The Beer Thread

[James Ford]

I dunno, Shaun Hill seems like a good enough guy to me. When we pulled into the driveway, there he was chatting with a customer before then opened. And he participates in online forums and is a regular poster on beer advocate. His mom was super nice as well.

I've been to the Achemist twice and never saw John Kimmich.

[sweetcell]

lol... go maryland! (AKA mars, apparently).  for those heading to b'more to catch the ravens:

 

Our Superbowl champions are kicking off their season with Maryland craft beer.

Once again, Flying Dog will be the only Maryland-brewed beer available in M&T Bank Stadium. A variety of our beers ? including Snake Dog IPA, Doggie Style Pale Ale, UnderDog Atlantic Lager, and Pearl Necklace Oyster Stout ? will be on draft at storefronts in sections 117 and 128.

[stevewizzle]

I dunno, Shaun Hill seems like a good enough guy to me. When we pulled into the driveway, there he was chatting with a customer before then opened. And he participates in online forums and is a regular poster on beer advocate. His mom was super nice as well.

I've been to the Achemist twice and never saw John Kimmich.

i haven't been there, so i should deflect to your better judgement.

but the stories i hear... they are just stupid. he seems like a stupid human being. you don't want people showing up at your farm for beer? distribute it elsewhere then. don't make people drive to you for it. but no, he runs his cash only brewery, and makes people drive to him, and then complains about it after the fact.  he just seems to be a hypocrite.

[shemptiness]

[sweetcell]

The Basics of Homebrewing
LivingSocial's 918 F Street ? Washington, DC

    Thursday, September 19 ? 6:00PM, 8:30PM
    Tuesday, September 24 ? 6:00PM, 8:30PM
    Thursday, October 3 ? 6:00PM, 8:30PM
    Tuesday, October 8 ? 6:00PM, 8:30PM
    Thursday, October 17 ? 6:00PM, 8:30PM
    Tuesday, October 22 ? 6:00PM, 8:30PM

What you get

    - Homebrewing 101 Lesson
    - Tasting of Three Beers: DC Brau, 3 Stars & Flying Dog
    - Package of Hops & Basic Beer Recipe to Take Home
    - Hosted by Michael Tonsmiere, The Mad Fermentationist
    - Homebrewing Kits Available for Purchase

Your quest for delicious local craft beer is about to take you... home. Pay $29 with this offer from LivingSocial's 918 F Street and get the scoop on how to DIY your favorite draughts from homebrew guru Michael Tonsmiere, otherwise known as The Mad Fermentationist. A longtime at-home brewer, Michael will teach you about the basics of beer (you'll sample three different kinds), the fermentation process, troubleshooting and correcting flavors, and bottling. After learning the basics of hops, grain, yeast, and more, you can jump-start your own home brewery with a take-home package of hops and a recipe for different brew styles to try your hand at crafting -- or purchase a homebrewing kit to get started on your own crafty creations.

https://www.livingsocial.com/events/cities/1-washington-d-c/814286-the-basics-of-homebrewing

mike is a really nice guy and a good teacher.  i think this will be a great "homebrewing 101" class.

[brennser]

You used to be able to get a growler of OTWOA at the brewery for about $12 - then they realized they had lucked into a world class beer and started charging $20 or 25 for a growler

I started quite the flame war on BA when I pointed this out a while back 

That's what it is on the current draft list.

I remember when i got a whole growler of it at Whole Foods in Fairfax for about $9.

I see that Smoke and Barrel has OTWOA on draft, and at half price tonight, that means $4.50 for 13 oz draft. But not much interest here. Damn you, Heady Topper.

Christ, it's usually $9 a draft there?

[stevewizzle]

You used to be able to get a growler of OTWOA at the brewery for about $12 - then they realized they had lucked into a world class beer and started charging $20 or 25 for a growler

I started quite the flame war on BA when I pointed this out a while back 

bullseye.

i went to half price drafts last night at s&b, and it's just hilarious to see OTWOA and Enjoy By, both 9% beers, same style and all that, both are $9.  but one came from 5 miles down the road, and one came from 2,700 miles away.

i'll save the rest of my rant about dc brau for another day. 

[Yada]

Finally drank an Oracle last night, another disappointing release from Bell's.

Now what do I do with the other five bottles?

[fatskippy]

The economies of scale are slightly different at Stone and DC Brau...

[stevewizzle]

The economies of scale are slightly different at Stone and DC Brau...

stone: ships there beer 3,000 miles, makes charitable contributions, big employee payroll, has an enormous and immaculate brewery

dc brau: ships there beer 5 miles, makes no charitable contributions, <10 employees, has a shitty tasting room and a small brew space

dc brau is price gouging like crazy ($11 six packs across the city for their standard fare) and making up ground on their capital costs, which sure, it's good business, but they are fucking their locals by doing so.  it's just stupid that people pay the extra cost for these guys beer, just because it's a dc brewery.

[sweetcell]

margins are razor-thin for small breweries.  super-hoppy beers like OTWOA are expensive to make.  i don't blame them for charging more for a popular product if they can.  on the upside it's motivated them to brew it more often, instead of being a seasonal. or one-off.

does anyone think that DC Brau is rolling in cash?

if it's not worth the price to you, don't buy it.

[stevewizzle]

i don't know, they may not be rolling in it, but i bet they are seeing profit margins like no other small-scale brewery, and it's because they take advantage of the market.  there's no other good local option.

i just don't support the idea of them saying, "well, all these other six-packs are $11, so let's make ours $11 too".  make it $9, because you didn't have to pay that extra $2 to transport it, and make it everybody's go-to because of the price, and the beer itself, not because there are no other >local< options.

[stevewizzle]

if it's not worth the price to you, don't buy it.

i still buy em at the bar, just not retail stores. i'll still support them, and wish them the best. i just don't agree with their business model, that's all.

i realize i'm sounding very much like an old cranky fart in this thread as of late.  but all these brewers bitching about "oh i hate all these people coming to my brewery" and breweries taking advantage of a booming local market... to me, it's all just a giant fuck you to the consumer, and the consumer is what keeps them doing what they love to do.

[fatskippy]

Stone produced 177K barrels of beer last year, DC Brau produced 5K barrels. It is a clownshoe comparison and Enjoy By is hardly a great deal at $9/22 oz bomber or the equivalent of over $29 for a standard 6 pack.

[stevewizzle]

http://beeradvocate.com/community/threads/dc-brau-corruption-pricing.105088/

good discourse of the issue i speak to.  seems like i may be off-base on a few of my presumptions.