Twin Elephant Brewing to open

Hm. Well this is a bit troubling.

I usually pay zero mind to Untappd ratings, but yeah. After opening weekend, you would think that, if anything, this numbers are extremely inflated. Which is strange though, Bc it seemed like intitial reactions on here were good.

 

$15 for a 64oz growler. Good!

I'm a fan of the Mr Pinkerton and Diamonds and Pearls. Wish the IPA had more body and the Juicy Busey was juicier, but there's promise. Friendly staff too. Needs to work on the line - took 20 min to serve 10 people - but it should work out eventually.

 

Yeah, the line needs serious work. Only two people working behind counter and moving VERY slow.

They should separate growler and normal lines, first off, and definitely employ 1-2 more people. Beer was fine but not good enough to wait 20-25 min for a fill.

 

If one is rating something for the first time, something with no hype, with no name recognition, then one might be very cautious in their judgment. Perhaps they are not just interested in the product itself, but oneself...

 

This is entirely true. All aboard the zero hype train.

 

I hate when that happens!

 

That is incredibly bad. Missing Memorial Day weekend will be a rough one for the bottom line.

 

Manufactured scarcity is a must in the business plan for any brewery opening in 2016. Can't survive without it.

 

I dont think being closed on Memorial Day weekend is "manufactured".

 

Selling out more had to do with a very small nano-brewery opening in an area with high population density and no other nearby breweries. The product itself isn't remotely comparable in quality to nearby competitors, at least at the moment. IPA lacked any body whatsoever (and hoppiness), Juicy Busey was very yeast-forward without much hop presence, and the browns/reds were VERY basic. The milk stout thru coffee was excellent, though, and I heard praise for the Lil Shimmy Ye (the pale ale they tapped a week after opening), so obviously good things can happen -- but I've spoken to many people who went and it's pretty much unanimous that the beer isn't bad, but lacks innovation and needs work -- in addition to the carbonation problems, as they wasted a ton of beer since the kegs kept pouring out 2/3 foam for a lot of glasses. That contributed to selling out as well. Taking 25min to get thru 6 people in line because of said carb issues didn't help.

It's confusing to me how someone could imply that this is manufactured scarcity at this point in the business plan. Sounds like an excuse. For new breweries it's better to be upfront about with what they're doing well and what they aren't, in hopes for future improvements. I fear that sometimes people are just so happy to have a local brewery that they're willing to make errors and miscues come across as good things when they aren't. I'm rooting for this brewery, but wasn't impressed with the initial offerings. Am very happy they are returning with 6 completely new beers though and hopefully they're taking these two weeks for work out the various kinks. initial brewery demo seemed to be geared toward first-time brewery visitors and those extremely new to craft beer scene as opposed to those familiar with basic styles already. they're gonna do fine sales-wise in this area, but was disappointed with that.

 

They'll be known more for not being open this weekend then they will for the quality of their beers if the report from @Mineo is echoed by many others. In the end, it's a positive.

 

Which one is it? I separated the two points to better visualize the bullshit your spewing. However, these were consecutive sentences. You make a point of saying there are no nearby breweries. Then literally the very next thing you say is that they aren't as good as nearby breweries.

What are you even referring to here? The goddamn tour that is mandatory for NJ breweries to have?

 

Nearby competitors meaning Trap Rock, Magnify, Conclave, Kane, Carton, etc - all within an hour. What I tasted wasn't close in quality to any of them or very good at all, apart from the milk stout w/ coffee. Apart from Trap Rock 10min away (who btw gives 22oz of their beer for the price that Twin Elephants gives for a pint) none of these are extremely close in proximity - hence the lack of VERY nearby competition, to the point where it would impact customer flow within the very dense Chatham/Summit/BH area. There is relatively nearby competition for sure, though. Looks like I forgot to add the word "very" for clarification.

Demo reference is to styles offered; there's no need for two red ales - a very introductory style - when you can't get one hoppy beer down pat. I didn't mind the "tour" at all.

The beer needed work. The styles were all exceedingly basic. There was major carb problems that made it so it took 25-30 min to get through 6-7 people in line. They're charging $6.50 a pint. What's to argue about? The brewery seems like a side project to those involved, as opposed to a main focus.

You're highly mistaken if you believe I'm alone in these sentiments. I'm guessing you're the type who deems any criticism of local breweries as out-of-line because "OMG DRINK LOCAL!!!1"

 

I'm not sure what would make you think this. I didn't even really respond to anything you said. Just called you out what I thought were inconsistencies in your post.

I'm not really sure what to say to you. I had two beers when I was there (one a hoppy one) and was satisfied with both. The staff was friendly. The space was really nice. I did wait a little longer for my first beer than I would have liked, but I'm not too worried about that.

I get it. You want to hold these breweries to a higher standard. I just don't think that judging them on what was their first day or two open is the best way of doing that.

 

It was their second week open when I went, and you said that there was "bullshit your spewing" (should be "you're" btw) - so yeah, you are actually responding to something I said, and calling it "bullshit". Not sure why you're jumping down my throat with that when I'm just offering constructive criticism. Yes, the staff was very nice and the space was cool; that was the best part. But this is a beer forum, so I'm going to talk about the beer, and for that I found half the stuff a chore to drink, and the other half apart from the milk stout very boring. look at Untappd ratings and once you account for brewery opening hype it's not like the reviews are promising there, either. I expected more from homebrewers who have supposedly been brewing a decade with small batches, that's all. If my opinions weren't echoed by a lot of other people I talked to. Beers just reminded me more of Beach Haus territory (bland and introductory) than something from Magnify or Conclave, which I was hoping for (even if those are admittedly high standards).

Looks like two people can go to the same spot and have differing opinions! Check tb and reddit if you think my opinions are somehow unconventional (they're not). I don't know why people are attacked for occasionally providing criticism about a product they bought and were let down by.

Wishing them the best of luck and hoping the next batch of brews will change my mind. I'm not judging them and closing the book; I just said my first impression was mostly a mixed bag, and for $6.50/pint - more than most bar prices - I'll need more to return.

And yes, in a town like Chatham - where there'e essentially one small bar, one brewery within 30min (Trap Rock), and a ton of people nearby - any new establishment offering alcohol is going to be crazy the first few weeks regardless of product.

 

hey guys is it pork roll or taylor ham?