Modern Times League of Partygoers and Elegant People 2016

About half of my cupboard is MT glassware. It's getting ridiculous. So much awesome stuff.

 

+1 for Maple Bourbon MP!

 

MT glassware is the only glassware out of all the beer glassware I own that my wife actually thinks looks good. Probably cause they go out of their way to make a cool glass with good weight and shape instead of just slapping a label on a shitty pint glass or Teku.

 

Per a post on their Facebook page, the next BPT canned IPA will be Mage Hand.

 

I hope it's actually "juicy" this time.

 

I'm all for online sales for can releases. But it's got to be good enough for me to drive the hour and half to pick it up. Time off from the job is not an issue. I was not blown away with Attack Frequency cans. Yes it has improved as the days move on. Opened 2 AF cans between 2 of us this past Sunday. Also opened my 32oz growler of Damfino3 after the AF's. I liked the Monks better than the AF's. But my bro-in-law enjoyed the AF's over Damfino3. Go figure. I still refuse to stand in line for any hyped can release. I'd rather put up with the Friday afternoon traffic on the 405 and do a quick drive by Monks for a growler fill before heading home from work. Last Friday I filled up with Dank Dan. It was pretty good at the brewery. Lets see how the next MT can release goes. I wont be buying the Mage Hand release.

 

500 mile round trip for me... As long as I'm picking up BAMP I'm good with it though.

 

If I remember correctly AF didn't sell out right quick... didn't it last into the 2nd or 3rd hour? Which would have given people plenty of opportunity to purchase on BPT

 

Although I generally feel it's not worth arguing with someone who has made up their mind without the benefit of facts, I will respond for everyone else's sake.

There are two major considerations that are dictating how we sell these beers: 1) I want them consumed as fresh as possible, and 2) They are inordinately expensive to make, so much so that it would be a losing proposition to send them into distribution. Therefore, we are making as much of them as we think we can sell quickly through the tasting room alone. It is worth noting that virtually every other SoCal brewery who is doing this is releasing 8-12 barrels worth of cans per release; we are releasing 35. That said, if the second sale goes as well as the first, we will increase the volume as tank space allows.

Two side notes: 1) Having been a part of the BA community since long before I owned a brewery, it is my distinct feeling that Modern Times gets substantially less hype than many other breweries precisely because we release higher volumes of our beer. If we were smaller and made people stand in line for our releases, our beer average would not be 4.07. 2) As a brewery owner, I get to spend a lot of time with other brewery owners. Often, after a couple of beers, they/we will open up about all kinds of things that are not discussed in public. But I have never once heard a brewery owner say they are artificially restricting supply in order to generate hype. Not once.

In other news, I'm glad you guys like the new glassware because it takes an absurd amount of work to get this stuff from Germany (also where our tulip is from.) And yes, please keep the requests and recommendations coming.

Cheers & thanks,
Jacob McKean
Modern Times Beer

 

Mage Hand was amazing a couple months ago.

I'm really anxious to drink some of the AF in cans (only had it on draft). Also anxious to age it for a couple weeks to see how it develops. Those Monkish cans developed a really amazing melon character after about 2-3 weeks. Then at a month fell off a cliff.

 

This has always been my contention. I'm extremely thankful you guys produce enough beer that I don't have to hustle down the Fermentorium or Flavordome the second something is tapped or released. I don't think this is appreciated enough. Please ignore Catchy Name and his ilk and carry on. Also, the Mage Hand can design is gorgeous.

 

Picked up a bunch of fruitlands apricot at costco. I gotta stock up, because I can't find the apricot anymore.

I hope Mage Hand will be ready for pickup, in mid Sept when I pickup other beers.

I second the idea of Fruitlands in cans. (or in 12oz bottles)

 

right there with you, Vegas to SD for pickups but its been worth it every time

 

1,034 round trip miles. Did it twice in the past 3 weekends.

The dumb things I do for beer...

 

@ModernTimesJacob while people are making suggestions...

An Oktoberfest in pint cans for fall would kill. Aurora is pretty good and maybe can be the December release while pushing back City of the sun to spring and booming rollers to summer? Or for December French vanilla black house?

