Anyone have any tips on where to get some nice fresh Coop F5? I remember loving this beer when Browns in Stillwater couldn't keep it in stock, I assume because I was getting it as fresh as possible. The last few times i have bought it, the freshest I have been able to find was 3-4 months old. From what I remember there is a lot less bitterness, and it is just a lot less impressive. I have looked at all 3 stores in Stillwater and this is true for all of the stores. So I am wondering if anyone has any tips on stores that get it nice and fresh, preferably in OKC or Tulsa. I live in Stillwater so I am about 75 minutes from either city.
Guess it's a testament to a lot of things that this thread isn't getting any airplay, least of which is the consistency of F5. I wish I could give you a place in OKC that really cared about such things as beer freshness, or a brewery that pushed quality, but it's just not there, and a lot of product suffers for it imo. Let's face it, OK. beer drinkers, for the most part, aren't that worried about freshness, or don't push for the freshest product. All that being said, the usual suspects are probably your best bet since they probably turn-over the most beer.
Also a product of the absurd system in Oklahoma that isn't conducive to getting the freshest beer to the shelf the quickest. OP, I'd try a high-volume store. Moore Liquor always seemed to have fresh F5 in stock. Check at The Well in North OKC with Cody, he should also be able to help you out. Both stores will be able to tell you when they got the F5 in stock. Typically, it's a 24-48 hour turn around from picking up the beer to seeing it on shelves.
I've been having similar issues myself. For a while I was content to overpay for fresh F5 @ Grand Cru, but last time I went in there, it wasn't as fresh as usual (not terribly old, but not weeks old as it once was). I decided to switch to seasonals (which is fine this time of year, with all the hoppy reds that showed up), but I'll need to have something figured out by the time SN Celebration starts to age. OK really needs to get this freshness issue figured out. I've given up on maybe a dozen IPAs & DIPAs over the years - beers that I love when I can get them in another state. That's bad enough, but if it starts happening with our local breweries too, what are OK hop-heads supposed to do? Move?
