Refusing to buy beer that doesn't have a bottling date?

I won't buy a beer if I don't know how old it is, except perhaps in the case of a barleywine, doppelbock, or strong stout.

 

I think every beer should have a date of some sort on it, even if it's an enigmatic code, though I'd prefer a standard day/month/year bottled on date.

If there's one brewery that I wish did this more than any other it's Three Floyds. Nearly all of their beers are hop-forward, therefore bottle dates are extremely important, especially with the big IIPAs like Dreadnaught, Arctic Panzer Wolf, etc. It's not as big of a deal with their seasonal/monthly releases because I know their calendar, but all of their main lineup should have bottle dates. How hard is this to implement?

 

I mentioned maybe in this thread I found some Unearthly bottled in '11 on a shelf - which sucks because I really want to try it. I told the guy at the store in charge of beer that he had an Imperial IPA that was 2 yrs old. He said they just got it in and I told him his distributor should pick it up and bring back some fresh replacements.

Well, to update, I went in last week and he was quick to run up and tell me with a smirk that his distributor told him that was the BOTTLE DATE, and NOT the EXPIRATION DATE and the beer was fine. I just shook my head in agreement. And that is why I only buy dated beer.

I wasn't a dick, though, because he said Founders is releasing some KBS next week when they start distro to FL and he'd save me a couple of bottles! Always be nice to the guy selling you beer. Even if he does need to read BA for a month.

 

Knee Deep started doing non-coded bottling date labeling in December 2012. A TW in Sac currently has cases of Simtra on display with the newer date codes, and right next to that cases with the older coded dates. No chance I'm buying a hoppy beer bottled 5+ months ago.

 

Even companies who do bottle date are not always consistent ... I currently have two bombers of Stone Ruination purchased at different stores. One has the laser etched date and the other does not.

 

Thanks for shooting me the email. I knew that pic looked familiar.

 

I try to buy fresh IPA and pale ales. I wont buy real old ones. Around here old is Really OLD. year old greenflash, 8 month old stone, etc. I stopped buying founders because the case said packed on date and the bottles were much older. Founders never replied to my email.

I do buy Overbite IPA, canned and no date. It was just canned in November and its always fresh. I do only buy it from WF by the six pack. Scared to buy a case that ends up bad. The brewery tells me dating is coming.

I live 20-30 minutes from Yards, Victory and a bit farther from Stoudts. Its hard to even get those beers fresh. Yards pale ale 2 months old as the freshest? Come on now.

Enjoy

 

I have noticed this as well, even on bottles in the same six-pack (not necessarily from Stone), but I must say that depending on what they use to put them on the bottle, they can actually be rubbed off with your finger or very easily with something hard or metallic. The bottling information is not the same material as the rest of Stone's bottles.

I despise the Julian date, because not all places use it as a best by date, some use it as a bottling date. I don't even mind the Heavy Seas style of having the months along the bottom and where there is a piece missing is when it is best by. I err on the side of caution when buying my IPAs. I also despise DFH's dating system, especially for 750's. There is just a lot of old stock of everything around me. I wish there was a standard, but I realize labeling can hurt smaller places. Brewdog does it great with a clear section on their label for the Best Before date.

 

Being in the middle of a desert, I'm usually only leary if starts to get warm. And by warm, it gets 115 oftern enough. So if their reefer truck goes down, bye bye freshness regardless of Best By dates.

But I honestly don't look in the Winter or Spring. Makes me wonder if I've ever sent any out on trades. Couldn't say if I've ever gotten any, either. Oops.

 

If a brewery does not date, and I am drinking a beer that I think may be old, I review it as if it is fresh (ends up being bad for that beer, of course).
-Their fault, if they cared about what people were drinking, they would date it.

If a brewery does date, I only review fresh beers.

 

That would be refusing to buy a lot of beers...

 

I purchase no IPA without dating, and another rule of thumb I use is anything under 9% abv. No date, no bait.

 

Which is why I don't buy KBS...

Just kidding, I have a case, he said bragging to others.

 

I agree with printing dates, but here's a case where it backfired.

The local distributor was talking with an owner of my favorite local bar. Guy was complaining about craft beers not moving. "We had to destroy a case of beer because it was 18 months old." Bar owner asks, "What was it?".

"Avery Samaels"

I sh*t you not. I was told that from the source. The bar owner cussed the guy every which way for being a total dumbass. he even called the brewery...said they were speechless.

So my next peeve behind dates is lack of knowledge on some distributors and retailers parts. It is definitely a problem.