Others "trying" your homebrew

[MikeP]

There's a guy here that i work with who also brews and we generally exchange bottles from each batch and compare notes and tips. Works out good for both of us. One or two other friends get a bottle now and then, but i know them well enough to know they appreciate the brew adn the effort (and they are not BMC drinkers either!)

 

[GunnerMan]

Yeah I only know of a very few people that actually like beer other than BMC and like homebrew. I quit giving it out, I spend to much time for me to give it to someone who is just gonna dump it down the drain after a sip.

Which is probably what happened to the OP and the guy is just hoping you will forget about it.

 

[KFBass]

I've only given out bottles to two people. One is a co-worker, who i have worked with for a while, and we get alot of time unsupervised to shoot the stuff about brews.

The other was the musical director for a show I did. Opening night he suggested grabbing a drink at the only bar in town that just serves local microbrews. I gave him one of my first ever homebrews, he gave me back a Chocolate Stout from Brooklyn Brewery. New brew buddy. Always has the best feedback.

 

[sulawesi]

I think my favorite experience was when I let my girlfriend's father try one of my homebrews for the first time. I put the bottle on the counter and went to look for an opener. When I came back, he'd already opened it and was pouring it in his used ice tea glass- still had some ice cubes and tea left in it. Apparently it tasted kinda funny.

 

[BigBobsBrews]

I'd recommend sharing a brew or two with the staff at your local homebrew shop; they know there stuff and you can learn a lot (it might even get you a discount if your lucky).

 

[Jaybird]

Skunk a batch and give them that! They will never ask for another beer again. If they say they loved it, you now have a place to get rid of any bad batches. Win-Win


Just a thought.

 

[Eastside Brewer]

If good feedback is what you guys want, enter your beers. Most competitions are relatively cheap and the judges sheets are very valuable for improving.

Just a thought

Eastside

 

[beerjunky828]

I like to give my homebrews to guys that work at a local beer retailer. I recently gave a guy 4 different homebrews and he gave me a Brooklyn Chocolate Stout 07-08. And he gave me a bomber of Kaiser, Avery's Imperial Oktoberfest 2008. That Oktoberfest tasted like a liquid candy lollipop. It was frickin' delicious. He also gave me some empty flip top bottles. Very, very cool guy.

 

[brewagentjay]

I give some to LHBS and co-workers and friends. They seem to drink with in a few days. I only request that they return bottles as I like to re-use and I ask for honest opinion. They know my plans are to open a brew pub so they seem to be okay with those terms. So far I had one guy say the apfelwein was flat, (my mistake I gave an un-carbed one) but he said he liked it. One guy drank three different ones called me on that day and gave opinion from himself and some other guys who he let try on each brew. It was great. He is now asking to buy a case.

So here is my two cents on letting folks sample your beer. Most time invite them over make it easier. Once they have some good beer they'll only ask you for 6ers and they'll be gone that weekend everytime. No worries. I let people sample cause I need the feed back for my future plans. If your brewing for yourself then just have them try them at your house so you get instant feedback. And if some one forgets the and wastes your brew, then as the saying goes "No Soup For You!!!!"

 

[bernerbrau]

This is pretty much just a rant, but I wanted to see if others had the same experiences...I have coworkers that know I brew and are always asking to try one of my brews. I have happily given them a bottle and requested an honest review of it in return. I will ask them the following Monday how the brew was and the response is almost always, "Oh, I forgot to try it, I was really busy this weekend." Months can go by without them trying the beer. I gave someone a brew on xmas and they didn't try it till February. I gave one guy an applewine and he let it sit inside his car for months...throughout the summer! Needless to say when he finally tried it he said it was horrible. I told him sun exposure and heat like that for months on end would do that.

I find this unacceptable. The least they could do if they are going to request one of my beers is drink it. I recently made a batch that myself and others have said is fantastic (Jamil's Evil Twin). The batch came up short so I was reluctant to give one out, but a coworker asked and I obliged. It has been over a month and he's forgotten to try it every time I ask (and I don't ask often). So I have now decided that no one gets to take home samples of my beer. They can sample it with me, but I'm not giving it out anymore.
*End Rant*

Anyone else have similar experiences?

I have the opposite problem. People drink it and go "it's good!" No actual feedback, just trying to be polite and not hurt my feelings.

 

[BlueSunshine]

Thankfully the people I give my beer to actually like beer and aren't scared to try homebrew. I think this might stem from the fact that they know I'm a beer nerd so maybe there's some sort of trust that I know what I'm doing. What they don't know is that I'm always flying by the seat of my pants when brewing.

