Selling our Non-flagship beer (and not using your taproom to do it)

[hylander0]

So I have to ask everyone here, what is the most difficult part of getting your limited edition, limit quantity beer out to the public restaurants and bar (in keg packaging)?

Smuttynose seems to have addressed a pain point for them by introducing the beer vault https://smuttynose.com/smutty-beer-vault-live/ allowing establishment to get "Dibs" on beer before is ready for market.

So is the sales aspect the most difficult with trying to move these new/short lived products?

[hylander0]

The reason I bring this up is because as some might be aware of I live in Cleveland, Ohio where we will be hosting the RNC

Using the RNC as an example there are many breweries that ware working hard at producing limited edition brew specifically for the event. Some going all out and packing them with exclusive partnership with retailers and other are just going to have them in their taproom.

Many wouldn't mind brewing larger batches and moving those extras/exclusive kegs to accounts across town.

Your beer is your Craft and it should be freed from the taproom with ease.

[Junkyard]

We sell everything in our taproom but it seems like one of the biggest constraints on releasing one off beers seems like it is usually can/bottle designs labels, and tap handle designs, also registration for new beers. It adds up to be a lot of extra work to design and get tap handles made even for a beer you will be releasing in kegs only.

[hylander0]

The limiting factor is your TTB approval, packaging and marketing materials. I can certainly appreciate the business decision of not doing it this way with the overhead. They is probably why Smuttynose is only selling kegs and using a company "seasonal" tap handle for these brews.

What Smuttynose is doing has got me interested. People always want to try new and different beers, especially if they are brewed by a recognizable brew co. Certainly this isn't for everyone, Smuttynose is a big player in the industry

I am curious and who I am targeting for this would be a brewery with over 1000 BBL/yr. They claimed they sold out (spoken for rather) of their first beer within hours, before it was even brewed.

Would such brewery be interested in doing what Smuttynose is doing or is it just gimmicky?