DraftMag: Just Drink It Already!

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JulianB1

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Thoughts on this?

http://draftmag.com/features/just-drink-it-already/

I think the quote from Vinnie at RR is pretty on the money. Of course, it's nothing that hasn't been said by numerous posters on here before.

“There are collectors who hang on to their bottles too long,” he says. “I’d rather drink a cellared beer while it’s still climbing the mountain as opposed to when it’s coming down the other side.” His advice: Drink sooner rather than later.

I found the discussion on the psychology of beer cellaring/saving/hoarding to be interesting, and something elevating the article a bit beyond the usual arguments for and against cellaring that occur online frequently.

Psychology plays a devastatingly vital role in your inability to open a rare beer. Studies on intertemporal choice seem to indicate a carpe diem attitude toward reward: Economists and psychologists have shown humans place higher value on getting something today than, say, in a year’s time; that is, given the choice, you’d probably take $100 today over $100 a year from today.

Why do beer geeks not feel the same way when staring at a rare bottle? Dr. William Goldstein of the University of Chicago’s department of psychology believes it stems from a fear of “closing the account”—that is, when it’s gone, it’s gone. It seems the length in which we delay draining a bottle increasingly erodes our certainty of a special moment. So, maybe we’re headed for a Miles Raymond-esque breakdown after all? Or, maybe not—if we follow Spilman’s lead.

I'll admit I am frequently guilty of this and it's probably the biggest reason I'll think about opening a bottle or bringing it to a tasting and then back off. There's always this voice in the back of my head saying "But then what happens if an occasion comes up where I really want to have one of these to open, and they are all gone?" Lately I've got a lot better about just saying "**** it" and drinking whatever I feel like though.

The story at the end is kind of "interesting" too:

ANTI-AGING: Earlier this year, Arizona beer distributor Pitcher of Nectar experimented with the release of rare Cantillon lambics. To squelch the frenzy incited by past releases—when a few beer geeks gobbled up bottles as they hit shelves—owner Tony Piccini made a controversial call to limit the entire allotment to a few on-site tastings at beer bars. “I really wanted to reach more people than the hoarders,” reasons Piccini. “My intent was to approach local businesses and get people to actually visit these locations to try out this fantastic beer.” The experiment was mostly a success, but serious beer collectors were incensed that Piccini had snatched control of when and where Cantillon could be consumed.

I'd love to see some more details about this. Is any of this available online? It would be amusing to see some "serious beer collectors" whining about how the distributor chose to distribute the beer as he, rather than they, saw fit.
 
He also posted an addendum to it:
http://draftmag.com/beereditor/notes-just-drink-it-already/

We’ve all seen “pictures of your latest haul!” posted on beer rating threads, Facebook, Reddit, etc. The undertones of one-upmanship can be a bit exhausting. Am I, a fellow beer enthusiast, excited that you were finally able to score a few bottles of Cigar City Hunahpu? Sure! Do I think you’re massively awesome because, through trickery or other nonsense, you were able to score a case or two? No. Cellaring culture has many merits, but hoarding culture is an unfortunate offshoot.

Yep.
 
When my refrigerator is my cellar, beer goes quick and nothing gets aged beyond 6 months.
We are the same. I don't hold on to anything. I buy beer because I want to drink it now rather than later. If someone sends me a nice bottle, I assume that they want me to actually drink it and enjoy it. I rotate my beer stock with the quickness.
 
When my refrigerator is my cellar, beer goes quick and nothing gets aged beyond 6 months.

We are the same. I don't hold on to anything. I buy beer because I want to drink it now rather than later. If someone sends me a nice bottle, I assume that they want me to actually drink it and enjoy it. I rotate my beer stock with the quickness.


All of this. I aged Abacus until Sucaba came out, drank them both, and sighed deeply.

Mini-fridge is empty, buy beer, chill beer, drink beer, repeat.

Amazingly, my dick has stayed the same size and none of my beer friends chide me for not "bringing the rar". Life is good.
 
I'm trying to get there. Trying to transfer my collecting mentality from consumables to durable goods (i.e. collecting beer to collecting glassware and ****. There's stuff in the "cellar" that's gonna be terrible by the time I drink it, and I don't even want to think about how much money I'll be pissing away this way.
 
I'm trying to get there. Trying to transfer my collecting mentality from consumables to durable goods (i.e. collecting beer to collecting glassware and ****. There's stuff in the "cellar" that's gonna be terrible by the time I drink it, and I don't even want to think about how much money I'll be pissing away this way.
I love you. Happy birthday.
 
