definitely can be easy to stereotype some groups/regions/fanboys as habitually over valuing their beers comparatively to others, but that's part of trading I guess.
     
    #12 montman, Jul 28, 2017
  13. SammyJaxxxx

    SammyJaxxxx Initiate (0) Feb 23, 2012 New Jersey

    It was an infection to Coffee, Barleywine and some of the regular. Not exactly one variant.
     
    #13 SammyJaxxxx, Jul 28, 2017
  14. John_M

    John_M Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,849) Oct 25, 2003 Washington
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    The coffee is what I remembered most and it seemed to be pretty widespread. I heard about the BW as well, but wasn't sure it was ever confirmed. Same with the regular version (just saw a few isolated reports of possible infection).

    The coffee variant I was certain of (and was even the lucky recipient of an infected bottle), but as I wasn't entirely sure about the BW and regular bottling, I thought it better to keep mum on that.
     
    #14 John_M, Jul 28, 2017
  15. Nuts4Barrel-aged

    Nuts4Barrel-aged Crusader (428) Dec 14, 2016 Minnesota
    Trader

    There were confirmed infections and refunds on multiple bottlings of the regular BCBS. My friends that had purchased the barleywine and coffee were all infected and I am pretty sure a large portion of those bottles were infected as well as the proprietor's lone batch. Didn't stop stop me from going on to buy more bcbs last year though.
     
    #15 Nuts4Barrel-aged, Jul 29, 2017
  16. nc41

    nc41 Initiate (0) Sep 25, 2008 North Carolina
    Trader

    I bought two of the 15 Rare for $60, I find it hard in retrospect to justify the cost. If there was any appreciable difference between it and regular it was lost on my palate. The Coffee is a different animal though, easily my favorite from GI.
     
    #16 nc41, Jul 30, 2017
  17. FFFjunkie

    FFFjunkie Initiate (0) Aug 26, 2014 Illinois

    Coffee and BW were the first infected followed by some batches of regular and 1 batch of prop. If I recall correctly.....
     
    #17 FFFjunkie, Jul 30, 2017
    Beer_Economicus likes this.
  18. Yabu

    Yabu Savant (1,150) Feb 4, 2015 California
    Trader

    I certainly wish Rare '15 was only $20! Actually now a days, $20 would be "cheap" for a BA stout. Even $30, might be low based on the market. (rare was aged for 2 years, compared to 1 year average for ba stouts?)

    Modern Times & The Bruery $28-$35. Bottle Logic around $25 +/-. Alesmith, $35ish for BA stouts.

    Abnormal Beer Co, charges non ba stouts for $25-28 !!!!
    Darklord & Darkness, $20ish. As well as a boatload of the others.


    Craft beer is an expensive habit, but certainly agree $60 a pop is too much to stock up. Since ratings are pretty high on it, I imagine in a few years value will go up. Not like OG rare, but much higher than what's it trading currently.


    I get annoyed that the CA traders give BL away for free , like it's a charity thing!

    I agree 100% on both accounts!
     
    #18 Yabu, Aug 3, 2017
    JPick and rmpic82 like this.
  19. eppie82

    eppie82 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,377) Apr 19, 2015 Illinois
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    We have opposing points of view. Good luck on your trading endeavors.
     
    #19 eppie82, Aug 3, 2017
    That_Bearded_Guy and Beer_Economicus like this.
  20. John_M

    John_M Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,849) Oct 25, 2003 Washington
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    No disrespect, but the comparison you're making isn't an accurate one. $20 for a 16.9 ounce bottle of BA stout is comparable to paying $25 or $26 for a 22 ounce bomber. All the BA Bruery beers I've purchased or shared have come in a 750 ML bottle, which last time I checked, is roughly 25.4 ounces. A $30 bottle of BA Bruery beer is comparably priced to a $20 bottle of Rare. Other than the BA Alesmith and Moderntimes stouts you mentioned, all the other beers you list are comparatively priced to a $20 bottle of Rare.

    Where I live, most of the better BA stouts (Abyss Variants, Black Butte Anniversary porter, Crux's Tough love and Fremont BA stuff) are cheaper than a $20 bottle of Rare.

    Not that it matters. The main problem I have with paying $20 or $60 for a bottle of rare, is 1) it's not very rare; 2) it's not one of the better BA stouts I've ever had. As I mentioned, to me the beer tasted very similar to the regular BCBS, except for the fairly obvious presence of some really good bourbon. I like good bourbon just fine, but the upcharge GI charged for the privilege of having a little extra bourbon in my BCBS just didn't strike me as justified. That's my impression at both the $60 price point and the $20 price point.
     
    #20 John_M, Aug 3, 2017
    Last edited: Aug 3, 2017
    FBarber likes this.
Page 1 of 3
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.