I stopped by a liquor store, one I frequent and have generally been pleased with their service, variety from around the country and around the world, ability to bring in what's new from MN brewers, etc. Their prices are competitive and they are a local store. HOWEVER... One of the beers I picked up was a 4 pack of Samuel Smith Pale Ale. I didn't take the time to squint in just the right light to see the bottle stamp and then count letters on my fingers to decode the "Julian" date code, and I paid the price for my haste. Date code is SK30P1 (Nov 30 2016). This is pathetic. I haven't opened the bottle yet and I am already dreading it. I will open it, I will drink it, and I will review it. If I can find a more reasonably fresh one in the future, I'll update the review. Otherwise, if Samuel Smith really doesn't want beer this old being sold, they need to step up their pressure on their importer/distributor. And, the store (one frequently spoken highly of on the Midwest forum here, even recommended to others) should be ashamed of themselves regardless of what the distributor does. I mean, this beer was 1.5 years old! At least I know where I won't be buying British beer any more.
I don't even bother looking for out of state pale ales let alone out of country. As more people drink local beers, non-local beer gets left on the shelf getting old. I agree, f julian dating! There should be a standard dating format for all beer. I also get pissed when a beer is dated but it's smeared or otherwise unreadable ON EVERY SIX PACK! I've also seen beer that was dated but had the dates wiped off. That shit should be illegal!
Even if you do open it and drink it, which there is no reason to, bring the empty bottle back and demand a refund, or at least store credit.
I emailed the store, and they have offered to refund / credit the purchase. Good for them, since I actually did not ask for that. (I only pointed out that I was disappointed in them due to the age of the beer I bought, and suggested that they check the beer on their cooler shelves.) But, what I really found interesting in the response was the statement that the Samuel Smith Organic Pale Ale has a 15 month shelf life (presumably this information is from the brewer?), and that the shipment they recently got in is just over a year from its bottling date. That's depressing.
Perfect example of why I only drink IPAs that I know are fresh or have a clear packaging date. I've had plenty of good IPAs locally that I won't buy again because of a lack of a date. I'm not going to play a guessing game when there are so many excellent options with transparent date coding on the shelves.
