Fremont Brewing (2020)

In the hierarchy of what's important and what's not, I agree it's pretty far down on the totem pole. Still, this is a beer forum after all, and I think the availability of a beer like b4k is something that interests a lot people, even during these less than ideal times.

I completely agree that Fremont can do whatever they want with whatever remaining bottles they still have on hand, but I don't see why that decision shouldn't be something that would interest folks in this forum. And thus something we can talk about.

 

An excellent point that I had not considered. That makes complete sense.

 

Can't disagree with any of your points. Any purchase I make of B4K is probably going to sit for a while at my house as well.

For me, I guess it's an emotional reaction. I was very glad to see that Fremont went ahead with the release as scheduled, despite what had to be a lot of pressure to cancel it. I don't know about you, but it seems like every other day I receive an email from some event organizer advising me that an event my wife and I have planned for Spring or Summer has been cancelled. The most recent was the upcoming IPNC (International Pinot Noir Celebration), which isn't scheduled until the end of July. The wife and I also have tickets to the annual Celebrate Walla Walla event in mid July, and I'm expecting to hear any day that this event has been cancelled as well. We were also planning to go to the Taste of Sonoma over Labor Day, but at this point I wouldn't be surprised if that gets cancelled as well.

Fremont going forward with their annual B4K release is an annual "rite of Spring" that I look forward to every year, and I was glad to see they didn't cancel it. I was also hoping that would extend to normal distribution of the beer, as most beer stores down here in PDX are still open, albeit with reduced hours and serious social distancing rules in effect (which I completely support). I'll certainly survive if they put off distributing it for a few weeks or a few months, but yeah, it was something I was looking forward to.

 

Is the recipe always the same? I honestly don't know, but the beer seems to taste a bit different every year. For that matter, didn't they age some of the B2K in scotch barrels, as well bourbon barrels?

To my palate, the flavor profile seems a bit different each year, which for all I know could just be a product of Fremont's barrel program (different distilleries, longer aging time, etc.). I still feel the B1K was the best version so far, with the B3K a close second.

Otherwise, I think that's a great idea Dyan... except I don't have any of the Bk3 left, unfortunately.

 

I understand and appreciate what you're saying, but I don't think it's fair to say that there should be a one bottle limit, just because that's a sufficient amount for you and for me. Personally, I think 4 bottles is perfect. I can give a bottle to an out of state friend who is a huge Fremont fan, I can save a bottle for the end of a dinner party, and I can age a bottle to see how it develops. I'll also likely crack open a bottle as soon as I pick up my allotment (assuming I'm fortunate enough to call in when there are still bottles available).

Truth be told, I have no idea what the correct buyer allotment should be, so I'm happy to leave it up to Fremont to decide. If they're good with a 4 bottle per person allotment, I'm fine with that. I would be equally content if they did a 2 bottle or 6 bottle allotment (though there's no way I personally would want to purchase 6 bottles of a BA barleywine).

 

Anyone having any luck with the beertogo link? So far I've been unable to even get it to load.

Just tried on my phone, and now the link says it's sold out. If true, that was quick!