The Wonderful World of Beer Trading.
Ever want to try a Pliny the Elder/Younger? Darklord? How about an Imperial Stout Trooper? Alesmith? Westy 12? Or maybe even something as close as Atlanta’s SweetWater Brewery Beers?
Well sadly they don’t get distributed down here (South Fla.), or they are limited releases. So unless you travel A LOT, and bring back stuff the only way to score this stuff is through the trading community.
If you follow me on Twitter (@dosbeerigos) you have probably noticed that I have been doing a lot of trading lately. Its very addicting. Why would I want to trade for beer? Well it’s really to spread the beers that we get here locally that aren’t available throughout the US, and try some beers that we don’t get here. Pretty cool huh? Wanna know how to get started?
While I taught myself how to trade about two months ago, I did have the help of a lot of blogs. Sadly, none were really complete, or if they were it was within several posts. This post is going to be as complete as I can possibly make it!
Trading: Getting Started
Ok, first I recommend setting up an account at Beer Advocate or RateBeer. Both sites have active trading communities that are very good. The accounts are free, and allow you to post on their forums and search the reviews of thousands of beers. Although both of these sites are great don’t limit yourself to them. You can trade in person with someone or with a friend from Twitter/Facebook. The sky is the limit.
Trading: Gots and Wants
Next your going to want to take a trip to your local beer shop, and make notes of some of the local and “nice” bottles you can get. Compile a list of these; this is your “Got” list. Your “Got” list is just a list of beers that are easy for you to obtain. When people are searching for a beer like DogfishHead 120min or Cigar City Jai Alai if they are on your list they can contact you for a trade. Once your “Got” list is filled in (try for at least 50 different beers), then fill out your “Want” list. Wants are simply what beers you are looking for. Not sure? Well check out reviews from the sites or blogs (like mine) and see if anything appeals to you. With your “Wants” and “Gots” filled out your ready for the next step.
Trading: The Contact and the Deal
Contact is the easiest, simply look for someone that posted they are looking for something you have, or start a post of your own stating you are “ISO” (in search of) a particular beer. Another idea is that you can post a thread with what you have to trade “FT” (for trade). Once contact is made then the two traders will strike a deal over Private Message, Email, or even Phone. The deal should consist of the following; value of the beer traded, quantity or total value, shipping date, and exchanging private information (address, phone, email).
Trading: Value of Beer
Yep, this is sticky, many people have found it easy to trade simply “$4$” (Dollar for Dollar) leaving a fair exchange of beer on both sides. Although when you start looking into older bottles some traders will begin to talk “R4R” (Rare for Rare) or ask for more in exchange of a “rare” bottle. Well I personally only trade $4$, I don’t see it worth while to trade R4R because whatever beer I am trying to get is rare for me, and the beer im trading is the same for the other party. Word to the wise unless your going after a 2007 Dark Lord or a beer that is imported (ie BrewDog’s Tactical Nuclear Penguin), stick to $4$ trading there will be less discussion over what is fair and not fair.
Trading: Packing Your Box
The deal is done, the day has come to pack your box of beer. Wait how do I ship beer again? Well, first find a box that is big enough. You will be packing each beer individually so they do not break by hitting one another in transit. I personally use a gallon zip-lock bags to pack each bottle (if it breaks it wont spill), and then wrap them in bubble wrap or news paper. Make sure to add additional padding around week parts of the bottle (ie neck, cap, and base) I would recommend at least a good size layer of newspaper or bubblewrap on the bottom and top of the box to add extra protection. Once the bottles are packed load them into the box and fill the extra spaces with newspaper or packing nuts. You don’t want a bunch of stuff moving around. Also you might want to think about throwing some pennies or a few grains of rice in the bottom of the box to cover up any ‘sloshing’ sound. Some boxes slosh more than others, this will help mask that noise.
Trading: Shipping
Now your box is ready to go, take it to your local UPS or FedEx store, or simply print your shipping label at home. DO NOT USE USPS!!!! It is illegal to ship liquids and esp. alcohol through USPS, don’t do it! Many people recommend always printing your labels, as it will save you some money and hassle. If you don’t print the postage out at home the attendant is probably going to ask you at the store what you are shipping. Please don’t say “Im shipping Beer!” Tell them that your shipping “Collectable Glass”, “A Lava Lamp”, or even “Yeast Samples”. Shipping will average around $12+ dollars. Get a tracking number and email it to the recipient of the box.
Trading: Broken Package
If your package broke in transit, then it is your responsibility to make the trade right. If it is sent to the wrong address you are responsible for it as well. While this is sort-a an unspoken rule to trading a lot of people follow it.
