OP
OP
A four pack of twelves would be unusual here. Fours are still typically sixteens...
Cheers!
Cheers!
This Can't Be Good: Last Call At Another Notable Brewery
- Thread starter day_trippr
- Start date
Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:
Most of the beer i buy is in 4 pack 12 oz bottles ,RIS barrel aged and north of 10%. I'll get IPA's if I don't have one on tap ,which happens about twice a year. In the past when I got my CO2 refilled I'd try some new beers,but now I just add to my whisky cupboard.
Same here in my area. Eight bucks for a pint is steep. On the rare occasions I do go out I look for the happy hour prices or go to a new place and bring my Craft Pass book. Buy 1, get one free, get my book stamped and I'm out the door.
For those wondering about the Craft Pass, here's my 2022 book. Each page has a Wisconsin brewpub, buy one, get one free. The book is good for one year and they are available for other states. For Wisconsin the book is $36, some other states that have less stops the book is cheaper.
At the pint prices these days it's a great deal to have the book. My 2023 book is in my vehicle ready for the next stop.
At the pint prices these days it's a great deal to have the book. My 2023 book is in my vehicle ready for the next stop.
Attachments
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2021
- Messages
- 276
- Reaction score
- 231
Here in NW Arkansas there have been really a glut of craft breweries open and many close in the 13 years we've been here. One of the first was a restaurant and brewpub. It's now just opened back up for either the 3rd or 4th time in 12 years. Last one made it 2 years. Beer just so so, food at best average. Everything else is food trucks. Which I HATE. One if the biggest flops was CORE which expanded to 5 or 6 locations in about 18 months and crashed back to one little location but they still can and sell locally. Can't brew to style at all. Everything is IPA hopped. Everything. Lager with 50 ibus... awful. We stopped in at one that can actually brew yesterday at 2pm. We were only ones in there for 15 minutes. Dead. They can into 24 oz. $8 each. But most of the fancy brewpubs are making decent beer but want $7 to $9 for 6 to maybe 10ounces. But I want a pint. 16 ounces. Not 8 ounces in a cute footed glass, or at best you get a 11 ounce pour in a 12 oz glass. It's why I brew my OWN
Every beer sold should be by the pint. Any thing above 7% is an 8-10oz pour. SMH…I saw Surly on the shelf for the 1st time here. I was so excited, then tried some in the mixed IPA 12 pack. Once again, I don’t understand….to self, just stop waiting your $$.
Last edited:
I see a lot of local breweries selling 4-packs of pints in cans.
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2021
- Messages
- 276
- Reaction score
- 231
A pint is 16 ounces. Anything less is just a can or a bottle. Beer, the one industry that doesn't do truth in advertising.
I think beer for distribution is pretty tightly controlled in terms of the volume advertised on the bottle or can. At tap room, a lot of places sell pints or what they call a full pour in glasses that only hold 14 ounces or so.
beersk
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2013
- Messages
- 1,854
- Reaction score
- 1,031
100% agree.
Curious, what did you like about the way people drank beer in Germany?
They can legally do that with tap beer because there is no statute requiring a pint be 16 oz. It's a "nominal" measure that has been allowed as a customary business practice. Same with lumber--those 2x4s are only 1.5x3.5". It was 2x4" before kiln-drying.
Some commodities are subject to weights & measures laws, like gasoline. A gallon must be dispensed as 128 fluid ounces, and those pumps must be calibrated. Same story for scales in grocery stores and butcher shops.
IIRC, Michigan passed a bill, stating that if advertised as a "pint," the pour must be 16 fl. oz. I suppose some bars and taprooms still use shaker glasses and just call it a "full glass," or something. No idea if any other states have a similar law. Minnesota does not.
beersk
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2013
- Messages
- 1,854
- Reaction score
- 1,031
Well, I don't know about you, but if I'm given a pour that clearly has 3+ fingers of head on it, I know I'm getting shorted and I always ask for a top up. Like mentioned earlier by someone, the prices are ridiculous, I want every last drop I can get. But the easier thing to do is know where the best happy hours are or don't go out for beer. And really, I don't go out for beer much anymore unless it's a Mexican restaurant or a special occasion.
Yup, I was writing the same a pint should be 16 ounces if beer, not 12 ounces and four of foam.
Also those 2x4's are rough cut then planed down to 1.5x3.5 the standard size. Sometimes you can buy the rough cut full side lumber at the saw mill yet but they wouldn't be stamped for construction use.
Also those 2x4's are rough cut then planed down to 1.5x3.5 the standard size. Sometimes you can buy the rough cut full side lumber at the saw mill yet but they wouldn't be stamped for construction use.
