Side Project/De Garde Orviamo - deets?

Not all StL traders are bad but admittedly, some definitely are.

Couple of thoughts on SP beers (or limited beers in general):
1. When I make it to a release (not often these days it seems) I'm going to consume the bottles myself or send them to past trade partners for bro points/beer karma. I'll still check out the trade boards to see what they are trading for though. To even consider a trade somebody would have to be offering something I really want, especially for the 1 bottle limit beers. Even then I'm probably not gonna trade.
2. I blame folks willing to trade half their cellar as much as the folks holding their SP beers hostage. All it takes is 1 person offering 3:1, 6:1+ desirable beers to set what others will expect to get.
3. I've never gone through the line twice as some people mention. After having to rearrange my schedule (usually last minute) to get down to a release a couple hours early, then waiting in line, I don't have time or care to go through again. Maybe if you are an out of towner who drove 5 hours just for the beer its cool, but otherwise I think its kind of greedy. Hell, I haven't even bought a full limit of certain releases

Oh, and not specific to SP but just limited brews in general, I'm starting to feel like a lot of people enjoy trading/collecting beer more than actually drinking it. Whats the point in having a collection of vintage sports cars if you aren't going to take them for a spin sometimes?

 

I agree with you whole-heartedly on every point, especially #2. The problem now is that new traders are impatient. Those who are in hot markets don't tend to look for or want to build long-term trade relationships when every new release they can find those new impatient traders willing to give up 1/2 their cellar. I'm just glad I got into the trading "game" just early enough to secured a few amazing long-term trade partners and it looks like your trade partners are lucky to have secured you long ago.

 

Its so hard for outsiders to get SP because corey does so many quiet releases to the same 200 people every single 400 bottle count release. Not knocking the guy, but he creates his own hype train by doing it this way. Must be a good problem to have.

For the record ive only been lucky enough to try one SP beer and it was blueberry flanders and it blew my mind how good it was. However i too am with @mythaeus when it comes to giving up for good on trying to trade for them. Its just not worth the headaches.

 

I see what you are saying but its sort of a double edged sword. If he announced every release more publicly or say a week ahead of time, then 800 people would be showing up for those 400 bottles with many folks disappointed they wasted their time

Plus its harder to line up mules on short notice!

 

That is very true. However, having the beers more spread out would mean that the beers would be in more people's hands. I can't believe I'm saying this, but it's almost easier to buy some SP beers vs. what they are posted FT. And you're right, I've rarely seen you post SP FT, but the same usual suspects post for the same usual KBBS and beyond. It's not frustrating so as much as it is a deterrent. But it's all good, that's part of the game and if you establish a RTP then beer karma will ultimately pay off for you.

But if I hear another statement about how the next SP brew is the "best beer I've ever tried"... We're gonna label those individuals as the "boys that cried SP."

 

Had it tonight and its legit in my opinion....but the framboise du fermier kills it

 

De garde side had 2 variations. Chardonnay barrel and pinot noir barrel. Side project is one version of 3 types of barrel

 

I feel like saying "the de garde side" of the collaboration is confusing since the beers aren't related in any real way outside a bit of yeast. As I understand it the De Garde beers were "Desay" fermented using SP yeast and aged in Pinot and Chardonnay. Orviamo uses yeast from both breweries, raspberries and plumbs, and then is aged in Wine / Whiskey / Port barrels. Orviamo is considerably more ellaborate. And while De Garde / Side Project in Pinot was great, Chardonnay wasn't among the best De Garde beers (good, but not great). Maybe a swap for both of the De Garde / SP Desay bottles is legit?

That said, I think the original offer of The Duo for Orviamo is "closer" since Duo is a more comparable beer in terms of complexity and Duo was 350 bottles. Maybe something to get $$s closer since The Duo was $15.

For those not in the know since De Garde releases a lot of beers, The Duo is "a blend of two second use Gin barrels from our Lambic inspired program, these were aged for 18 and 24 months before naturally conditioning for an extended time in bottles. Big Brettanomyces character, subtle botanical notes, mellow oak and a brite acidity."

I also heard some rumors, perhaps crazy talk, that bottles of Orviamo will make their way to Tillamook ...

 

I certainly can see some of your point of view, but at least a little of this seems factually incorrect. De Garde's Side Project Desays certainly use both "yeasts". It's simply not possible for de Garde to make a beer without their microflora as they have no means of cooling wort other than their coolship. And, while each of us is entitled to their own opinions, the chard barrel actually has higher aggregate ratings than the Pinot. Also, they were 1bottle limit, and I believe both single barrels, but almost certainly not more than two barrels, and $14, (and released over a year ago) so I wouldn't be inclined to suggest that The Duo is a rarer beer, although admittedly the Desays have never enjoyed the hype of some of the other dg beers.

 

Fair points, particularly about yeasts and ratings. I actually mis-spoke. I meant to say that I preferred Chardonnay to Pinot .... I recalled feeling one was truly excellent and superior to the other and that this conclusion was widely shared but flip-flopped above. I do agree with the ratings.

I didn't explicitly claim Duo was rarer but see how one would assume that's what I was implying. I imagine bottle counts for all three - The Duo and the two De Garde / SP Desay's - were very similar.

My perception of what would be a "good" trade comes down mostly to the fact that Duo is a more elaborate blend and a bit to hype / reputation / whatever you want to call it compared to the furor around SP. By no means do I feel my opinion is gospel! My main point was they're not really related to Orviamo.