Style Availability?

From what I've seen with Chicago. Traditional styles, like what you mention are still a niche to occasional thing that really don't leave the tap-room. If they do manage to get into distribuition. It's in very small runs, and/or at a handful of places that know how to turn them over.

 

A couple years ago I would have been on the side of not finding enough style diversity on local shelves anymore, then I took a chance and wandered into the tap room of a newish localish spot:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/50290/ *

Some very outstanding takes on very diverse styles.

I'm sure you'll note I've not reviewed any IPAs, but I've had them in their tap room and they're top notch.

*Sorry, I see the link doesn't show the beers I've reviewed as I thought, but RT has made my beer buying experience much more enjoyable lately!

 

This is my feeling exactly.

I know that there are always eye rolls on these forums when people lament about the days gone by. However, there are many beers that were on my favorite list that are simply not being brewed anymore or they are brewed but their distribution has been pulled back so far that they are practically unattainable.

Baltic porters, English barleywines, brown ales and many more styles could be found in abundance ten years ago. Now, there are few really solid examples of these styles that are attainable by the average non-trader.

On the other hand, I can drown myself multiple times over in mediocre IPAs with fancy label art. Don't get me wrong, I love IPAs, so I guess that I am part of the problem. But somewhere along the way, the key to success became producing a dozen different IPA variations while simultaneously halting production on less trendy styles.

 

Where can you find Uncle J? Maybe there are a few old bottles sitting around on shelves, but I can't remember the last new batch release. The same is true for most of Avery's once epic barrel-aged portfolio.

I tried Tweak earlier this year and it was a shell of its once grand self.

 

From 2015 to about 2018 (the first three years I drank craft) I managed to review all of the styles at the time, and when they added more styles a year later, I found those. It was tough, and on one occasion I drove 4.5 hours one-way to have my last style. I agree that things have changed, and I'm not sure I could get some of the obscure ones without trading. I once again find myself one style short.

 

I live about eight minutes from Wallenpaupack Brewing, which brews award-winning versions of many traditional styles, including California Common, and more. My guess is you'll have to look small and local. Reach out if you ever want to trade!

 

Where are you shopping? PM me, maybe we can share CT store stories.

 

i know that block 15 in oregon bottled their faro at least twice, and it's a really amazing example of the style... and people weren't that in to it. i'm sure there are a couple bottles out there that you could easily pry out of someone's hands!

 

I’ve only read the first post, but I agree that ten years was way better as far as variation goes than how things are now. Hazys kind of didn’t exist back then (they did, but weren’t labeled as such yet). But now that they are here, the beer market is over saturated with them = a lot of bad ones. Add in different variations of fruit beers (not named New Glarus), and pastry stouts… the beer market right now is more frat boy than connoisseur. And it’s a bummer.

 

Here’s my observations:
10 years ago in the retail stores, the National and larger regional breweries made up majority of shelf space. These breweries were producing a wider variety of styles for distribution and they usually clearly put the beer style in larger font in their packaging so it was very easy to see the varieties of styles when choosing beers.

Today pretty much all of the larger breweries have consolidated their styles to a small few (ie just many IPA variations). But in their place we have the “wall of local cans” addition with the crazy label art and you have to do a lot more homework trying to read the fine print on the cans to see the beer style. On top of that many brewers for sales/marketing reasons, will deliberately say a beer is a particular style that is popular (say a Czech pilsner or a NEIPA) when it’s really something else. So the variety is there in the local and state brewed beers in stores but it’s hard to identify them.

Agree with others, at the taproom you’ll find more style variety in small batches today vs just 1-2 years ago, thank the recent US consumer shift in trends to authentic European lagers mostly for this variety addition.

 

I think you’re very much on point here (though I would add that poorly made pilsners seemed to be popular on shelves too).

I see you’re in CT. Have you been to Fox farm? They sell beer from their brewery only. Everything I’ve had from them is fantastic and last time I was there I bought the following styles:

brown ale
English bitter
English dark mild
Alt bier
Kolsch
German pils
Czech dark lager

I highly encourage that you check them out.

 

Block 15, with the Sticky Hands? Visiting them someday is on my perpetual beer goal list!

 

Plenty of availability in CT, obviously you can’t walk into a corner packie and expect major diversity. If near Hartford just go to Harvest they’ll have plenty of options.

I myself can’t imagine getting excited for Alexandr. Sure it’s a good pint but it’s not like there’s a lack of world class lager options in state. OEC and Newpark will deliver theirs right to your door anywhere in state. Fox Farm Quiet Life is arguably a better pour and it’ll be fresher mostly likely. Beer’d make a German Pils that’s prime. East Rock, NEBCO and counterweight put our great lagers too. This is without racking my brains.

There was definitely more diversity before, and some of those beers from 10 years ago are still on shelves. Only problem is it’s the exact same beer cos no one buys it. Take a look at say Amity Wine for example, old imports galore.

I do agree that your average beer guy would be over the moon just with what 12 percent is contracting. No doubt that the scene has trended that way, for sure. Hazies and stouts.

 

Of the 5 styles I haven't reviewed (Wheatwine, Biere de Champagne, Gruit, Sahti, Milkshake IPA), I haven't seen 3 in many years. I've got a wheatwine in the cabinet waiting for some day when I have nothing better to do, but that was a one off from a local brewery and I hadn't seen one around for a while prior, and Milkshake IPA I haven't tried because it doesn't appeal to me. Even the beer stores with great selection in the area don't carry a lot of these more obscure styles, and even styles that weren't so obscure 10 years ago are rare finds nowadays.

Folks gotta make money, I suppose.

 

The mid '90's were the heyday of style availability for me, before the "just throw anything in the fermenter & see what happens" phase.
Maybe I just don't have the patience to sift through all the IPA's, sours, odd stouts, and everything else they're trying to pass off as beer.
I have not seen a Weizenbock other than Weinhenstephan in years.
Same for Scottish, Scotch, Dopplebock, Bock, Saison, Mild, Schwarz, Belgian style and many more.
I guess that's why I brew what I like to drink and when I find something at the beer store, it's a bonus.
There is just no variety of styles anymore, at least not around here.
Now, if only I can brew a good lambic, I'd never leave the house.

 

As some have already pointed out, visiting certain breweries if available and convenient is your best option in my opinion.

However, you have pointed out a trend that I have noticed as well is that on the shelves, I don't care if it's some small gas station in the middle of nowhere, or a big box store in a major city, or even a specialty beer store, the variety of styles has totally disappeared off the shelves.

We are now plastered with about a million IPAs to choose from. Which in some cases can be fun, but does get a bit redundant at times.

 

I think saying there were even 1 or 2 of those styles regularly available is dubious.

Maybe there were some regionally available wheat wines, and I do remember a period where it seemed like breweries were popping up trying to do gruit semi regularly, but these obscure styles were never widely available.

The biggest losses I've seen in general alcohol retail is a loss of brown and amber ales, a general reduction of medium strength dark beers that aren't flavored, a loss of British styles and imports, and a reduction of German/Belgian imports with local breweries only picking up that slack sporadically