So my 9-ounce "pint" glasses are actually a scam!
When my wife and I were trying to visit Czechia, I watched a lot of videos, and I was surprised to see they serve lagers that are literally all foam. I hope that doesn't catch on here. I'm still not over the 14-ounce Haagen-Dazs pint. I can't believe fat people haven't stormed the factory.
When my wife and I were trying to visit Czechia, I watched a lot of videos, and I was surprised to see they serve lagers that are literally all foam. I hope that doesn't catch on here. I'm still not over the 14-ounce Haagen-Dazs pint. I can't believe fat people haven't stormed the factory.
Every .5L at Oktoberfest is filled about half
- Joined
- Sep 17, 2021
- Messages
- 276
- Reaction score
- 231
Haven't been to octoberfest in Germany, but at other times, they serve pretty dang close to a full half or liter. And it is why the UK has a line on their pint glasses. Foam above the line, beer beliw
My wife and I also tried to go to Munich. I had a hard time finding a hotel. We had no idea Oktoberfest was in September.
I looked at some videos to see what it was all about. I had assumed it was about people who really appreciated the craftsmanship that went into good beer. Not exactly true. Those people lying face-down in the street weren't thinking about balanced malts and subtle hopping.
I looked at some videos to see what it was all about. I had assumed it was about people who really appreciated the craftsmanship that went into good beer. Not exactly true. Those people lying face-down in the street weren't thinking about balanced malts and subtle hopping.
OP
OP
lolz! I was fortunate to have been flown into the Greater Munchen Area on business in the middle of Oktoberfest and conveyed around the notable bierhauses by the local sales dudes. I saw plenty of merriment (that Hofbräuhaus behind the Glockenspiel was a total riot) but fortunately no face-down drunkards. Same deal at Kloster Andechs - lots of red faced folks that probably should not have even considered driving home but I didn't trip over any bodies 
Cheers!
Cheers!
Check out Youtube. It's a real spectacle. Vomiting, passing out, falling down...really glad we were not there.
I don't know how widespread the high school behavior is, but the videos are pretty off-putting.
I don't know how widespread the high school behavior is, but the videos are pretty off-putting.
Our visit to Dublin also featured some issues due to excess. Had to step around vomit a few times. My understanding is that most of it comes out of British tourists.
OP
OP
Hahahaha! Ok, I only skimmed that video, but except for maybe one shot I didn't recognize a single venue.
Which isn't to say that didn't or even doesn't happen, but perhaps such compilations aren't actually representative of the average Oktoberfest day in Munich.
I have to say I've visited Munich three times in my life, twice on business with my company and once on business with my wife's, and had a great time each visit...
Cheers!
Which isn't to say that didn't or even doesn't happen, but perhaps such compilations aren't actually representative of the average Oktoberfest day in Munich.
I have to say I've visited Munich three times in my life, twice on business with my company and once on business with my wife's, and had a great time each visit...
Cheers!
I've been there, too. Just not in September.
They have a place they call "puke hill." Makes New York's subway stations sound nice.
They have a place they call "puke hill." Makes New York's subway stations sound nice.
On my bucket list, but I’ve never been either. Just watch videos though of the girls carrying 13 mugs. Not one of them is more than half full.
OP
OP
Those big mugs are a full liter, and so it can be "hammer time" pretty quickly - depending on the ABV.
We were fortunate that the brews at Kloster Andechs we had with dinners there were in the 5s and maybe 6s otherwise we'd have never made it back to our hotels in Munich...
Cheers!
We were fortunate that the brews at Kloster Andechs we had with dinners there were in the 5s and maybe 6s otherwise we'd have never made it back to our hotels in Munich...
Cheers!
The drinking age is 13, they serve beer in half liter mugs and they have a highway with no speed limit. What could go wrong?
My nephew got to go on a school exchange program and stay with a host family I think he was 17 or 18. He got in trouble drinking. He was ordered to write a letter of apology. I think it was something to do with spraying a fire extinguisher all over some cars.
This wins post of the day
The first time I got drunk, I was 12. I was with my parents in Munich, and the restaurant gave me all the wine I wanted. When I was 16, I went to Europe with a bunch of other high school students, and the only place where I couldn't get drinks was one bar in Amsterdam. The trip was 5 weeks long, and I got hammered a bunch of times. They were happy to sell me hard liquor, not just beer. Not sure the European approach was the best.
I had such a great time, it taught me a lesson, which was that alcohol was the one thing that would make me the life of the party and make girls like me. I would have been better off if I had thrown up after every drink.
