Why are Stone beers so expensive?

I first want to say that I'm not trying to bash Stone in anyway. I really do enjoy their beers but I just don't understand the pricing. I mean they are good but come on. My buddy and I went to a local craft beer store yesterday and he picked up a six of Ruination. $19.99. WTF!!??! I almost shat myself! I know beers are more expensive in specialty shops but still. The cheapest I've ever seen ruination is like 15 or 16 bucks for a sixxer. How can a 7.7% beer that just uses 2-row, some crystal, magnum and centennial cost so much. I was thinking maybe its because I'm on the east coast but I don't pay anywhere close to that for any of Sierra Nevada's stuff. Any ideas?

did he piece a bunch of singles together to form a sixer? I wanna say that my local beer store sells the stuff for about 10-12 bucks a sixer.

I would say because peole are willing to pay that much for it. They have a name that many "beer snobs" are willing to spend almost anything for right now. In a few years they will not be one of the hot breweries and the price will come down.

Negotiate prices,F that. Act like it was used.Tell em 15 and youll buy it.Unless its ultrafresh I wouldnt. And point that out also to who the clueless person selling that to you.
If that doesnt work I would just buy a bomber and uless you really think they are worth that much then just buy a sixer ocassionally and ?? eat less,drive less,and whatnot. Eat out one less time? You know. There are things worth sacrificing to budget if needed otherwise maybe try to brew it. Good luck. I spent about $100 worth of beer this weekend,I kind of feel like a dick for some reason.

CrystalShip said:

did he piece a bunch of singles together to form a sixer? I wanna say that my local beer store sells the stuff for about 10-12 bucks a sixer.

Click to expand...

Nope, pulled it off the self as a sixxer

jonmohno said:

Negotiate prices,F that. Act like it was used.Tell em 15 and youll buy it.Unless its ultrafresh I wouldnt. And point that out also to who the clueless person selling that to you.

Click to expand...

The person selling it was the owner. When my buddy asked why so expensive they said "that's barely more than what my distributor charges so I'm not making anything off the sale price at $19.99." Yeah.. right. But my buddy still wanted it and paid anyway. I would have put it back and told them I can brew four 12-packs of the same beer for a few bucks more than they charge for a six.

Around here a 22oz goes for about $5-6 each, love the stufff but at that price it's a once in a while beer for me.

I believe Ruination is $19.99 around here as well, and I think that's insane. I'm kind of at the point where I'm not into buying many hop forward beers. My IPAs are so good, and I'm getting 5 gallons of very fresh, draft beer for about $40 all told. That comes out to about $4.50 for a sixer if I bottled it. I love Stone, but I agree their beers are priced out of my comfort zone.

I wish I could get six-packs here, if someone has them, i haven't found them. All I can get are 22's. AB and IPA is 4.99 for a bomber and Ruination is 6.99 for a bomber.

Around here Ruination 6 packs are $15. I've bought bombers here and there, but I've never dropped that much on a 6er.

The cost of Oaked Arrogant Bastard has become beyond ridiculous. I like it, but I'm not spending 16 bucks on a six pack.

cmiyc said:

I first want to say that I'm not trying to bash Stone in anyway. I really do enjoy their beers but I just don't understand the pricing. I mean they are good but come on. My buddy and I went to a local craft beer store yesterday and he picked up a six of Ruination. $19.99. WTF!!??! I almost shat myself! I know beers are more expensive in specialty shops but still. The cheapest I've ever seen ruination is like 15 or 16 bucks for a sixxer. How can a 7.7% beer that just uses 2-row, some crystal, magnum and centennial cost so much. I was thinking maybe its because I'm on the east coast but I don't pay anywhere close to that for any of Sierra Nevada's stuff. Any ideas?

Click to expand...

I think you may be under estimating the amount of hops that go into heavily hopped DIPA's.

I can get normal stone beers for $10 a six pack here, and generally skip it as I can brew a tasty IPA for under $40. Unless Stone self distributes you're looking at three price points. The price Stone sells it to the distributor, the price that distributor sells it to the store and the price that store charges you the consumer. Everyone is taking their cut, probably in the 35% range.

Jukas said:

I think you may be under estimating the amount of hops that go into heavily hopped DIPA's.

