Post has been updated below 434PM on 2/28 Two Triple IPAs seem to be lightning rods for drama and general weirdness here in our normally well-behaved San Diego beer scene. The first being Pliny the Younger by Russian River (CityBeat’s Ian Cheesman does a good job of capturing my personal sentiments here), and the second is now Exponential Hoppiness by Alpine Beer Co. Brewer and owner Pat McIlhenney wrote the following via Alpine’s email newsletter earlier today.
“Since I previously stated if I ever saw a growler of “Exponential Hoppiness” for sale on ebay there would never be another growler sold again. Don’t blame me, but you can see who to blame on the above link. As for bottles of “Expo” on ebay, I’m seriously considering never bottling it again. This is not just a personal issue, it’s illegal. The fact that people drove down from LA to make a quick buck and denying the locals the chance to buy some is also just plain wrong.”
He also offers a link for the auction: http://www.ebay.com/csc/i.html?_from=R40&_sacat=0&_nkw=exponential+hoppiness&LH_Complete=1&rt=nc
As of 2/28 the auction has ended on 1/25 with zero bids – indicating that perhaps the growler was never successfully sold.
I attempted to call Pat regarding this and I left a message on 2/28 at 3PM. I’ll post in any updates if they happen, but for now it unfortunately looks like Expo growlers are no more.
Update 2/28 @ 434P
Pat McIlhenney just returned my phone call. I asked him if he wanted to add anything further. “I’ve warned people in the past about this, and it’s more disturbing than anything to see [Alpine] growlers and bottles for sale online.” He continued, “It is illegal for them [the resellers] to do that without a license or paying taxes.” McIlhenney also voiced concern over the quality of his product after dubious shipping and handling. I asked if he’d be open to reconsider this new no-growler rule and potential no-bottle rule for Expo. After a pause, he said “Maybe, but not right now.”
I inquired on the happenings at brewery. According to Pat, the expansion plans are underway. A new lot has been purchased, architectural plans for this upcoming expansion plus two additional expansions have been drawn up, and due diligence such as soil testing has been completed. The missing ingredient for an Alpine expansion? Money. If you are interested in investing in the brewery and helping with the expansion in exchange for a stake in the company, check this out (Advisory: links to .Doc file).
Feel free to join the discussion with our Facebook thread, via twitter, @westcoastersd, or using the comment form below.
Credit and thanks to our twitter followers @San_Diego_Matt and @Tychadelic for tipping me off about this. Also, looks like Adam at BeerPulse scooped us by a few minutes 🙂
Further reading from other sources
BeerPulse
TheFullPint
Brewery Rowe