Alpine, you have a problem

This problem should be clearing up they had some poweroutage issues that messed up the calibration on the carbonation

 

I was just browsing the GABF website, and it sounds like you have to put a special label on your beer, so I don't think Alpine could just pull Duet off the bottling line and send that. They would have to grab it before it got to the labeler, but I'm not sure how Alpine's line operates. I have heard of brewers filling bottles from kegs using a beer gun. I've had a bunch of Apline beer from the bottle over the past few years and the carbonation hasn't ever been super high, not a bad thing, but I think it is a fine line between flat and not a ton of carbonation. Like others have said, kegs have better carbonation, in my experience.

 

The special label is for competition purposes. Regular labeled production beer is submitted as well as plain brown bottles that have a label form them brewery to I'd what's inside.

 

Which one of you guys is right or are you saying the same thing? I read they had to ship competition beer and beer for the public separately. I only have knowledge of homebrew competitions where you can't have any label besides the one for the competition. Maybe Duet has better carbonation for some random reason. Most people here complain about Nelson and Pure Hoppiness right?

 

Disclaimer: I LOVE Alpine. Period.
BUT... I live almost 2 hours away (in OC), so I don't have the luxury of visiting the pub whenever I feel like a fresh pint of Bad Boy/Nelson/Expo/Pure (in that order, lol). So I need to have confidence in the quality of their bottles and growler fills. At the moment, I do not. (MANY under-carbed bombers of Nelson and Pure are the reason.) But I do, in fact, have COMPLETE confidence in Pat to remedy the current problems he's facing. I'm just relying on reports from Alpine locals (bros like Evilc and Macncheese) to let me know when it's safe to drive back up there for growlers and bombers (or cans)...

 

Its always safe to go up for growlers bro.

 

correct. alpine growlers always safe bro.

 

But I try to drink my growlers within 3-4 days. So I like to augment my growlers with some bottles bro.

 

Oh they're not that rare. Let's not forget the rampant diacetyl issues they've had over the years.

 

Bought a bottle of Alpine Nelson and Ichabod from Liquor Mart in Whittier yesterday. Nelson was fine, but the Ichabod was distinctly phenolic - strong plastic, band-aid aroma and flavor. After a few sips shared around the table for curiosity sake, drain poured.

 

Now, this is just me talking out of my (semi-lit Sunday morning NFL time) a$$, but it seems like Alpine is missing a piece of the puzzle. Pat is unquestionably a nearly iconic recipe genius. He flat out KNOWS how to formulate a great-tasting IPA. But he could probably benefit greatly from a geeky, lab coat-wearing, obsessive/compulsive detail-fixated brewing expert; a "mad scientist" with a penchant for beer. (A guy like me, but, ya know... smart.) Maybe Pat should start accepting resumes...

 

That sounds a lot like Pat.

 

Pat may be smart, but I don't think he's anything like me. Lucky for us all.

 

Please people just stop drinking Alpine all together. The beer is just awful and flat and infected. Let the bottles sit on shelves and the rest of us will buy them and suffer

 

Now that sounds like a sad 'ol country western song: "My beer let me down today and so I made that brewer pay..."

 

Ya...just stop drinking Alpine should be the name of the song.

They have also never let me down (besides BA Token).

 

Any beer can be the victim of bad treatment after production.... I have never had a bad Alpine Beer and wish I could get my mitts on some here in Portland....

 

Folks please correct me if I'm wrong as I'm not a home brewer, but if would seem to me that the carbonation is the easy part.
You have perfected the recipe, (the hard part) now just carb the damn beer. (Are they by chance bottle conditioned?)
It wouldn't be as frustrating if their beers had the availability of stone beers, but to go through great lengths to land one only to find that they are flat is a serious bummer.

 

I had a PH at a bottle share in Florida that was absolutely flat and tasted infected almost, shame cause it's hard to get those down in florida.