Dogfish Head Reduces Distribution

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Oh well, they will have to drastically cut the distribution for me to not be able to find them. :D
 
I won't miss DFH at all. I cannot say I like any of the beers I have tried at all. All the IPA;s taste like grapefruit juice and Sam can keep all his weird screwed up beers.....
 
Love me some Indian Brown, but they have priced themselves out of my range. I haven't been wowed by anything other than the brown.
 
nepatsfan1 said:
I won't miss DFH at all. I cannot say I like any of the beers I have tried at all. All the IPA;s taste like grapefruit juice and Sam can keep all his weird screwed up beers.....
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Wow. DFH makes some of the greatest beers I've ever had. I never expected to read that post...ever...

Coming soon...to a fridge near you.
 
I think they have succeeded on gimmicks and hype more than beer quality. I think there is a reason no one besides them makes beer similar to theirs. I'm trying not to be a hater, but I truly believe if you were to take their beer and put someone else's label on it, it would not be as popular as it is.

Also some of their "beers" really push the line of being beer. Some of their stuff is closer to being wine cooler than beer. Not that it's bad, it just is what it is. And granted I haven't tried all of them, but like I said, they are priced such that I'm not going to risk $12 on one bottle of "beer" that I may or may not like, when I can spend $8 on a six pack of beer that I may or may not like.
 
Could be a lot of reasons for this. I like DFH....but there are an awful lot of good craft beers around these days. We had Bell's go away here in IL because of a dust-up with the Illinois distributors (I don't wanna get started on IL beer distributors......think about the reputation of Chicago politics, and the two previous governors.....now apply it to beer), and now they're back again, after coming to some acceptable distribution arrangement.

We were touring the Newport Storm brewery in Newport, RI, and one of the owners explained (when somebody asked about getting their beer elsewhere) that their philosophy was to fill 100% of the orders in their existing customer base (at that time in RI, and I think maybe some of CT) before taking any orders from further out. At the time we visited, that meant nothing off their existing distribution list. They may have since expanded, I think so, but I believe that their approach was not only good business, but it rewarded good customers. I agree with it.
 
WOW. thats way too bad for DFH. I can credit them for helping me realize that I am a hophead. So while I thank them for that, I am now boycotting them. (I guess I dont really have a choice since I live in IN) but either way I have broadened by taste buds and have started to love many Bells and Stone beers. I am currently enjoying a Stones Brewery IPA Ruination and I love it. See ya DFH!
 
As much as I love DFH brews, I do feel their downside is that they have always had supply problems. It's pretty hard sometimes to find the seasonals and special brews with any consistency (even in states where they presumably distribute, such as NC)...although I suppose it's good for them in a way...I know whenever I come across something of theirs that's uncommon, I snap it up right away (such as the recent Old School and Burton Baton that I was lucky enough to stumble across.)
 
sorry to everyone that loses out on this decision, but this is a simple supply and demand problem, dictated by the laws of physics, not Sam the owner. he's dealing with the problem the best way he can.

Dogfish Head is in the process of building a second factory to solve this problem, am i wrong? have patience people.
 
That really sucks - Indian Brown is one of my favs! First Arrogant Bastard and Stone Brewery and now Dogfish Head out of Wisconsin - thank god we have Ale Asylum!
 
DFH makes some great beers, but they are getting a little over hyped imo. Same thing with Russian River. At this point, Sam could bottle horse piss, talk about it on the discovery channel for 15 minutes, and still sell it like hot cakes.
 
Thakog said:
DFH makes some great beers, but they are getting a little over hyped imo. Same thing with Russian River. At this point, Sam could bottle horse piss, talk about it on the discovery channel for 15 minutes, and still sell it like hot cakes.
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DFH is only a symptom of the phase that the craft industry is going through- hop bombs, imperial everythings, the search for he 100 proof beer, etc. It will run its course, and then there'll be change. My guess? A brewery will have three or four beers they're very good at, which they will serve 365 days, with maybe a different wild card from time to time, and the rest will be other brands. Not much room for more than one or two companies that do the type of thing DFH does. I applaud their creativity and innovation, but it's not a recipe for broad market appeal (or success). As long as people are willing to shell out $10-12 a bottle for the over-the-top brews, it'll work. So far, so good.....
 
rico567 said:
DFH is only a symptom of the phase that the craft industry is going through- hop bombs, imperial everythings, the search for he 100 proof beer, etc. It will run its course, and then there'll be change. My guess? A brewery will have three or four beers they're very good at, which they will serve 365 days, with maybe a different wild card from time to time, and the rest will be other brands. Not much room for more than one or two companies that do the type of thing DFH does. I applaud their creativity and innovation, but it's not a recipe for broad market appeal (or success). As long as people are willing to shell out $10-12 a bottle for the over-the-top brews, it'll work. So far, so good.....
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I agree with you to a point- I think there will always be a market for hop-bombs and imperials though. It also depends on the beer culture of the area too- in Portland, I can easily see a regular 6 beer, two seasonal, 4-8 others tap list. I doubt it will ever get to the point over here where most breweries just have 4 standards. Now, if I'm in Vegas, I expect that sort of thing.
 