I had such a great time, it taught me a lesson, which was that alcohol was the one thing that would make me the life of the party and make girls like me. I would have been better off if I had thrown up after every drink.
Not-so-CSB about Munich O-fest.
Went there in 1984 with some friends. Two Germans and one other American. No reservations, came by train from Stuttgart, arrived at the Munich Hauptbahnhof late in the evening. The station had a sort of concierge booth with staff that helped people line up lodging, etc. Guy made a few phone calls, found us a place, an apartment flat nearby with a room with several bunk beds. IIRC, rates were something like DM100/night per person w/continental breakfast. About $25/night. A half hour later some British guy came by the station to take us over there. The flat was owned by his German girlfriend. We crashed for the night, lots of drinking ahead the next day.
We took the U-Bahn to and from the fest grounds. Going to it around noonish was uneventful. We headed to the Hofbrau hall and pretty much stayed put for a while and drank. A little later we wandered to a couple smaller halls, don't recall which.
We all had more beers and ate.
Returning at night was a freakshow. This was 1984. Lots of punks, neo-nazis with skinny jeans and Doc Martin boots, and a various assortment of people puking or passing out. Or both. It was SRO on this train. Some were hanging onto the straps for dear life and spewing all over themselves. The stench was...memorable.
We made it back to our rooms without incident. Amazingly, none of us puked. More amazingly, I didn't get any on me. We all crashed, got up the next day, rinse and repeat.
Good times.
Went there in 1984 with some friends. Two Germans and one other American. No reservations, came by train from Stuttgart, arrived at the Munich Hauptbahnhof late in the evening. The station had a sort of concierge booth with staff that helped people line up lodging, etc. Guy made a few phone calls, found us a place, an apartment flat nearby with a room with several bunk beds. IIRC, rates were something like DM100/night per person w/continental breakfast. About $25/night. A half hour later some British guy came by the station to take us over there. The flat was owned by his German girlfriend. We crashed for the night, lots of drinking ahead the next day.
We took the U-Bahn to and from the fest grounds. Going to it around noonish was uneventful. We headed to the Hofbrau hall and pretty much stayed put for a while and drank. A little later we wandered to a couple smaller halls, don't recall which.
We all had more beers and ate.Returning at night was a freakshow. This was 1984. Lots of punks, neo-nazis with skinny jeans and Doc Martin boots, and a various assortment of people puking or passing out. Or both. It was SRO on this train. Some were hanging onto the straps for dear life and spewing all over themselves. The stench was...memorable.
We made it back to our rooms without incident. Amazingly, none of us puked. More amazingly, I didn't get any on me. We all crashed, got up the next day, rinse and repeat.
Good times.
OP
OP
Gotta say...that sounds like Rush Week waaay back in my college days...in Denver back in the early 1970s. The alcohol induced "Technicolor Yawn" was definitely a thing - and I developed a lifelong revulsion towards "Cold Duck" in one fateful night of mostly being carried from one sorority house lawn to the next. Fun times I've striven to avoid repeating ever since. Woof!
Don't knock it until you try it. An all foam pour is called "mliko" and you are expected to chug it as soon as it is served. Czechs know how to pour beer!
The general discussion of this thread seems off. From what I can tell, Oskar Blues expanded to 3 breweries around the country. They decided to just close one of them. Honestly, I was surprised to learn that Oskar Blues had locations in Texas and North Carolina. Dales Pale Ale is an okay beer, but is really just a run of the mill old school 6.5% ABV IPA. Ten Fidy is an okay beer, but not a favorite of mine. Their Pils is the only other I have seen or tried.
My area (Loudoun County Virginia) seems saturated with breweries. But, while some have closed, a larger number have opened or expanded. There does not seem to be a lot of room for breweries with plans to expand to country wide distribution to compete with the Sierra Nevadas (like Oskar Blues apparently tried to do), but there still seems to be plenty of room for local craft breweries.
beersk
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2013
- Messages
- 1,854
- Reaction score
- 1,031
That's a great story. I wonder...how did the beer taste then versus now from your memory?Not-so-CSB about Munich O-fest.
Went there in 1984 with some friends. Two Germans and one other American. No reservations, came by train from Stuttgart, arrived at the Munich Hauptbahnhof late in the evening. The station had a sort of concierge booth with staff that helped people line up lodging, etc. Guy made a few phone calls, found us a place, an apartment flat nearby with a room with several bunk beds. IIRC, rates were something like DM100/night per person w/continental breakfast. About $25/night. A half hour later some British guy came by the station to take us over there. The flat was owned by his German girlfriend. We crashed for the night, lots of drinking ahead the next day.
