Sixpoint: Alpenflo Helles Lager

I have been to Queens for a Reds game. At least I’m pretty sure that’s where Shea Stadium was (Flushing?). I realize that there are literally millions more people there than my rural Ohio area, but I have to drive 30+ miles and leave my county in either direction to get any Sixpoint beer other than (usually very old) Resin. While I realize that I can cover those 30 miles in 30-45 minutes in my truck here, it probably takes someone that long to cover 3-5 miles there. However, I remain very skeptical that it takes that much effort or traveling to locate any in a roughly 100 sq mile NY area. Shit, I bow hunt on a 55 sq mile ranch in Wyoming.

 

There may soon be an app for that.

 

Oh, man. Seems to be plentiful out here too.

 

To whom it may concern:

Alpenflo has over 100 points of distribution now in NYC, in both draft and package. I listed 8 spots in Queens alone. To say its impossible to procure is simply not aligned with the reality of the situation. It may not be available in the bodega directly beneath your apartment, but give us a break. We're a mid-sized brewery who just released this beer a few months ago.

That being said, we are sympathetic to the valid concerns of any customer. To set the record straight, there are no employees of the brewery actively writing on this thread, but I am the founder of the company. If anyone has any personal issues with this beer (whether it be quality control, access to the beer, or any other issue) you have an open line to me personally. Send me a PM and we can coordinate a private conversation via phone or email. I'll even meet you out for beers at a bar and we can talk about the issues face-to-face. I can't guarantee I'll be able to solve all of your problems, but I will give it one hell of a try. And if you instead go through the traditional channels of reaching out directly to the brewery, you should find the same level of service. Everyone at Sixpoint is hyper-focused on customer service and experience as part of our company culture.

But if you decline that opportunity and instead just want to complain in a public forum, then I would argue its showing that you are more determined to be upset than seek a positive experience and solution to your issue. This is a community here. There needs to be respect on both sides.

Thank you for your understanding.

don't tempt us

 

California is a whole lot closer than Oz.

FWIW -- Sixpoint is available to me in Wisconsin, and I made my emoti-opinion based on availability of Alpenflo in Australia, but not Wisconsin. That said, I also know the lack of its availability in Wisc. is not due to the brewery, but a distibutor miscue.

Still. The Australian importer has a better understanding of new beer marketing than the Wisconsin distributor? Again, I have to point to the over-saturation of the beer market here in the U.S.

 

thanks for the insights Steve - I can assure you the distribution situation is a lot more complex than what it may seem to be on the surface...to state this market is oversaturated is an understatement to say the least...for that reason we are actually happy that Alpenflo has not been blasted into every single outlet in America right now and just rotting on shelves....yes, you may have to work a little bit to find it, but at this point in Alpenflo's "career" we actually care most about the quality and the customer experience....we'd rather have it be a little more scarce and hard to track down at first vs. having a bunch of beer stuffed into every single outlet...we can grow it organically from a smaller base.....that being said, there are still plenty of gaps to fill...we are working on this constantly

thanks for your patience

 

If you’re ever in Pittsburgh, we’re having some Sixpoint issues. Main issue: can’t stop drinking Apenflo/Crisp. We definitely need to discuss over some beers.

 

Pittsburgh definitely knows its lagers. I'd love to take you up on that offer the next time I'm in Steel City.

 

I didn't have a problem getting some Alpenflo and it's not even sold in my State. I've found with life generally reward is proportional to effort.

 

Wisconsin does too, which only emphasizes the ignorance of the Sixpoint distro in Wisc.
(of course, that "over-saturation" still stands tall, even among lager-loving areas)

 

I'd have to look into the data on that to confirm, but I'd be willing to claim that PA actually has a higher % of lager sales in the craft segment vs. WI....anecdotally, for us WI folks seems to be obsessed with IPA and barrel-aged beers, but do not show nearly the enthusiasm for lagers as PA does

 

Yup, there is indeed a lot of enthusiasm for lagers in PA. It seems that for craft lagers the predominant lager on my local beer retailers shelves (and beer bar taps) is Pilsner. But there are some Munich Helles beers (e.g., Sly Fox, Stoudts,...) and some good Vienna Lagers too (Neshaminy Creek, Double Nickle,..) and needless to say plenty of high quality Oktoberfest beers during the fall season (IMO Sly Fox Oktoberfest is excellent).

I am still waiting for a locally (or non-locally) craft produced Tmavý Ležák.

Cheers!

P.S. And I would be remiss in not saying: in PA you can walk into a bar and simply say: "Gimme a lager" and voila - a Yuengling Traditional Lager appears!

 

Yes, that's what I'm getting at. Between Yuengling, Victory, Sly Fox, and the huge success and proliferation of Sam Adams in the state of PA, I'd be willing to be that perhaps even 80-90% of the craft market is actually lager in PA, making it one of the highest (if not the highest) in the entire United States. Of course that would be skewed by Yuengling which makes over two million barrels (and Sam making over a million barrels) and Victory which is another large craft brewer....but I can't think of any other state that would have so much lager as a % of "craft" sales as PA. We could probably pull the data and confirm. Where's @jesskidden when you need him?!

 

Maybe he is attending a Philly Beer Week event right now? In another hour I will be Philly Beer Weeking!!

Cheers!

 

So this has become some sort of competition? Not my point -- that being there are a lot of lagers available and consumed in Wisconsin -- whether or not it's more or less than Penn is nothing but a freshman drinking contest.

I'll see your Yuengling, Sly Fox, and Victory and raise you Leinenkugel (keeping with the Yuengling level), New Glarus, Sprecher, Lakefront, and Capital.

 

If we're making this a competition now, PA will also raise Straub*, Stoudts, and Troegs... and although it's not PA homegrown, Hofbrau is in Pittsburgh for some reason.

* - family owned since 1872 and still going strong. They also don't subsist on 10+ different varieties of shandies like a certain classic sell-out brewer does....

 

Neshaminy Creek makes excellent lagers as well, we are fortunate to have so many quality options.

 

Apologies if it came off that way, I certainly didn't intend to make it a competition. I was merely illustrating a point (hopefully soon backed by data) that PA actually may be the most lager-driven "craft" state in the US....

Interesting note about your list of WI breweries though...Leinenkugel (unlike Yuengling) would not be considered "craft" as they are owned by Miller-Coors....and the 2nd largest one you mentioned (New Glarus) has ~80% of their production devoted to an ale (Spotted Cow). Very little of their production is actually lager (although I loved Uff-da Bock back in the day!)

 

I suspect he doesn’t realize you have a bit of direct knowledge and on site experience with Wisconsin.