I can get normal stone beers for $10 a six pack here, and generally skip it as I can brew a tasty IPA for under $40. Unless Stone self distributes you're looking at three price points. The price Stone sells it to the distributor, the price that distributor sells it to the store and the price that store charges you the consumer. Everyone is taking their cut, probably in the 35% range.

Click to expand...

Stone does self distribute, but I think just in their area, and believe they use normal distribution channels in the rest of the country.

As for why ruination is expensive... well, because it can be.

Stone IPA sixer is $12 around my parts. Oaked AB more like $17 so I've never tried it.

I only drink Stone at the local pizza place, $4 a glass. I'd say you got a deal!

Sorry, couldn't resist.

Because the owner just bought a really expensive yacht.

Why is anything so expensive? Because enough people will pay that price for it and anything above costs is profit. When people refuse to buy at that price, the price will come down or the company will go out of business.

In Reno I give about $4.50 for a 22 ouncer of AB in the store and can get the same price in some bars locally in our small town about 60 miles east. I don't think Stone is to blame, but the rarity in some places draws whatever the traffic will bear. Remember that most craft brews have limited distribution and that if there is a demand beyond their distribution area the product may pass through more hands which adds cost to the consumer.
I might ask the same question about Dogfish Head. Here, I pay about 10 bucks for a 4 pack or their 90 minute.

Bob

Jukas said:

Unless Stone self distributes you're looking at three price points. The price Stone sells it to the distributor, the price that distributor sells it to the store and the price that store charges you the consumer. Everyone is taking their cut, probably in the 35% range.

Click to expand...

But this is the same for every item in every store basically, and doesn't exonerate a manufacturer from responsibility for the cost of their product.

I refuse to pay for over-priced, hype beers. At this point, they're not worth it anymore when 50 other breweries are on the shelf making beers that are the same or better for less.

I never buy ruination anymore due the price, to many other good IPAs available for half the price ($10 a 6pack). I dont know why stone prices it so high, ruination is a beer you want to drink as fresh as possible, and they high price tag makes them a slow seller

By the way, they are switching ruination to 4packs instead of 6packs

Hell, I actually think that most Stone beers are very reasonably priced-much less than their competitors. Very few of their bombers are over $7.99/bottle where I shop, and many are in the $4.99-$5.99 range, which is pretty reasonable. I think that the Imperial Russian Stout at $7.99/bottle is a frickin steal. And so is the Smoked Porter at $4.99/bottle. What ticks me off is seeing a local brewery with questionable QC like Great Divide selling their Barrel-Aged Stouts and Barleywines for $24.99, when it's a crapshoot whether or not it will be sour, and you can get a similar (and probably better) offering from Firestone for $10 less.

FarmerTed said:

Hell, I actually think that most Stone beers are very reasonably priced-much less than their competitors. Very few of their bombers are over $7.99/bottle where I shop, and many are in the $4.99-$5.99 range, which is pretty reasonable. I think that the Imperial Russian Stout at $7.99/bottle is a frickin steal. And so is the Smoked Porter at $4.99/bottle.

Click to expand...

I find most of Stone's prices to be reasonable as well. The exceptions are Ruination and Oaked AB 6 packs. I tend not to buy those, but I do buy most of their bombers.

Stone is one of the few breweries that I'll actually buy an IPA from. Arrogant Bastard, IPA, and Smoked Porter bombers are all sub-$5 at the beer shop I frequent, and Ruination is right around $6 if I remember right. And they have their "best before" dates on the bottles now, so being disappointed with an old IPA isn't much of an issue anymore.

I love reading these threads and the sense that people feel as though they are entitled to buy good beer on the cheap. Come on people, we live in a free market society where supply, demand and operating cost goes into the production of a product. Fuel prices, grain prices, hop shortages, insurance costs and everything else that goes into operating a brewery and producing a product that people want to consume all weigh on the price you pay retail.

I assure you that the breweries are not sitting in some cubicle somewhere thinking about how to screw the consumer with ridiculous pricing. Over the last several years the price of craft beer has risen dramatically and in large part it is due to the popularity of the hobby and the market explosion as well as the rising cost of all overhead that goes into its production. When I got into this hobby you could put together a recipe for less than $20.00 and now the average recipe comes in around $30.00 or more.