We took the U-Bahn to and from the fest grounds. Going to it around noonish was uneventful. We headed to the Hofbrau hall and pretty much stayed put for a while and drank. A little later we wandered to a couple smaller halls, don't recall which.
Returning at night was a freakshow. This was 1984. Lots of punks, neo-nazis with skinny jeans and Doc Martin boots, and a various assortment of people puking or passing out. Or both. It was SRO on this train. Some were hanging onto the straps for dear life and spewing all over themselves. The stench was...memorable.
We made it back to our rooms without incident. Amazingly, none of us puked. More amazingly, I didn't get any on me. We all crashed, got up the next day, rinse and repeat.
Good times.
It seems like a lot of breweries are expanding in this way and I don't understand it. I mentioned Big Grove here in Iowa City is currently constructing a 4th and 5th location, one is a production brewery only and the other is to have a taproom. They have one in Solon, IA (the original brewpub); Iowa City (where I live); Des Moines; building one in Cedar Rapids, and building a production brewery near my house in Iowa City. I just don't get it. Why does a brewery need that many locations?
I think it was before the fest switched to Festbier, and I recall the beer being amber in color. My tastes weren't very refined then, though I was long a fan of what Bavarian beers were available in bottles at home. Having it served fresh was night and day different from the beer shipped 5000 miles in green bottles. Very malty, nice hops flavor, and WAY too easy to consume a lot. I recall thinking it was like nothing I'd had before. Microbreweries were not a thing yet in the US.
I haven't been back aince then, so I can't compare with today's offerings. A few local breweries here make fairly true-to-form Festbiers and Marzens, and I suppose they are close.
One thing I noticed about Germany, is that nearly every town with a few 1000 or more people had its own brewery and many held their own O-fests. We visited a few, including one in Heubach (where my German friends lived), just east of Stuttgart. If you travel to Germany around fest time, don't overlook some of those smaller events. Nowhere near as crazy, and the beer is excellent.
beersk
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Mar 22, 2013
- Messages
- 1,854
- Reaction score
- 1,031
Very cool. Thanks for sharing. We kind of hijacked this thread and should've been talking about all this in the Beer Vacation to Germany thread.
- Joined
- Nov 26, 2013
- Messages
- 7,673
- Reaction score
- 14,608
Show me a thread that never goes sideways.
Show me a thread that never goes sideways.
But we always return it to its original, upright position.
What were we talking about, again?
Oh yeah, breweries closing.
In recent months, we've had the following closures or soon-to-be closed in the Twin Cities:
Dangerous Man taproom
Eastlake Craft Brewery
Clutch Brewing
Some course-correction in an overcrowded market.
OP
OP
Makes sense. My house has only two people, and it has a brewery.
The "multiple taproom" model does seem to be one that breweries around me have been using successful (though it is always hard to tell from the outside how successful a business actually is). I think it make sense to have a location (or multiple) where people came come out and drink your beers...with some additional attractions (trivia night, food, live music, comedy, room for kids to play, mountain view, etc.). Tap rooms also provide flexibility to rotate new beers in with a core set.
I don't quite get the desire to create large production facilities. That means you are competing with the established large production "craft" breweries and fighting the AB distribution machine for limited tap handles and grocery shelf space. I tend to think that if you are a craft brewery that distributes to 10+ states, you are not really a craft brewery. It is hard to change an established "brand" or introduce new beers.
Oskar Blues is a perfect example of that. At one point Dale's Pale Ale was an interesting beer and a craft beer in cans was unique. Now it is just one of many outdated Pale Ales / IPAs. I have zero reason to purchase a DPA, when there are so many better locally made Pale Ales and IPAs (and cans are the norm). Restaurants looking for something similar are likely to put on one of the AB brands like Elysian or Cigar City, or look to a local brewery. Besides maybe Ten Fidy, the other Oskar Blue offerings are the exact stuff put out by Sierra Nevada/Stone/Bell's/etc.
Here is a local brewery (Honor Brewing) that just expanded to a massive tap room and production brewery space, that is right across the street from another established production brewery and tap room (Solace...who have expanded by opening up small brewpubs and taprooms). It seems like an odd move.
https://www.honorbrewing.com/honor-brewing-loudoun-location/
I watch BrewBids and ProBrewer and other sites, and there's a lot of brewery locations coming up for auction the last couple of years. A lot. I just don't see me convincing the household to let me put a 10BBL in the garage.
