Sun King

It was the Batch 666 Sympath for the Devil release as you noted. I took the $20 in gift cards they offered for that and bought the Afternoon Delight which was very very good!

Cherry Busey is exceptional. Not sure about the price but it is what it is. They had Cherry Busey on tap at the brewery for at least a month and they also poured it at Sour Wild Funk Fest.

I find a lot of beers way overpriced and Sun King isn't immune to it and I'm not going to bash them about it when people pay it. It's capitalism at it's finest. I was most frustrated with the fact that at History on Tap last week they mailed it in showing up with the 3 flagship beers. I love those but I would hope at a nice festival like History on Tap they would bring something different to mix it up a little.

$25 is steep but Upland Sours always deliver! Picked up 4 today at the Carmel Taproom.

Cheers!

 

Justifying high prices of one place by justifying high prices of another. That makes sense. You can buy real, actual lambic, from Belgium and have it shipped here cheaper than Upland's "lambic." You don't need to jump through hoops to get it either if you order online.

I would like for Sun King to be my beer of choice. I think their beers are very good and well executed for what they are, but a four pack of two hearted for $8.99 or Osiris for $11.99 or $12.99 there just isn't a comparison. Their latest IPA collab with Reingeist for $15.99 at the liquor store was crazy, but I saw a guy buy three of them. Cream ale is a great summer beer that makes sense for a party to get a 1/6 barrel. Those prices are much better than any 1/6 barrel from a liquor store.

 

I think people complained about the price of BA666 because it was listed as $15 a 2 pack up until a week before it went on sale. Sun King claims their marketing team goofed and that it should've been $25. People bitched as they should've so Sun King offered $10 gift cards which turned me off big time.

Apparently, gold medals = $10 price increases. I guess Fat Heads, Goose Island, Great Lakes and christ knows how many other breweries didn't get that memo.

 

I think we fail to consider how small these operations really are even when we see them on tap and on shelves around town, because I think $25 or so for 32oz of speciality beer is a totally reasonable price. Sun King has been around 6 years, and I'm sure they believe they could be a lot better in a lot of ways, but they just don't have the scale of some of these larger breweries that have been around for a few decades. Also, like it or not, the market is changing were these sorts of premium prices are accepted, and I doubt the trend shifts downward much.

 

I do know some of the guys that work there and they told me that this was one of the largest batches of a barrel aged beer they ever had. They said typically they get like 50-60 cases on a barrel aged run but they had done a lot more afternoon delight (something like 250 cases). Part of the issue was that it takes a while to get a barrel age program up to a decent size due to the time involved. It sounds like now they are at the point where they will have barrel age beers coming out more often/frequently and in larger quantities than previous years.

 

What hoops need to be jumped through to get the Upland sours? I showed up at Carmel at 11:15am Saturday, there was no one there, they had tons of bottles, I bought what I wanted, and was out the door in 5 minutes.

 

Same here. There were about 8 of us lined up outside the door at 10:55 waiting for them to open at 11 a.m. Walked in got 4 bottles for $109 and walked out with the deliciousness! Good stuff!

 

The lottery system. It hasn't always been like that. You had to win the lottery and people from all over the country were throwing their hat in the ring for them. Those bottles are now easy to get your hands on. You can now do exactly what you did, but for how long? We all know beer isn't a good when you can actually get your hands on it.

 

Did you really just say that? SMH

 

/Sarcasm. I'm getting that the hype around those beers is leveling off. I think it's a great thing. It's great to see them for sale at liquor stores again like they were many years ago. It just makes me wonder at some point if they expand those beers to their other distribution areas and potentially taking the in person sales away or making it much harder to find them.

 

I cannot argue that there are bottles available for a similar price per ounce. I buy my share of other stuff, but sometimes a growler of Osiris hits the spot, and I work downtown, so it is pretty darn convenient for me. I also like to try their limited offerings. Sometimes they hit a home run, and when they do, I like to be aware of it.

I think it is interesting and useful to try local beers and see what I like. And if the beers are good enough, I'm not too concerned about the cost. Also, Upland's lottery is a pretty painless hoop, if you ask me, and much better than waiting in a line for a couple hours. There are other sources, and undoubtedly better sours available, but Upland does have a few rock solid sours in their line up that I'd buy again, assuming they come around.

I bought a 4-pack of the recent collab with Reingeist at $13 or so, and it was very good. I'd never stock up, but one 4-pack is hardly that burdensome. I can hardly argue with your basic point, though - I'd grab a 4-pack of Two-hearted at $9 over most Sun King beers any day of the week. But it isn't like I can always find it fresh on the shelves, and sometimes I'm in the mood for something else. Plus, as I mentioned, the $6 growler is a great deal, and a great way to take care of your beer needs for the weekend if you are anywhere near downtown Indy that day.

 

I agree with that. If I worked downtown, I would certainly get a growler filled down there from time to time. What do they charge for the growler fills on the seasonal beers?

 

Honestly, I beg to differ. I haven't lived in Indiana for the past 3+ years until just recently, but until I moved away you "reserved" them online and then picked them up in the window rather than the current lottery system. In that scenario, they still always had the public sale. Over the years I was not in-state, and the lottery system was implemented and in full swing, I got regular calls from a friend in Bloomington who had no interest in sours to the effect of, "We're at Upland, there are tons of sours for sale, they have X, Y, and Z, do you want any?"

The Upland sours include multiple outstanding offerings, rare or not. Just as good or better as a lot of what Cascade offers at a substantially better price point ($25 vs. ~$30-$33, at least). And for sure I forked out the cash for Cascade when I lived in their distro too.

Back to the actual topic at hand, though, the hype train is what drives the prices being charged for any of these beers; Upland sours, Sun King special releases, etc. Especially for people just getting into beer, people are willing to pay for anything deemed special (see the name "King's Reserve"). When first buying Upland sours years ago they were $15. Then they bumped the price, then they bumped it again. People kept buying, I kept buying. Same with Dark Lord...For me, at least, the difference between those examples and Sun King's $22-$25/2-pk is for years I've only been willing to fork out the crazy dough and feel that sting because I've had great beers from that brewery that make me feel like I won't regret paying the exorbitant prices they ask for now. Sun King has never WOWED me with anything. IMO their standard line up is swill for the masses and their special releases are good, but for the same price point I've never struggled to find something in the same style that I like more, for a similar or lower price. Maybe I'm hating on Sun King, maybe not, I don't have a single friend that likes craft a lot that ever goes out of their way for Sun King. Clearly, though, there are many that do, so good for them for raking in the $.

 

It varies - from around $10 to around $18, I think. Definitely not a deal at that price, but sometimes worth it. When I go, I sample then sometimes pick up one or more if I'm motivated.

It seems a little harsh, but I wouldn't argue too hard. The awards they've stacked up, for both their standard line and their specials, indicate they get some respect in the community, even if they are not well loved among your circle. Personally, I think many of their beers are only so-so, and my ratings illustrate this. Every once in a while, I really enjoy something they make, and they make it very easy to get into and out of their tasting area with a growler or two. Osiris at $6 is quite drinkable, even if it is nothing that rocks my world.