The Important Bourbon County Question

This is too funny, there's no evidence for this. One of this year's batches is actually stronger than one of last year's batches, 14.4% compared to 14.2%. Every batch used to clock in around 13%-13.5%.

 

I wish I could find it for below that price as well. Sadly, I can't even find it for that price! (the equivalent of $48+ for a 4-pack is just absurd).

 

Distro can indeed be an issue. From what I've seen first hand, a distro house is going to kind of know exactly how many cases of everything they will get. Now well before this point and during the whole process, you have buyers from specialty shops and craft-centric chains (Whole Foods, Wegmans) barking to their sales reps for their cut of whatever the allocation will be. Basically, in markets with tons of craft drinkers, every last case is sold before it hits the distro's dock. So GI only sees that they sold "X" cases to the distro and they (GI) are not aware of what sits on shelves - that's up to the distro to figure out when it comes to allocations next year. Now if an entire area has them sitting on shelves, than this could reflect that area's support of their other stuff (like going gangbusters on 312, etc.,.) and GI blindly sending several cases to that market as a reward for support, nevermind the fact that the area may genuinely enjoy 312 but give a shit about BCBS.


**EDIT** looks like ROBEAR was giving the same answer while I was writing my essay!

 

I'm on the other side. The price is fair, but the lines and getting up before dawn to get it is the ridiculous part. And hoarders that brag about how much they bought or how many stores they hit are awful people.

 

Indeed. So last week

 

Yeah, but the higher ABV bottles are older (at least from the appearance of the bottles I've seen), and the lower ABV versions are newer...

 

Just was trying to be polite, enjoy your over priced bottle

 

Let me rephrase: every batch from 2007-2010 had a listed abv of 13%, the 2011 had a listed abv of 14.5%, all five of the 2012 batches had an inaccurately estimated (not measured) abv of 15% (the actual % varied between each batch) and the 2013 had two batches of 14.2% and 14.9%. I can't give a batch-by-batch rundown of what BCBS measured from 1992-2006 but I've seen pictures of keg labels dating from that period that were as low as 11%. This year's two batches of 13.8% and 14.4% are well within the average range for this specific beer.

The two bramble variants (Bramble Rye and Backyard Rye) weren't even 13%.

 

This exactly, 2 years ago it was 16.99 for BCBS and I could get it for a month and I did get a lot (of which I still have a few), last year was able to get a couple 4 packs of regular and a couple 4s of BCBCS for closer to 25.... This year everyone is selling by the bottle so I was able to score 2 4 packs of Central Waters BBS and walk past it and not care at all, and I will be able do get CW BBS for weeks to come! Not to mention they really upped the mouthfeel this year, way thicker then years past!

 

Goose island will not have retail sales data, no retailers share that outside of the huge chains. They will only know how much a retail location bought last year, there is no way they can quantify how long it sat on the shelf.

 

I want the BABW to come out again, that stuff was magic!

 

You lucky bastard. The last time that was close to true for me was 2008. It was $17.99-$18.99 a four-pack back then and I could get it year-round in Illinois and Iowa. It went up to $21.99 next year and I could still get it year-round.

 

Distributors would have that info, wouldn't they? And possibly regional sales reps? I'm always confused about what all those guys in the liquor stores with briefcases and computers are actually doing- I assumed they were tracking beer/wine/liquor sales and reporting back to distributors or breweries.

 

it is worth MORE than the prices they are currently charging.

I would pay more, but am happy to pay less until they wise up.

 

Appreciate your sincerity and consistency. Some of the "buy local" folks I drink with are curiously ahead of me in lines sometimes for rare releases of beers from other places.

 

So... What happens when Bourbon County becomes as plentiful and as easy to get as Bud Light. Will everyone still love it, or will the perceived taste go down because it's easy to get and people realize that InBev has finally taken over production...

 

27 for 4 pack for me still is fine. that equates to a 12.40 bomber. no problem paying that for a world class BA beer

 

This year's batch to me is missing something. Perhaps the body. Don't get me wrong it is still world class. With the ever changing ABV levels year to year this could be why I feel it is missing something. ( Or could it be the fact that a week before the BCBS hit the stores I was drinking the Avery Tweak) Yes, that is most likely it. I would gladly pay the $22.00 Total Wine charged for the 4 packs considering 1 bottle of the Tweak runs between $11.00-$13.00

 

At $20 a four pack you're almost getting at cost, that's a good deal. It was going for $27.99 to $31.99 a four pack in SoCal, only two stores in my area got variants. One store I know got bombers of Vanilla Rye with a raffle for purchase.

 

I'm much more concerned with the fact that every Joe Schmoe brewery you can think of seems to be putting out a $20 bomber of thin, mediocre BA stout. In that market, I'll pay $30 for a 4-pack of BCBS without batting an eye.