 

[riored4v]

have to agree. coworkers and other people have asked to try as well, and it seems the same lame excuse of being to busy or "XXXXX came up". basically i'm just giving away beer and losing out on my bottles that i could be giving to real friends that will give me honest answers. i'm very reluctant now in giving out my beers and will usually only let people sample from the tap now.

 

[jjones17]

If I am letting someone try one of my homebrews, it is after I open the cap of the bottle they are holding

Seriously though, if they are interested enough, I have them come over while I'm brewing, racking, or bottling or something. More to see than just "hey, try this beer [that wont likely taste like anything you've ever had] and let me know what you think." I figure, if someone is an acquaintance that I wouldn't have over at my house, then I don't care what they think about my beer.

Same here. I am happy to share, but I do not just simply give some random cretin one of my bottles to take home!

 

[brewagentjay]

So far all who try like.....I do hate to loose bottles so I ask for them back as part of deal for trying my beer. I'm hurting for bottles so I got move up to kegging as I have 4 batches going right now and I only have just under a two cases of empties. I got two cases of bombers, & 5 cases of 12s ready to drink. Plus two cases going to my brother-in-law this weekend.

Man I wish bottles weren't 14.95 a case at LHBS.

Try asking for bottles back when you give them out see if that helps. I have some come back and some not...Some come back plus any other beers they drank that were pop top so that is great.

 

[Rubberband]

I never give anyone an unopened homebrew that has never tried my beer. If they have tried a bottle that I poured and were open to trying more beer, I'll give them a mixed six or something.

The problem is, if you don't let anyone else drink your beer, then you never get second opinions. I like have others try my beer, it gives me a feeling for the beer and if I'm hitting my marks. My boss is very much into my homebrew and gives me pretty taste notes, it's invaluable. The problem is, he now requests that I brew certain beers for him and even goes so far as to purchase the ingredients. It's good practice and I get beer out of the deal but I also loose some experimentation time. I make a Turbodog clone brew every month just for this reason. Don't get me wrong, it's good beer, but I also like stouts and porters which take up time in the fermenters as well.

 

[TheMan]

I have the opposite problem. People drink it and go "it's good!" No actual feedback, just trying to be polite and not hurt my feelings.

I don't know if my problem is worse than this or not lol...I tell everyone when they try a beer of mine to be honest. It's not going to hurt my feelings if they do not like it...that just means more for me! I have a few friends that will provide good feedback, as well as the two guys I usually brew with. But I kinda like to hear from the "average" person (less in the know about beer) what they think. I won't likely turn someone down on sampling my beer, but I now have a blacklisted group of people haha.

As for those that say to invite them to my place for a brew...I'm sure some of you work with people you'd rather not invite to your place. I agree with Rubberband, if you don't let people try your beer you don't get second opinions...I'd rather just give them a bottle, until they don't drink it, then they get no more.

 

[TeufelBrew]

I have little 6 ounce plastic cups for 'testing' while the keg carbs, and if the temp is right. I will offer a small sampler from the tap in one of those cups. If they don't like it, no problem. If they do, I get a real glass for them. Very little from my pipeline gets bottled anymore.

 

[NorCalAngler]

I think the problem isn't the people receiving the beer, it's the silent expectation placed on them. What do we tell everybody here? RDWHAHB or whatever... same thing applies. If you expect an honest review then tell them up front by saying "Hey, this is the first time I've tried this style. Can you tell me what you think next week?" or something that lets them know you expect something in return. Personally, I think asking for the bottles back is in poor taste for anyone other than a fellow homebrewer or close friend.

 

[NewBrewB]

I figure, if someone is an acquaintance that I wouldn't have over at my house, then I don't care what they think about my beer.

My thoughts, EXACTLY! (unless they have kids and the reason I don't invite them over is I don't want my dogs to eat their children)

The main reason I jumped into kegging so quickly was that I was tired of giving away half of my batches. By the time I covered shipping costs on my kits and bottled water, I was into it for about $45 per 5gal batch. As much as I like the joke in 40yr Old Virgin about "It's $9 beer night", I didn't actually want to do that at my house.

You can buy a case of San Miguel (small bottles) and use THOSE for samplers.