IPAs and IIPAs are typically super hoppy big beers with huge grain bills and lbs of hops and so of course they are going to cost more than a typical PA. Not to mention the fact that everyone is jumping into the game of these styles and pushing the style envelope of what they really are supposed to be. These beers have become bigger and hoppier every time someone jumps in with one. As someone earlier in the thread commented, there are a lot of people involved in the manufacture and distribution of the beer before it even gets on the shelf and everyone takes their cut, including the guy giving up the shelf space to carry it because we are all in business to make money. In the typical retail world 30% has historically been the benchmark profit line and if you really think that some of these breweries are just jacking up the price to make 50-60% you're being silly.

If you don't want to pay their prices then don't buy their beer but don't think that in you not buying it the price is just going to go down because it won't. If the breweries find the market for a particular product is just no longer there they will just stop brewing it. They won't continue to brew a beer that loses them money. Right now the craft beer industry is riding a huge wave and at some point it will reach a saturation point because there is just not enough retail space or enough bar taps to support the myriad of beers available so just enjoy what's occurring right now because it will taper off at some point and some of these wonderful products you can get now may not be around in another year. Personally I try to find retailers that allow for putting together mixed six packs so I can pick and choose various selections of beer I want to try. I won;t pay more than $10.00 for a six pack of anything and I don't care how good it's supposed to be, it's just not a realistic price point for me but if I can pick a bottle of it to put in a six I will along with 5 other different labels and my retailer lets me do this for $9.99!

AS a specific example of where pricing has gone I offer Anchor Steam's Christmas Ale. I used to be able to get a case when it came out for $30.00, a couple years ago it was then $40.00 and last year's offering was $48.99 a case! This year I am already anticipating a price over $50.00 per case. While the recipe changes every year it is still basically the same beer and this from a brewery that has been around for over 100 years making wonderful beer. They have not been in business that long by deciding to rape the American consumer just because they can.

If you like the beer and can justify the price buy it, if not, don't. If you know a professional brewer then engage them in conversation and ask them how they go about pricing a product and you will see that they too struggle with their own costs to turn out a great product because I assure you they are not happy with what they have to pay to operate and produce.

Ruination is real expensive in Texas too , so is Ballast Point's " sculpin " ... Both are awesome when you get a good batch , but at damn near 20 bucks I can find jus as much of not Way better ipa's from Lagunita's or New Belgium

Stone ditributes locally for itself and other local breweries who bottle. The price is subject to COGS and also maintaining a price point within an acceptable percentage of their customers that they distribute for. San Diego has seen a craft beer renaissance with near a dozen new breweries opening each year. I cannot find a local craft bomber that is less than $5 with the majority being between $6-$8 for a 22oz. Green Flash being the highest of any.These prices are the reason why I will make plans to visit local breweries and sit in their taproom. I can often get tasters for free while others will charge a buck or two. The ambience and opportunity to talk to the staff and brewers make it worth the trip. This is not an option for millions of beer lovers. I think the biggest problem is with the retail outlets that are outside of local ditribution routes. So, comparing apples to oranges, Yeah, TX is going to get screwed on Stone but I just paid $4.62 a lb for ground beef! It cost north of $4.30 for a gal of regular. Just thank god your car doesn't drink craft beer! BTW-- A 12oz bittle of Pliny cost me $12 at a local bottle shop. I stopped at RR on a recent road trip and bought 17oz bottles for $5 ea. Anybody want to guess how many bottles I brought back with me? Woohooo!

cmiyc said:

My buddy and I went to a local craft beer store yesterday and he picked up a six of Ruination. $19.99. WTF!!??!

Click to expand...

sounds like a store problem, not a Stone problem. I live in Seattle and Stone brews range from $9-$11 a six pack at the different shops. Still a little high, but have you seen their badass facility. I'm sure that thing wasn't cheap.

AndrewD said:

But this is the same for every item in every store basically, and doesn't exonerate a manufacturer from responsibility for the cost of their product.

Click to expand...

And you don't think Ruination has a higher manufacturing cost than say, their Pale Ale or even the normal IPA? Or that the economics of doing an Oaked Arrogant Bastard don't dictate a smaller batch than regular Arrogant Bastard with both higher costs and smaller batches to drive the shelf cost up?