I love you. Happy birthday.

love-boat-isaac-o.gif
 
I'd love to see some more details about this. Is any of this available online? It would be amusing to see some "serious beer collectors" whining about how the distributor chose to distribute the beer as he, rather than they, saw fit.
It isn't that particular incident but years back there was some bitching from Twin Cities BA's over that same decision applied to Bourbon County variants. Arguments ranged from "Now we have to pay bar markup!" to "I am entitled to personally own bottles". It died down pretty quick when the level headed MN posters saw the results.
 
It isn't that particular incident but years back there was some bitching from Twin Cities BA's over that same decision applied to Bourbon County variants. Arguments ranged from "Now we have to pay bar markup!" to "I am entitled to personally own bottles". It died down pretty quick when the level headed MN posters saw the results.
Yeah I remember that...that was for Cherry Rye right? I'm not sure that ever hit shelves but bars for sure had it.
 
It isn't that particular incident but years back there was some bitching from Twin Cities BA's over that same decision applied to Bourbon County variants. Arguments ranged from "Now we have to pay bar markup!" to "I am entitled to personally own bottles". It died down pretty quick when the level headed MN posters saw the results.
I thought that was a fine idea...it was much easier to order a bottle at a bar than try to hunt the stuff down all over town. Sheesh, go out with a friend, get a bottle and some food. BFD. If I remember right, the bar prices weren't even that bad, and the place we went to to get Cherry Rye also had bottles of Bramble and all the sours.
 
I'm trying to get there. Trying to transfer my collecting mentality from consumables to durable goods (i.e. collecting beer to collecting glassware and ****. There's stuff in the "cellar" that's gonna be terrible by the time I drink it, and I don't even want to think about how much money I'll be pissing away this way.
Yeah, I have a bit of a cellar, but that's because I like to have a "library" of beer that I can tap into depending on the mood, event, or meal.
 
Thoughts on this?

http://draftmag.com/features/just-drink-it-already/

I think the quote from Vinnie at RR is pretty on the money. Of course, it's nothing that hasn't been said by numerous posters on here before.



I found the discussion on the psychology of beer cellaring/saving/hoarding to be interesting, and something elevating the article a bit beyond the usual arguments for and against cellaring that occur online frequently.



I'll admit I am frequently guilty of this and it's probably the biggest reason I'll think about opening a bottle or bringing it to a tasting and then back off. There's always this voice in the back of my head saying "But then what happens if an occasion comes up where I really want to have one of these to open, and they are all gone?" Lately I've got a lot better about just saying "**** it" and drinking whatever I feel like though.

The story at the end is kind of "interesting" too:



I'd love to see some more details about this. Is any of this available online? It would be amusing to see some "serious beer collectors" whining about how the distributor chose to distribute the beer as he, rather than they, saw fit.
It absolutely bugs the hell out of me how much Cantillon and 3F is just sitting in people's basements. If I want to go buy one bottle to try, nope, can't, some dude who has 100 bottles of the stuff already bought the store out.
 
If someone takes issue with my cellaring choices then they'll also take issue with Kulminator's. I think that's a good place to be.

Does that mean I (or the general public) can come over and buy your aged lambic?
 
I used to thinking buying more than I could possibly consume and cellaring it all was a good idea.
Now my dream is this:
When my refrigerator is my cellar, beer goes quick and nothing gets aged beyond 6 months.

I hope to get there by summer's end. Fresh stuff is in the fridge now, and I will be rotating in and drinking some of those "adjunct stouts" that, I agree, do not last.
 
Does that mean I (or the general public) can come over and buy your aged lambic?
Kulminator actually doesn't have a ton of lambic on their menu. Which is funny because part of their cellar is visible through a window, and you can clearly see lambics not on the menu (like Lou Pepe's). It's kinda nice though, you can get that stuff elsewhere.
 
Kulminator actually doesn't have a ton of lambic on their menu. Which is funny because part of their cellar is visible through a window, and you can clearly see lambics not on the menu (like Lou Pepe's). It's kinda nice though, you can get that stuff elsewhere.
Can you ask for stuff not on the menu? Is that bar that's outside of Brussels that's only open on Sundays (clearly I can't remember the name) a better place for aged lambic?
 
Can you ask for stuff not on the menu? Is that bar that's outside of Brussels that's only open on Sundays (clearly I can't remember the name) a better place for aged lambic?
The best place for aged lambic is De Heeren. Grote Dorst is good but the menu is small. There are also a few random spots that have some gems, though I think they're drying up slowly but surely.
 
The best place for aged lambic is De Heeren. Grote Dorst is good but the menu is small. There are also a few random spots that have some gems, though I think they're drying up slowly but surely.
Yeah, just checked out some reviews and that seems about right.

I'm hoping to head back in a year or two.
 
When my refrigerator is my cellar, beer goes quick and nothing gets aged beyond 6 months.

I agree with this. My fridge is the only place I have beer, and only buy one of anything rare I can get my hands on. I would rather let other people get a chance to try it, as opposed to letting a case go bad in my basement.
 
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