Trading: Receiving your package
ENJOY! Your trade box is now in! I personally like to drop the send a message letting them know that I received everything and the condition of the package, but you don’t have to. Contact is just out of common courtesy. Update your profile on the website you used to trade with the handle of the trader. This will work as a “feedback” system for future traders.
Ok, so those are the basics to trading. As you can see communication is really key for a good trade. Below are some additional details on specifics.
Extras/Goodies; Extras are often thrown in the box with trade; these are not usually discussed in the trade. They can consist of anything that has to do with beer; glassware, shirts, coasters, key chains, homebrew, or even some local beers. This is sort-a icing on the cake, and a great way to show your appreciation for the industry and to your trader. Typically you want to add things on the other persons “want” list but if not local beer is never frowned upon.
Growler Trading; These are setup just like above but the shipping will want to be handled differently. First you are dealing with a time sensitive item so ship soon after purchase if possible, properly sealed a growler will last about a month unopened. You will want to duct tape the lid on, then wrap the growler in bubble wrap. Cover it with a garbage bag (unused please! lol) seal the bag closed with more tape. Bubble-wrap it again, and then box it. Once boxed put that box into a garbage bag and seal it, then box the smaller box in a larger box. So it is something like this;
Growler->Bubble Wrap->Bag->Box->Bag->Box
Why so much packing? Well growlers typically are easier to break then some bottles, and if a bottle breaks its only 12oz of beer, a growler could be as much as a gallon of beer!
Beer it Forward (“BIF”); Ever seen the movie “Pay it Forward”, yah I know it sucked, but this is the Beer version of it. BIF’s are usually formed and people sign up for them. They usually consist of themes like Beer&Music, Secret Santa, or SuperBowlTime. The details are usually explained out in the sign up page. There are two types of shipping methods, chain or shotgun.
Chain: This is like a standard chain letter. Shipper-A will ship the 1st box of beer out to Person-B. Once the box is received Person-B ships to his “target” Person-C, and so on. These usually take a pretty long time tom complete.
Shotgun: Everyone is given 3 dates; the sign up close date, the buying dates, and then the shipping date. All participants ship within the shipping window. This allows the boxes to all arrive to the targets around the same time. Shotgun style is used more because of how fast it can be completed.
A word to the wise, I just completed my first BIF, they can get pretty expensive, but the rewards are usually up to par. This is more of a gamble than anything else, but they are a lot of fun!
Lottery it Forward (“LIF”); These are more like guessing games. Someone will set up a LIF with a question like what is my dog’s favorite toy? The person that guesses the right answer wins a prize that the originator sends out. Usually the only hook is that the winner then has to turn around and start a LIF of their own.
Growler it Forward (“GIF”); This is the same general concept of the BIF but instead your shipping a Growler. Keep in mind the additional packaging for these fragile items.
Well that pretty much covers Beer Trading. I’ll leave everyone with a listing of some common acronyms that are used within the trading community. Some were mentioned above already. These change all the time, people make new ones and so forth;
- $4$: Dollar for Dollar
- BA: BeerAdvocate OR Barrel Aged
- ATM: At the moment
- BM: Beer Mail
- BIF: Beer It Forward
- CCB: Cigar City Brewing
- DL: Three Floyds Dark Lord
- DFH: Dogfish Head
- FFF: Three Floyds
- FT: For Trade
- DLD: Dark Lord Day
- D Day: Darkness Day
- FBS: Founders Breakfast Stout
- FWIW: For what it’s worth
- GABF: Great American Beer Fest (Takes place in Denver, CO)
- GI: Goose Island
- GIF: Growler It Forward
- HOTD: Hair Of The Dog
- IIRC: If I remember correctly
- IMHO: In My Humble Opinion
- IMO: In My Opinion
- IPA: India Pale Ale
- ISO: In Search Of
- IST: Imperial Stout Trooper
- KBS: Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout
- KTG: Kate the Great
- JP: Jolly Pumpkin
- LA: Lost Abbey
- LIF: Lottery It Forward
- NBO: New BIF Opportunity
- PA: Pale Ale
- PTE: Pliny The Elder
- PTY: Pliny The Younger
- RIS: Russian Imperial Stout
- RR: Russian River
- R4R: Rare for Rare
- SA: Sam Adams
- SC: Sexual Chocolate
- ST: Southern Tier
- Westy: Westvleteren
- GD: Great Divide
- GL: Great Lakes Brewing Co.
- CL: Captain Lawrence
- APA: American Pale Ale
OK, well my head hurts from all this. If you have any questions please feel free to email me at Dosbeerigos@gmail.com If I don’t know the answer I try to find it for you.
*Props go to ShogoKawada from BeerAdvocate.com for adding some additional tips.