I was super happy to see our stores get MT beers and the seasonal releases here in the Fresno/Clovis area and I've bought a bunch so far.

 

My only other request at this time is that all taps be opened up to League growler fills. I read the prior posts as why MT, and many other breweries, don't do it on special releases (BAMP's especially), one-offs, or beer that is for sale in fridge, but man I'd really like to be able to grab a growler/crowler/something from tap to take home to drink and so I can cellar the bottles I managed to get in the BPT sale for later. Even if it's just a one time fill per memeber per beer, it would be great. Again, I understand why it's not done, and you don't have to reiterate why, but it's just a "pie-in-the-sky" request.

I also agree that MT is grossly "underhyped" for some reason. I don't know why that's the case, but personally I don't care about hype. I buy beers to drink, not to trade, so as long as you keep making amazing beers that I can get access to the lack of hype doesn't bother me. The rest of the world just doesn't know what they're missing.

 

Maybe you get one coupon for your League membership of any fill on tap? Might be neat.

 

Would be an interesting thought. Only problem that could come from it would be a slew of league members showing up for a specific fill during some sort of party and the keg kicking because of it.

 

Still waiting on a modern times beanie, preferably a league one

 

@ModernTimesJacob

I know it was discussed once before and that the jist of the conversation was beer comes before but since we are doing wishlists....

I am in OC & it sounds like the league has many folks residing in the OC/LA region. It goes without saying we love the beers and the customer support is above and beyond. It is likely compounded by being summer/tourist season, but my past few pick up drives have been pretty rough (2+ hours each way to get ~75miles). I knew the drive would be rough going into joining the league so I don't hold that against anyone. I'd love to load up on league IPAs as they roll out but I don't think I can commit to 4-6hr+ trips for IPAs.

So with that in mind I'd ask for one of two options. Option one was covered already being that setting up CA shipping would be a massive pain. It is costly, complex and would require dedicating people who could otherwise be involved in other brewery projects. I'd just say if the user base is there, please consider "passing the buck". I'd probably drive down when able but I'd happily pay my share (and then some) to get a case of IPAs delivered ultra fresh.

Option two might be a little more feasible. Allow other league members to proxy for their brethren. This doesn't quite open it to foreigners swooping up all our precious league cargo and sending it east but if a few guys from OC wanted to take turns making the pick-up trip I'd be all about it.

Think about it man... rock singers are only rockin you half the time, the other time they're... they're... they're... they're... breathing. In! But not any more baby! Hahaha!

(Can you name a beer Inward Singing?)

 

i support this. preferably not purple

 

being able to trustee for other league members would be HUGE. and +1 for the D reference!!!

 

How wouldn't trusteeing open it up?

 

Cap the number of times you can have a trustee pickup at twice a year, limit trustees to other members, and keep the 3 month pickup window. You email the league address in advance and they keep a simple file indicating if you have any trustee pickups left. Will keep it so members are fairly local, especially if BPT IPAs with short pickup windows become a regular thing, but will provide some relief to far flung loyalists. This could also create a sense of community for non-local members from the same region.

 

starting to pick up more fruit from the cans

 

Doesn't seem very hazy to me

 

its that crystal attack frequency.

 

trustees proxying for trustees only makes sense to me, especially with how small the club is.

 

I like this idea...what I fear is the amount I would need to pick up assuming a few of our northern CA friends would use me as trustee already knowing how much they purchase. =P

 

Could always do it like HPB to minimize complication and make it a complete no-brainer on MT's end: identify your trustee when you make your order, so there's no later judgment call necessary on any team member's part at any level.

 

Easily my favorite membership right now and they are seriously killing it. If we're making a wish list and helping get an idea of what people want, here's some I'd request (several already mentioned):

Maple Bourbon BA Monster's Park
Bourbon Vanilla Monster's Park
Apple Brandy Monster's Park
Mead barrel aged Monster's Park
Hazelnut Monster's Park
Peanut Butter Monster's Park
Samoa style Monster's Park (coconut, caramel, cocoa)

Coffee IPA
Coffee Barleywine
Cognac barrel aged barleywine
Realism Island again (that has been one of my favorite beers from MT)
Peaches and cream sour (peach + lactose)

Blending party, similar to the Black Tuesday treatment party.