All that being said, I wouldn't pay $20 for a six pack of ruination (or likely any beer) but I will drop $5-7 on a bomber occasionally. Honestly 90% of the beer I drink I brew, with the rest being local (RR) or regional (Deschutes, Lost Abby, Green Flash) offerings.

maddad said:

A 12oz bittle of Pliny cost me $12 at a local bottle shop. I stopped at RR on a recent road trip and bought 17oz bottles for $5 ea. Anybody want to guess how many bottles I brought back with me? Woohooo!

Click to expand...

What's funny, is Bottle Barn, in SR sells the same bottles of Pliny for $3.79 They get shipments from RR on Friday's and are usually sold out by Tuesday and can really only be counted on to have the staples (Pliny, Blind Pig, Sanctification). Next time you're up drink at RR for sure, and buy any of the sours you want there but for bringing back a case of Pliny check out Bottle Barn before snagging it from the brewery.

Jukas said:

I think you may be under estimating the amount of hops that go into heavily hopped DIPA's.

Click to expand...

How is it that I am under estimating the amount of hops? I know exactly what it takes to make dipa's and I know how much hops cost. I can brew this beer with the cost of hops roughly being 27-29 cents per bottle and that's buying hops by the ounce not in bulk. Add the 2-row and crystal and that's still a damn cheap beer to make. But as long as people continue to buy overpriced beer then they will continue to sell overpriced beer.

Jukas said:

What's funny, is Bottle Barn, in SR sells the same bottles of Pliny for $3.79 They get shipments from RR on Friday's and are usually sold out by Tuesday and can really only be counted on to have the staples (Pliny, Blind Pig, Sanctification). Next time you're up drink at RR for sure, and buy any of the sours you want there but for bringing back a case of Pliny check out Bottle Barn before snagging it from the brewery.

Click to expand...

Bottle Barn will only sell you a maximum of 12 bottles of Pliny.

I get Stone IPA sixers for about 12 in Florida. Their bombers here vary but are anywhere between 6-10.

Some stores just do ya dirty so keep your eyes peeled.

I've never seen Pliny in a 12 oz bottle...

+1 to not buying hyped, expensive beer. Pliny may be hyped, but at least it's still pretty cheap.

cmiyc said:

How is it that I am under estimating the amount of hops? I know exactly what it takes to make dipa's and I know how much hops cost. I can brew this beer with the cost of hops roughly being 27-29 cents per bottle and that's buying hops by the ounce not in bulk. Add the 2-row and crystal and that's still a damn cheap beer to make. But as long as people continue to buy overpriced beer then they will continue to sell overpriced beer.

Click to expand...

And that 27-29 cents per bottle includes employee labor costs, taxes and includes amortized equipment costs, utilities, building lease/mortgage costs and so on and so on right?

The difference in 2 row between IPA and Ruination is minimal, less than 10lbs per bbl (about 10%). Ruination does use 30% more hops though

I personally think stone offerings are pretty well in line with good west coast craft beer, especially San Diego beer, but I still rarely buy Ruination and have yet to buy oaked AB simply because I don't want to spend the cash.

FYI $20 a sixer of ruination = $0.208 an ounce. A bottle of Pliny at the brewer is $5 = $0.294 an ounce. I've heard of people paying up to $12 a bottle for Pliny which would be $0.705 an ounce. Obviously Vinnie is gouging people right?

bottlebomber said:

I've never seen Pliny in a 12 oz bottle...

+1 to not buying hyped, expensive beer. Pliny may be hyped, but at least it's still pretty cheap.

Click to expand...

It's actually more per oz than that $19.99 sixer of Ruination

weirdboy said:

Bottle Barn will only sell you a maximum of 12 bottles of Pliny.

Click to expand...

I've never tried to buy a case of Pliny because I'm local.. so I could be wrong, but every other case of RR beer is based on 12 bottles.

ifearnothing0 said:

Ruination is real expensive in Texas too , so is Ballast Point's " sculpin " ... Both are awesome when you get a good batch , but at damn near 20 bucks I can find jus as much of not Way better ipa's from Lagunita's or New Belgium

Click to expand...

Just be glad you have all those options (and don't even get me started on the cali folks). Some of us only have local access to Stone of the choices you have listed.

Jukas said:

It's actually more per oz than that $19.99 sixer of Ruination

Click to expand...

Indeed!

But you don't have to buy 24 ounces of it. I really only buy expensive commercial beer for R+D purposes lately anyway. I've got 40 gallons of beer at the moment. I don't need their skanky ale