2023 FotD Secret "Santa" ("Cupid"?) Beer Swap

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Thorrak

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Friends! It's just slightly past that time of year again! Similar to the last four years, in the spirit of The Fellowship of the Drink, I am launching a FotD-inspired Secret... uh... Cupid Beer Exchange. Just to recap - this will be completely different from the normal FotD - there will be no offers, selection, or photos. Here’s how it will work:

Today - Jan 8th: Sign up! Post in this thread that you are interested, and shoot me a PM with the template below.
Jan 11-12th(ish): I will email every participant their giftee, along with their giftee’s info.
Jan 20nd - Feb 2nd: Shipping! Ship your gifts to your giftee.
Feb 9th(ish - depending on shipping): List posted of Santas and giftees

In other words, you drop your name in this thread, ship someone some beer, and - a few days later, come home to find beer has magically arrived on your doorstep. Amazing!

Due to the lack of a selection process, for this round I am very strongly recommending your gift consist of up to 128 fl.oz. of beer and one non-beer item (t-shirt, hat, glassware, tap handle, beer-scented soap - whatever you think your giftee wants/could use the most!)

Template for PM: (Include the following in the PM you send me)
  • HBT Username:
  • Email Address:
  • Name & Shipping Address:
  • Beer Preferences/Dislikes:
  • Can you receive beer at any point from Jan 21-Feb 2nd? (If not, when during that window do you need to receive by/after?)
  • Optional: T-shirt size (or a note saying you hate t-shirts) ;)

FAQ:

What should be in a box?
Up to
128 fl.oz. of beer and one non-beer item (e.g. t-shirt, flannel, hat, drip tray, glassware, etc.)


Can I join after Jan 8th?
Probably not. The cutoff is when I send the emails out. I'll try to post in the thread when the cutoff is reached.


Why is the shipping schedule so late / Can I ship early?
Santa had a bit to drink.

Seriously though, the holidays are stressful enough without having to worry about a fun beer swap. The shipping schedule is intended to reduce stress for both the sender and the recipient. To reduce the possibility of beer sitting on the doorstep of an empty house, I humbly request that you try to avoid shipping early - but if you need to, let me know and I will reach out to your giftee to make sure they will be available to receive it.


Do I have to follow the preferences my giftee specified in their template?
Absolutely not! Although I hate all the barley wine I’ve ever tasted, it may just be because I haven’t had a good one yet. The preferences are a guideline, not a mandate. Ship beer that you think your giftee will want to drink.


What happens if I need to drop out?
Let me know ASAP. Because of the nature of this round, drop-outs after Jan 11th will be disruptive, but we will figure out a way to make it work.


Are you (Thorrak) participating/Why do you want an email address?
Yes, I am planning on participating. In part to make this manageable (and try to keep my Santa secret) I'm managing everything using Excel + mail merge to email. Super high tech - but it's worked the last few years!


Other rules/Participation guidelines:
- Continental US residents only
- Must be of legal drinking age
- A HBT member for at least 6 months
- An active participant in the community (based on iTrader rating/activity, recent post count, participation in previous beer swaps, etc.)
... or have been (or are vouched by) a previous FotD participant.

Any questions? Feel free to ask!
 
Possibly... Due to some life changes, I'm WAAAAAAAAAY behind (a few months) on one of my other trades and wouldn't feel right participating in this until I'm able to make that right so it just depends on if I can make good on that before the deadline on this one.

Considering how late I am on my other trade, I would also completely understand if people were uneasy with me participating again anyway so no hard feelings either way. I'll keep everybody posted.

Regardless though, I hope everyone enjoys the holiday season and for those of you who celebrate, Merry Christmas!
 
Possibly... Due to some life changes, I'm WAAAAAAAAAY behind (a few months) on one of my other trades and wouldn't feel right participating in this until I'm able to make that right so it just depends on if I can make good on that before the deadline on this one.

Considering how late I am on my other trade, I would also completely understand if people were uneasy with me participating again anyway so no hard feelings either way. I'll keep everybody posted.

Regardless though, I hope everyone enjoys the holiday season and for those of you who celebrate, Merry Christmas!
I’m not sure the circumstances, but definitely appreciate you looking to clear down outstanding trades.

If it’s a homebrew trade (and you don’t have the beer as a result of not brewing) but want to participate in a commercial beer exchange then I understand. If it’s a commercial beer exchange then certainly it would be good to finish that one out first.
 
I’m not sure the circumstances, but definitely appreciate you looking to clear down outstanding trades.

If it’s a homebrew trade (and you don’t have the beer as a result of not brewing) but want to participate in a commercial beer exchange then I understand. If it’s a commercial beer exchange then certainly it would be good to finish that one out first.
It's homebrew. Just haven't had much opportunity to brew due to a new job. I'm one beer away from being able to fulfill my commitment and have some time off coming up. My thought is if I'm able to at least get the beer into a fermenter by the signup deadline, I'll go ahead and participate in this.

Commercial trades are far less problematic for me when it comes to timely shipping so that shouldn't be an issue.
 
I completely understand. I went from brewing once a month to once a quarter over the past few years, so at most I have one homebrew available on tap. I’m hoping to brew more in 2024, but am staying away from swaps until I at least have one beer in the fermenter and a second one on tap.

That said - definitely would be happy to have you here if you decide to join!
 
I completely understand. I went from brewing once a month to once a quarter over the past few years, so at most I have one homebrew available on tap. I’m hoping to brew more in 2024, but am staying away from swaps until I at least have one beer in the fermenter and a second one on tap.

That said - definitely would be happy to have you here if you decide to join!
Yup. In addition to not having much time to brew, throughout this entire ordeal, I have destroyed the heating element from my brew kettle, a march pump, and my counterflow chiller. In addition, each piece of equipment failed on a separate batch so I have also lost 3 (10+ gallon) batches of beer.

Several hundred dollars later, I finally think I have everything fixed but it has been frustrating to say the least lol.

I'll most likely do this trade. You can probably expect a PM from me shortly.
 
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I completely understand. I went from brewing once a month to once a quarter over the past few years, so at most I have one homebrew available on tap. I’m hoping to brew more in 2024, but am staying away from swaps until I at least have one beer in the fermenter and a second one on tap.

That said - definitely would be happy to have you here if you decide to join!
Okay. You talked me into it lol. Message sent!
 
Wait I thought I already said I was in on this round. Or did I commit to the jelly of the month club again? 😂😂
Count me in. Still gotta get out my FOTD box. Shooting for Monday for that one.
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Alrighty friends, the emails have been sent!

You should have just received the info for your giftee. If you don't see it, please reach out to me directly here and I can forward it across. As a reminder, the shipping window is from Jan 20th - Feb 2nd. If for any reason you don't think you can ship in this window (or receive, and you didn't already note as such!), please let me know and I will pass the info along to your giftee/santa.
 
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