Other Half Brewing Thread (Feb 2016)

I live in Brooklyn and have mostly been voting with my body since Street Green. And yes, there are other options for the same beers, but I'm not much of a barfly anymore and I have a problem paying just about twice the price for a growler as opposed to the cans. That plus the fact that all the releases are on Saturdays makes me feel like other half doesn't really give a damn about the locals. And they don't have to, they'll sell all their beer regardless, just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

 

tldr version of the forthcoming wall of text: It's actually not that bad and is arguably pretty good.

wall of text version:

In their defense, the cans are cheaper than comparable beer in the area. SingleCut bottles go for 7-10 per 16.9 oz, Lunch is 8-11 for 16.9 oz, Grimm cans can go for 4-10 per 16 oz can and come with the shit show that is chasing them down. Captains daughter is a pretty good DIPA we get and it's often $4 per 12 oz can. The hoppy pipeworks stuff we get is maybe a slightly better deal since it doesn't come with a 4 hour wait and I'm trying out half acre as I type. Other Half growler prices tend to be on par with any of these options and are much easier to track down.

That we get so much Other Half beer distributed locally makes me think they do care about the locals (though there's no reason they have to). It'd be just as easy for them to distribute less of it locally, hook up with a distributor, and send more of it out of town. Also while progress doesn't happen as quickly as we might like, they have slowly been improving the scene at the releases to be more accommodating. Bracelets help, they're honest about how much beer they have, and they've slightly dropped the limits (most of these used to be case limits!) to help more people get it. If they didn't care, they could just as well set no limits, let the cans sell out immediately and shut down for the day.

As far as I can tell, most of the line waiters are mid twenty to mid thirty something dudes who probably don't have families yet, work during the week, and can piss away hours on a Saturday morning. I get that this isn't as convenient for someone that might prefer to swing in and grab some beer on the way out of work, but given the growing popularity of the OH tap room, doing the release on a Saturday makes sure they've got the staff to mostly handle customers.

I get it isn't ideal, but I'm not unhappy. I much prefer this to wondering what store cans are dropping in and trying to hit all my favorite shops after work before the beer is gone in 30 minutes. Every OH release I think I'm probably going to just grab growlers next release, but I wind up not having minded the lines (well, except for those boners smoking cigars last weekend, really?) Also maybe more of us don't really NEED to get max allocations on everything and can spread the love a bit better!

Hell, let's play some board games while we wait, anybody up for some Settlers of Catan while in line next release?

 

Haha @VaTechPhilly , very nice.

Ended up going with the GD because of circumstances out of my control and I am not disappointed in the least. So herbal and danky.

 

I think next time I swing by other half im going to snag a growler of green diamonds and mosaic (when it comes available). Sad to say I have yet to have green diamonds by them

 

I first went to OH in July 2014, made it to the first GD release, and then again for Second Anniversary a few weeks back. I get that the lines for cans have become a thing but outside of those releases I have never had an issue getting a beer or filling up a growler there. Even after Street Green, I went after work a few days later and waited 5 min for two fills of it. Not really sure where all this "do they even like New York!?" talk is coming from since their beer is relatively common on tap around the City compared to two years ago.

I agree with an earlier poster who said NYC has too many good options to get worked up about OH can lines.

 

Keep your eyes peeled for growlers at locations other than Other Half, especially after shitshow releases that are best avoided. I haven't had much trouble tracking down 32 oz growlers of pretty much every recent release for roughly the cost of 2 cans on release day. Most people would agree probably that OH growler prices are a little steep at the brewery itself, but there's inevitably plenty of other spots to pick up a growler fill around town.

 

When did I say what you quoted me on in your last post?

 

New month new thread please @Kanger

 

Oh definitely. I'm truly vexed by their growler pricing, a little more is fine, but in most cases it's just about double the price of the cans. Sadly I find it easier, cheaper, and less frustrating to make trips to VT & MA every month or two.

 

Where are you finding those prices!? Would definitely be interested in this but usually I find growlers priced around $14 for 32oz, which is nearly double the price of cans on release day.

 

Check the beermenus entry for "make it rain"...

 

I see two places in the city with 32oz growlers/crowlers for $15. That's basically double. Monarch Beverage and East Park Beverage seem to be around $9, which is close to can cost, but I live in the city without a car so that's useless to me.

I guess if you don't live in the city growler prices might be close to can prices, but anywhere with growler fills in the city it's going to cost similar to the brewery (i.e. nearly double the can cost). The fact that it costs virtually double for me to do growlers, plus the fact that cans last longer and I can have more of them and open them in individual consumable units makes waiting in line for cans a much better option for me still.

 

Hops and Hocks is $22 for a 64oz bottle, a little more than the cans, but not awful. And Long Beach is pretty easy to get to on the train, depending upon where you're coming from. I'm with you though, I'd much rather have cans as well, for any number of reasons.

 

Can someone lock this thread?