Cellaring help

Discussion in 'Cellaring / Aging Beer' started by JayDee42, Oct 26, 2015.

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  1. JayDee42

    JayDee42 Initiate (0) Oct 26, 2015

    I hope to be opening a craft beer establishment/restaurant/bar in the next year or so, and would like input from the fine folks here as to whether or not to add vintage/cellared options to the menu. The bar would more than likely have 40-50 or so beers on tap, as well as a wide selection of bottles. I DO have a place, temperature controlled, to be able to begin cellaring things now though. It is about a 12x12 room and will have a LOT of storage space. I guess the big questions for me are:

    1) will there be a demand for slightly aged bottles, and at a slightly increased price?
    2) how much SHOULD the "upcharge" be for cellared/aged bottles? I know about standard pricing, but not sure of the price elasticity for such a unique purchase
    3) would I be better off finding casks/kegs to age, rather than bottles, due to the decreased costs, etc?
    4) I currently have access to several distributors (im in the southeast), so give me your top 5 "gets" to begin aging? ( I currently have a few cases already, including Black Ops, Local 1, Lindley Park, and St Bernardus)
     
    #1 JayDee42, Oct 26, 2015
  2. Eriktheipaman

    Eriktheipaman Pooh-Bah (2,303) Sep 4, 2010 California
    Pooh-Bah

    Where are you at? Here in Ca. it would be illegal to buy beer personally and sell it somewhere licensed down the road. You need to have an established license and purchase the beer through a distributor for the sale to be legal.

    Personally I don't really care, just maybe something you hadn't considered yet.
     
    #2 Eriktheipaman, Oct 26, 2015
  3. WertMaker

    WertMaker Initiate (0) Jan 17, 2009 Oregon

    The problem is deciding which beers to cellar. Personally, the more difficult, single release sell out beers are the ones that folks hang on to and in particular the higher alcohol content heavier beers like Porters, Stouts and Belgian quads. I would think that some of the better barrel ages offerings would cellar nicely as well.

    I have been to a vertical tasting of Deschutes Abyss, and the Christmas beers from The Bruery. I would think that cellared beers would be a very narrow market to target, though and could significantly impact your profitability.
     
    #3 WertMaker, Oct 26, 2015
  4. jmdrpi

    jmdrpi Grand High Pooh-Bah (8,989) Dec 11, 2008 Pennsylvania
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    I would choose solid, wider release beers that definitely greatly improve:

    St. Bernardus Abt 12
    Samichlaus
    JW Lees Harvest Ale
    Samuel Smith's Yorkshire Stingo
    North Coast Old Stock
     
    #4 jmdrpi, Oct 26, 2015
  5. JayDee42

    JayDee42 Initiate (0) Oct 26, 2015

    Good point on the license... There is a license in place. It's all above board. And I WISH we could get Deschutes here. I agree about the small market possibility, but my belief is that there could be a movement in that direction in the next few years. That's why I was asking here, to get the general feel of what the more experienced connoisseurs think.
     
    #5 JayDee42, Oct 26, 2015
  6. odcardinal

    odcardinal Zealot (690) Apr 12, 2015 Florida
    Trader

    I don't know where you are in the construction phase of your bar/restaurant but a great idea that a local bar/restaurant has is, personal climate controlled cellars that are on display. They charge a yearly fee to keep personal beers in the cellar and have a small corking fee. Another perk of getting a personal cellar is they get options to limited releases when available. Just a thought, so you won't have to invest in beers that might/might not sell.
     
    #6 odcardinal, Oct 27, 2015
  7. JayDee42

    JayDee42 Initiate (0) Oct 26, 2015

    That's a great idea! Anyone else have any input as to the most widely "appealing" options to put back?
     
    #7 JayDee42, Oct 28, 2015
  8. JuMa44

    JuMa44 Initiate (0) Oct 12, 2014 Pennsylvania

    Kegs of Bell's Expedition you can never go wrong aging Expedition
     
    #8 JuMa44, Oct 29, 2015
    DaverCS likes this.
  9. MOVERTON1284

    MOVERTON1284 Initiate (0) Jul 23, 2014 Alabama

    I would focus on readily available beers that see wide distribution. The goal is to expose people that like beer to aged beer. I would focus on 12oz beers as sometimes the bombers are too pricey or intimidating to purchase unless you have a big group. I recommend:

    12oz Bottles
    Founders Imp Stout
    Bigfoot
    KBS
    BCBS
    Expedition Stout
    Anchor Christmas

    Bombers
    Stone IRS
    Stone Old Guardian
    Stone Bastards

    Not sure where it will be based as they will greatly influence what you can offer. With no state listed I have no idea on your distro.
     
    #9 MOVERTON1284, Oct 29, 2015
    Jnashed likes this.
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