Non-beer requests:

Hard plastic ID card
Leauge logo mini snifters

Modern Times already gets the majority of my beer money. Add a few of those bottles to next year's roster and that percentage will jump even more.

 

This is almost my exact wish list, with the addition
League Tshirts

 

Yeah, definitely want a different league wearable. I have about 8 black hoodies already...

 

but how will craft beer geeks know you are into beer without a black hoodie with a brewery name on it?

 

They have to approach him first. Not gonna lie, I was scared of him initially.

 

Anyone had any infection issues with the latest coconut monsters park? I just cracked one and it didn't smell or taste right. I had to pour it out, put the rest in the fridge and hopefully it'll taste better tomorrow. I had one last month and it was delicious as always and I probably had it 3 other times in the last few months as well with all being fantastic, just curious if anyone else had any issues.

 

Bourbon or rum?

 

Bourbon, the last release.

 

Okay, Modern Times wish list/feedback. Sounds good.

General:
-Year-round canned IPA. My vote goes to Orderville, with Booming Rollers a close second. Actually, it's a tie. Just pick one.
-A canned lager, maybe with a crazy German/NZ hop blend. I know the difficulties. I still want it.
-Obviously I don't know the sales figures, but I wouldn't be surprised if Aurora was the least-selling seasonal. Personally I could do without it. (Although to slot in a lager for that would not be very fall-appropriate unless it's an Oktoberfest, but I'd rather have a bright lager from MT.) [In case anyone cares: BR>Oneida>CotS>>Aurora]

Merchandise:
-The glassware design is generally awesome, but I feel the tulip/snifter shape was a little underserved (the big tulip IS great, though). The new "Monster's Park" one looks very good, but there's still room for e.g. a "generic" super-thin stemmed Spiegelau-style tulip to get the Modern Times design treatment. I think stemmed glassware would also make for a great league goodie next year. I don't think anyone needs another tumbler.
-I like the idea of Booming Rollers/Oneida/etc. branded tees/merch.
-More hats. I still want that original purple corduroy trucker hat dammit, but a regular "non-trucker" cap would be much appreciated. Also a great league goodie, if you ask me. A generic black baseball cap with the whale logo and league year woven in would look super classy.

League/BPT stuff:
-Don't change it too much. I generally love it as it is and wouldn't be surprised if a silent majority felt the same way. I liked that I got to try beer I never would have bought otherwise and I think you 100% delivered on everything you promised. I'm very happy overall and glad that I refreshed that damn BPT page for over an hour last year.
-I have to echo other people on here. We haven't had a defining vanilla MP (JUST vanilla!) from MT yet. I got a feeling that's already a priority...
-Keep using those rum barrels, even though they're a pain in the ass. It really sets MT apart and some of the rum varieties were among the tastiest beers I've had in my life. Everyone's doing bourbon.
-I'd enjoy a one-off experimental/league-only take on the super-high ABV stouts à la Avery/Bruery, but maybe that's just me.
-Personal gripe: The price keeps me from buying more of the fruited sours although I did enjoy the ones that came with the league and the ones I had at the tastings. At $30 a bottle for a 6% ABV beer I just can't justify too many of those. I know you're not price-gouging on these, it's just slightly beyond my personal valuation unless it's something super-special.
-BPT-only hazy IPAs: I know it's a thing right now and I do enjoy drinking them, but I hope that's not going to take priority over what makes MT my favorite brewery: solid core, great seasonals, killer barrel aging and the best-run league I'm aware of.

Side notes:
-Attack Frequency is much better now at two weeks than on day one. Funny how that goes sometimes.
-I totally agree that MT is not getting the ratings it deserves precisely because you're not doing what some others are doing to inflate hype, BUT PLEASE DON'T CHANGE THAT. Artificial scarcity and dodgy business practices suck. I think personal feedback and the way you're growing is a much better indicator of success than perfect ratings (including appearance, of course!) from someone who had a two ounce pour of some over-hyped "whale" out of a plastic cup while freezing his ass off standing in line for beer in some godforsaken place that doesn't have anything else going on.

(Sorry for the wall of text everyone. I don't post much, so feedback accumulates, much like knowledge. ;-) )