Stoneface IPA Dates

They stamp the cardboard case on the outside top flap with the date. I know this because my friend came down from N H in June after raving about it. I had one sip and looked for a date on the bottle. Then looked at the case and the stamp was almost 2 months old. I hear you should buy it from the brewery to assure freshness.

 

I was also. I feel if a brewery takes pride in the freshness of its IPA's, the bottle or can should be dated. Unless your the Alchemist of course.

 

Criminal. I buy a case at a time so I always know the date but it shouldn't have to be that way. It also shouldn't be sitting out in summer weather. This is a beer that benefits from being kept in the cooler.

 

I've had similar experiences with their IPA. The first few times I had it I thought it tasted incredible, but since Feb-Mar I haven't cared for it too much.

Mozaccalypse is world class and very consistent. Pretty sure they are in the process of brewing Hopulization right now too.

 

Not a beer that hits the hype anyhow. Cheap base with a beer geek approved dry hopping.

 

Was it a cold rack? Its tough not having the dates on the bottle, need to trust the bottle shop. When fresh, or purchased from the brewery directly, this IPA is still outstanding. The meh bottle must have just been old or not handled properly (IMO).

 

As someone who sees a lot of Stoneface cases, the dates have definitely started to get a little older in the last couple months from the distributor (coming into stores 2 months old), although the most recent stuff coming in was better (only a month instead of two). Seems the marketplace is finally saturated.

Hopefully they're able to regulate production now to keep the cases fresher.

 

I've really enjoyed every Stoneface beer I've ever had and would buy them if they were available in MA, but it doesn't surprise me that this sits at stores given the format/price point.

 

I wouldn't say it sits (the IPA anyways), at least not in my experience, but their production has caught up so that the distributors have a steady supply and at times the dates have been older than ideal.

 

Not sure if $5-6 for a 500ml bottle is an issue for most consumers of IPA nowadays.

 

I'd pay those prices from time to time, but it's a steep price in an annoying format, particularly when I think about the cans of Green I bought yesterday for $3.75. But really it's the format that I find annoying more so than the price.

Didn't mean to derail this, just making an observation about why an otherwise excellent IPA might be sitting around. But it sounds like there may be other reasons.

 

They must start printing some type of date on the bottles. I never see the cases and refuse to buy, just put two back on the shelf on Monday and brought something else more reliable.