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Old bottling dates on Crooked Stave beers

Discussion in 'US - West' started by Damian, Mar 22, 2017.

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  1. Damian

    Damian Jun 1, 2006 Massachusetts
    Society Trader

    Are these bottles with December 2015 and January 2016 bottling dates popping up all around the country or just here in the Northeast? I've dropped anywhere between $12 and $15 on a number of CS fruited sours only to find that the fruit was practically nonexistent and the beer tasted something more akin to red wine vinegar than a beer of any sort. L'Brett D'Raspberry was a perfect example of this. I've had many a sour ale over the past 10-plus years of beer nerding, but this was simply battery acid in a bottle.

    So, my question is: Is CS sitting on these bottles purposefully? If so, frankly they should allow their customers to decide whether or not they want to age their beers, especially fruited sours. Or, are the distributors responsible for this? Either way, I'd like to see CS try to put an end to this practice.
     
    #1 Damian, Mar 22, 2017
  2. itracy63

    itracy63 Apr 20, 2013 Washington

    Maybe move this to the Mountain forum for help.
     
    #2 itracy63, Mar 22, 2017
  3. Mebuzzard

    Mebuzzard May 19, 2005 Colorado
    Society Trader

    I seriously doubt CS is sitting on these bottles on purpose. I've seen old dates on shelves in Denver. These beers just don't sell as fast anymore (IMHO it's the price point on all tiers). The fruit on certain ones will certainly diminish, but the yeast will continue to be dynamic.
     
    #3 Mebuzzard, Mar 22, 2017
    tylerstubs, Damian, Ratman197 and 2 others like this.
  4. ManBearPat

    ManBearPat Dec 2, 2014 Colorado

    Their beers have turned into serious shelf turds around here in the last 2 years.
     
    #4 ManBearPat, Mar 22, 2017
    Kramerbarthomer, SFACRKnight, JakeT469 and 1 other person like this.
  5. NeroFiddled

    NeroFiddled Jul 8, 2002 Pennsylvania
    Society Trader

    I also noticed this on bottles that I bought in Florida, but they were still in good shape. I'm curious as to what caused it. Was it a bad initial distributor? Was it based on hype? And I should also point out that I saw the same thing with Prarie Artisan Ales although I chalked that up to being bought by Krebs.
     
    #5 NeroFiddled, Mar 22, 2017
    Damian likes this.
  6. Domingo

    Domingo Apr 23, 2005 Colorado
    Society

    I think it's a combination of (relatively high) prices, more comparable beers being available, and increased production. Hype certainly plays a role with beers like those, too. It's incredibly easy to say "I can buy that any time..." and just never get around to doing so.
    I'll admit that I don't buy their stuff as much as I used to, but I think the quality is still very high.
    I also hate the 375ml bottle size and always have. I love that they're bringing the 750 back, but at $30 it's a tough sell.
    As far as old bottles go, for a while they were claiming certain beers would be limited releases (or Source-only) only to toss them on the market after a while. Could be those bottles hitting their other distro areas.
     
    #6 Domingo, Mar 22, 2017
    Damian likes this.
  7. Mebuzzard

    Mebuzzard May 19, 2005 Colorado
    Society Trader

    Say whaaaat? $30 is way too high. I also don't like the small bottles, but mostly because of the price point. But I also think the wide range of beers is daunting. If you wanted to try all of their beers, you're looking at several hundred $$ to spend...just to try them out. Like Ballast Point; sure people will buy a six pack once or twice, but it's not susceptible to repeat purchasing.
     
    #7 Mebuzzard, Mar 22, 2017
    Damian and tylerstubs like this.
  8. Domingo

    Domingo Apr 23, 2005 Colorado
    Society

    I drink more Crooked Stave at Old Chicago than I do via bottles. Pours are usually like $7-8 and larger than 1/2 of a 375ml bottle. Obviously you can't compare aged vs. fresh that way, but outside of a few beers I always lean in the fresh direction anyway.

    All this said, I'd still rather have their beers a year late than the shape they originally hit the market in. Those original bottles still haunt my palate to this day.
     
    #8 Domingo, Mar 22, 2017
    SFACRKnight and Mebuzzard like this.
  9. phroztbyt3

    phroztbyt3 Dec 10, 2015 Colorado

    Everything except Nightmare series and other barrel aged is best fresh. I prefer my nightmare at around 6-8 months, gives the flavors time to meld a bit.
     
    #9 phroztbyt3, Mar 23, 2017
    Mebuzzard likes this.
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