What happens to 'old' beer?

I would, unfortunately, have to second @WhiteHart . The beer that isn't sold is eventually 'destroyed' which most likely means dumped into a sewer system to be turned back into water and the packaging is probably recycled. Sad end for sure.

In an ideal world the liquid could likely become a part of a composting system or a sugar addition in a compost tea that would feed future hop or barley yields. But really it eventually becomes burdensome trash.

It's enough to push you close to morose poetry, if only I knew french

 

What happens to old beer?
It sits in my cellar until I both have the willpower to get thru that 12%+ bomber and I have nothing important on my schedule. Then I reach in to the dark morass and grab one. I blow the dust off, find my favorite snifter and have a seat

 

OR..., the brewery and retailer could lower their prices on fresh beer to the point where it would actually sell (in accordance with supply and demand), the market mechanism would again function, waste be eliminated, and we would no longer have $8 bombers and $12 six-packs. The current marketplace is dysfunctional and built on romantic notions of craft beer that will not endure as millennials age.

 

My plan for tomorrow, since it looks like I'm not going anywhere for the near future thanks to mother nature's cruel sense of humor. If only this white nightmare could be dumped on the fires out west.
The only good kind of old beer.

 

SOUTHERN EAGLE DISTRIBUTING FINDS A WAY TO HELP FOUR LEGGED FRIENDS.

 

Dude, you're evil!!

 

I'm sure that this might be the case somewhere but it's not my experience.

#1, in working for an initial or "I" distributor in PA I can state that beer is pulled from retail for different reasons, and the store is always credited if that happens. The distributor that sold it may or may not receive credit from the brewery, that's dependent on what arrangements have been made. As a brewer I had beer pulled from the shelves due to a cabonation issue and the distributor ate the cost, but I've also seen breweries credit the distributor for out of code beer pulled from the market.
#2, I have never seen beer sent to be crushed, or have it sent to a facility that would turn it into ethanol. Do you have a source for that? I totally believe that there may be laws where the glass must be recycled and the beer properly disposed of, I'm guessing California, but I'm unaware of it. I have, however, personally spent HOURS loading beer into dumpsters (either in full cases or smashing bottles), or onto trucks to be disposed of in land fills.
#3, this beer is not "...accounted for by barrelage and destroyed under watchful eyes because of legal accountability and the taxes that may be avoided." That tax has been accounted for / taxes paid when it leaves the brewery. All recalled beer has already been tax-paid. If it is destroyed in the brewery following production but before sale it then has to be supervised by the TTB - as I did when I had to dump beer following a flood in 1999.

The thing you are correct about is that it costs a brewery money to recall or take back old beer and that is why they have representatives that should be checking on their product.

 

They should go the homeless, but I'm pretty certain the store is stuck with it, as they ordered it.

 

It all ends up at my local Vons.

All of it.

 

Well this answers what happens to old beer. It gets put out to pasture...to feed the horses!

 

I'm sure how old beer is handled varies greatly from region to region, distributor to distributor, store to store etc.

In my particular case, I'm able to return certain brews to the distributor for a full refund, others I'll receive half cost credit to then have a blowout sale. Those that are unable to be returned? Personally I just mark them down to a reasonable price myself and eat the loss. I absolutely hate having old product on my shelves, it's just not far to make the customers suffer the consequences. Whether I over ordered, or my distributor gave me a dud, I refuse to let my customers pay the price for our mistakes.

 

Don't know for a fact (because I'm several parties removed from the source) but a guy I know, who knows a guy who works at a local large/national brewer (I'll withold the name of the brewery), says that old stock that gets returned from the distributor gets free takins by the brewery employees to take the old beer returns as a fringe benefit as it saves money and time and effort vs. destroying it. My friend gets cases of their year-round DIPA and its always quite old/stale, but free. It sounds somewhat legit because why would the brewery employee have access to 9-12mo. old IPAs in multiple cases to give away to a friend of his for free (and I've actually seen the old stock in person).

 

If a brewery that I worked for encouraged me to drink 12 month old DIPA that was returned to the brewery because it was too old, I'd probably find another brewery to work for.

 

John, you live in Oregon, you know Columbia distributing. Do you really believe Columbia distributing gives a rats ass about freshness? I've caught there employees stocking shelves with outdated beer that had the expiration date boldly printed on the six pack that was already past the date. Come on out to the coast and take a look around.

 

Old beer? BA Stouts and Stouts in general along with sours I believe can be seriously aged. Aged hoppy shit hits the drain, worthless IMO.

 

It is certainly the case, and my source is myself. I have personally sent truckloads of expired or recalled beer to an ethanol-producing facility in lieu of "spe[nding] HOURS loading beer into dumpsters (either in full cases or smashing bottles), or onto trucks to be disposed of in land fills." This comment is exactly my point--dumping/crushing beer in large quantities is costly. A smart brewery pays someone else to do it so their employees' time isn't wasted to boot. It's not about laws, it's about doing something slightly more economically and environmentally conscious if you're going to pay out the ass to get rid of it anyway.
I'll give you #3--I was thinking of packaged but unsold/unsalable beer when I was thinking of taxes. However the point remains that it is the same costly process, just slightly alleviated by the negation of taxes if done under acceptable parameters.

And why would they want their employees taking quantities of subpar product out their door to share with potential customers? Any reputable brewery would pay good money to keep that shit off the street.

 

I'd turn them down on that offer too. Stouts that are falling off? Ok.... year old ipas? No thanks, that's insulting (outside of 120 minute types)

 

I use to unintentionally rescue old beer from the shelves of TW on occasion. Those were the early days...sigh

 

Yeah, the places I’ve worked have never deliberately given out expired beer. Other than low-fills, it would usually be cases that were maybe a month or two out just to slim down inventory.

 

Hate to tell you, but plenty ends up at our local shelf aging facility, Van Loan's Beverages, in Esopus, NY.