2021 Beer Memberships: Adding, Keeping or Dropping?

I’d never heard of Afterthought until this thread. I won’t try for their membership but will definitely check them out when I pass through Lombard. Love me some saisons!

 

Since the memberships are basically July-June, it probably makes sense to wait until the 2021-2022 year. The taproom will be open by then, and hopefully we all can actually go out safely (fingers crossed) so that will give you more reason to make the trip. Also a possibility the membership will start to provide some taproom benefits (just spitballing that) as well.

 

Adding: None
Dropping: Funk Factory
Keeping: None

My cellar is bursting at the seams, particularly with sours, and despite buying from Funk Factory since the very first release and being high up on that Top 100 list back in the day, I just can't justify it anymore.

 

Adding : None
Keeping : Lost Abbey, 3Sheeps
Dropping : None

Whenever I think I'm going to stop Lost Abbey they reel me back in. This year was Yellow Bus and for next year it's Cable Car Kriek and promised DDG for 2022...clever bastards!

 

Shhhhh

 

don’t let this deter you. He will hold the bottles that you purchase until you’re ready to pick them. I’ve picked up bottles a few weeks after ordering with no issues. They are very accommodating

 

Exactly how I feel. The pure "value" of it isn't as high as some others because there really aren't any rare, immediate sell out bottles. I'm in it for the convenience of pre-ordering bottled and because I love what he's doing in general.

 

Best place doing them imo

And that includes side project.

 

To you people with Side Project memberships, have they added any since the initial opening? And do you get down there all the time?

For me it's

Adding: Whiskey Hill (split) and would certainly add Phase Three if I get the chance.

Keeping: Afterthought, Barclay's

Very, very torn on: Transient, Second City Meadery

I still love Transient stouts, but it seems like they're decently easy to get nowadays. For second city, I just don't know if I drink mead fast enough for it to really be worth it. And most bottles end up making it to distro. Looking back I really wish I would have jumped on Boneflower or Standard.

 

Yeah, I’d love if Rev added one.

Also, I call dibs on your Standard membership if you drop it

 

I really need to try some of her stuff. Is there also a membership for that?

 

When bottles go up, is it through their website or Half Acre's?

 

Half Acre

There's a few available currently for curbside at Lincoln.

 

Yeah Covid has kind of killed Transient for me. The last two years my wife and I would love the day trips up there. We’d always hit Three Floyds on the way up for lunch. Go apple or blueberry picking somewhere around there, hit up a winery for the Mrs, and then grab a draft and my bottles from transient. With all that gone, the round trip has become a chore. As you mentioned, the stouts seem to last now, and there’s even less incentive to have preorder rights.

 

They expanded it slightly in 2019, and significantly expanded it in 2020. I'd guess they don't significantly expand it in 2020 from where it's at currently, just replace people that aren't invited back / choose not to renew.

 

I liked the first batch beers but honestly didn't love them over beers from my other memberships. Mostly just needing to cut somewhere before I drown in beers.