 

[OsbornBrewing]

I have not run into that problem at all.
My dad even went to judging school to give me better feedback. I haven't felt comfortable giving beer to co-workers so I don't have experience there. I think you should label differently or provide instructions.
My cousin handed out pints of Apricot Ale at his wedding and he printed on the label: This is a homebrew beer, it is alive. Store in a dark cool place for 30 days. Refrigerate and pouring instructions. It was really well received and a great idea I have copied. I include my email address and facebook and people drop me notes from time to time.
You could do the same on a 3 x 5 card punch a hole and slide them around the neck. When you hand them out say something like This will be frshest for the next week, I'll want to know what you think then, or I will talk to you Thursday about your opinion. If I have people over I let them know I need pop top bottles and they will bring 6ers of whatever they can find, if they drink my beer they leave me theirs, if they don't they have some on hand they will like, win-win.

As far as people not tryin the beer, I'd say they aren't interested to begin with. Like the girl that says I'll call ya later... They are probably feigning interest because they think it is polite and easier then saying no. Don't press them on the issue, but don't brew anything more for them either.

 

[Beernik]

I've given homebrew to coworkers, family, and friends before. My only grief is getting bottles back. Some never return them. Others plant them right in the middle of my desk at work as if I've been sitting there all day drinking.

Thanks dude. That'll help me get a raise.

 

[Beernik]

I've given homebrew to coworkers, family, and friends before. My only grief is getting bottles back. Some never return them. Others plant them right in the middle of my desk at work as if I've been sitting there all day drinking.

Thanks dude. That'll help me get a raise.

 

[as_saturn_ascends]

Hey Man! Make labels! Add a drink by date to the label and problem solved! It will provide them with more info on the beer too.

 

[badhabit]

My experiance is that most folks have not developed much of a critical palet and their feed back is usally kind but not much help. The most constructive critisim I get is from other homebrewers who have some understanding of what they are drinking and what it took to get it to their lips.

 

[slacker190]

Everyone that tries any of my brews thinks the beer is far too heavy. They are absolutely disgusted that you cant see through the pint glass because the beer isn't water-clear. Also, the thought of having yeast sediment in the bottom of the bottle makes them want to throw up. Now I only give samples to other homebrewers and people who enjoy a good craft beer.

 

[rustynuts]

I have given out lots of homebrew to co-workers, a few have been slow to drink which can be irritating. I have had pretty good luck I guess, for the most part, most people will give me back my bottles after the weekend. I have never been given a bad review yet...I attribute this to the fact that it's free

 

[KevinW]

++1 for letting your LHBS staff try a beer, even if you lose a bottle or two. I give out few samples but I always give instructions like do NOT drink the sediment unless you have constipation issues.
My nephew-in-law(??) learned a valuable lesson that night, and next day too He also did not listen when I told him they were 6.8% not 3.2% ABV.
I get great feedback from him now

 

[BadKarma]

I've had these same experiences, so I have devised this solution.

I only provide samples on brew day, bottle day or racking day.
They must show up and earn the sample. (wash something, assist with something)
I still bottle and I bottle with swing tops, those bottles never leave the property.

 

[TomA]

I've had a generally positive experience with sampling and bottle return. Only had a couple folks wait months on a brew, and I have not had to do much more than say "Sure, I'll try and remember to get you a bottle" if a request for a new batch sneaks in there. Absent-minded is as absent-minded receives.

There have been a couple times where bottles came back unwashed but a strident "WTFDOOD" resolved that quick enough.

 

[TheMan]

I think the problem isn't the people receiving the beer, it's the silent expectation placed on them. What do we tell everybody here? RDWHAHB or whatever... same thing applies. If you expect an honest review then tell them up front by saying "Hey, this is the first time I've tried this style. Can you tell me what you think next week?" or something that lets them know you expect something in return. Personally, I think asking for the bottles back is in poor taste for anyone other than a fellow homebrewer or close friend.

I don't completely agree with this...If someone says to me, "Wow, you brew your own beer, I'd like to try some." How could you not assume that means they want to drink your beer and let you know what they think? I suppose it is a silent expectation, but really, why would I think otherwise? I wouldn't tell someone I want to try their beer and then just sit it somewhere for months...I would rather them tell me they tried it and thought it was horrible and dumped it out than not drink it.

I do like your idea though, of being more upfront about what my asusmption is. I guess I'll just ask them upfront, "Are you actually going to drink it or let it sit around?"

I don't think asking for bottles back is poor taste, it's a form of recycling. I just let people know that I reuse bottles so if they feel like recycling through me they can bring it on back. Most people that do actually try my beer bring the bottles back. These people regularly get to sample my homebrew.