I live in New Mexico and we've never had DFH anyway, so this doesn't really affect me. I do look for DFH whenever I make a trip to Colorado though. I applaud Sam in what he is doing by choosing quality over quantity. Isn't that what craft brewing is all about?
 
Well - the problem with the above statements is that DHS was basically the FIRST to create those beers with everybody else following.

I work at a craft brew store and am always having people asking for lower ABV brews. DFH brews sell but not that fast - they are unique and people buy they ONCE just to see what Sam has down now.
 
fivehoursfree said:
I think they have succeeded on gimmicks and hype more than beer quality.
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i think that's over the top - everything i've had from them is certainly well-made and repeatable.

seems strange that they'd pull out of a beer-loving state such as WI - does anyone know if we have any weird distro laws/tax that other states dont?
 
I know over here in the Seattle area we can't get enough!! My wife and I regularly buy 60 and 90 minute.
 
nepatsfan1 said:
I won't miss DFH at all. I cannot say I like any of the beers I have tried at all. All the IPA;s taste like grapefruit juice and Sam can keep all his weird screwed up beers.....
Click to expand...

have you had the Palo Santo? I can't imagine anyone not liking that beer
 
fivehoursfree said:
I think they have succeeded on gimmicks and hype more than beer quality. I think there is a reason no one besides them makes beer similar to theirs. I'm trying not to be a hater, but I truly believe if you were to take their beer and put someone else's label on it, it would not be as popular as it is.

Also some of their "beers" really push the line of being beer. Some of their stuff is closer to being wine cooler than beer. Not that it's bad, it just is what it is. And granted I haven't tried all of them, but like I said, they are priced such that I'm not going to risk $12 on one bottle of "beer" that I may or may not like, when I can spend $8 on a six pack of beer that I may or may not like.
Click to expand...

Have you really drank all of their beers? You cannot put a diff label on Midas touch or Raison d' Etre expect it not to become amazingly popular. It's not the "in" thing to like DFH. The simple fact that it is pretty damn expensive makes that almost impossible. Because of the fact that it is pricey, but is still sells extremely well is a testament to the quality of the brew. If you are basing your statement off of a bottle of ipa or something else, then you're not making a fair statement. Buy a 4 pack of Palo Santo and tell me after you've drank it that you regret it. Unless you absolutely hate brown ales (don't know anyone that does), i don't see how you wouldn't like that beer. I wouldn't buy it everyday (altho i want to), b/c it is pricey, but then again, if it wasn't pricey, i wouldn't be able to buy any b/c it would be sold out.
 
McMalty said:
Have you really drank all of their beers? You cannot put a diff label on Midas touch or Raison d' Etre expect it not to become amazingly popular. It's not the "in" thing to like DFH. The simple fact that it is pretty damn expensive makes that almost impossible. Because of the fact that it is pricey, but is still sells extremely well is a testament to the quality of the brew. If you are basing your statement off of a bottle of ipa or something else, then you're not making a fair statement. Buy a 4 pack of Palo Santo and tell me after you've drank it that you regret it. Unless you absolutely hate brown ales (don't know anyone that does), i don't see how you wouldn't like that beer. I wouldn't buy it everyday (altho i want to), b/c it is pricey, but then again, if it wasn't pricey, i wouldn't be able to buy any b/c it would be sold out.
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meh, its a proven fact higher price distorts the brain to think its of higher qaulity and therefore worth it. Some people actually NEED this. I don't think most of their beers are worth anywhere near what they charge(I'm talking standard beers here) yet people continue to buy it. The craft beer scene is infested with posers and wannabes. Good for Sam for exploiting that market. To be clear I am not calling everyone out who likes his beer(in this thread) a poser, its good beer, I've bought it, but never repeatidly. To each his own. Plus I'm cheap.:D
 
motobrewer said:
i think that's over the top - everything i've had from them is certainly well-made and repeatable.

seems strange that they'd pull out of a beer-loving state such as WI - does anyone know if we have any weird distro laws/tax that other states dont?
Click to expand...

From what I know about the beer industry...the fact that WI is in fact a big beer state may be why they're pulling distribution there. Costs more to squeeze their product on the trucks. Not worth it, especially if they're reducing volume of distribution within those states.
 
JNye said:
Plus I'm cheap.:D
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I agree with some of what you said, but you should have prefaced your post with this statement above... I think DFH is good for brews that I might not personally risk brewing until I've tried something similar. (world wide stout, 120 ipa, raison d'extra, immediately come to mind) IMO they are totally worth the 6.99/ 12oz bottle versus me buying a crap ton of grain and hoping that my gigantic brew turns out drinkable... The world doesn't really need more 8.99/ 6-pack beers, it needs more 6.99/ bottle beers that will leave a lasting impression. If I was drinking for quantity Anheiser-Busch, Miller, or even Yuengling would more than satisfy that need. Thankfully, we have BrewDog, Avery, Trappistes Rochefort, and Dogfish Head to brew from the other side of the spectrum with a lot of great craft breweries in between. What is inspiration worth to you?
 

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