I've heard a lot about this beer but never had it or even seen it - never really looked for it either though. But there it was, sitting in the cooler at Albertson's in Cathcart on highway 9 just North of 180th. Grabbed one & left several behind. BTW - this Albertson's blew me away with their selection & prices. First time there and very impressed. Will definitely be back.
It's been sitting on shelves collecting dust thanks to the high price tag. I haven't seen it for less than $20. It's a tasty beer, though.
This Albertson's had it discounted by $2 plus another 10% off w/purchase of any 4 which brought it down to about 16.80 more or less. I don't remember the exact price.
As Driftwood is a local brewery for me here in Victoria , "Singularity" release dates , avalability at certain liquor stores mine "Liquor Plus on Douglas" are big news to us beer geek's even at the unfriendly price of $11.99 for a 650 ml/bomber bottle. To here of it "sitting on shelves collecting dust thanks to the high price tag"in Washington State is wrong , go out and buy yourself some , you will not be dissapointed and if your into cellaring look at it as a great investment !! (best beer buzz ever, my first 5)
Yes, it is a good beer. The problem though is that while $11.99 wouldn't deter any of us from buying a barrel aged Imp stout, with import prices, Singularity is $20/bottle here. That's a very steep price for one bottle of beer. "Investment" is a word that is so hit and miss in the beer cellaring world. So many releases don't pan out for those of us who are looking for that future whale that an expensive beer from a relatively unheard of brewery isn't going to move us to spend that kind of money for such a question mark.
So. The consensus is it's a good beer. The question is if it's worth the $20 going price. At roughly $17, that puts it at the same price point as a B-Bomb. I'm satisfied. Thanks for all the input.
Best beer ever out of BC IMHO. But I get the $20 being steep. There is none in BC as it sold mighty fast
I genuinely don't understand the whole money thing. How is 20$ infinitely more than 12$? Abyss is like 30$ in Canada and I saw bitches brew for 42$ last year in BC. If you aren't ok with spending 20$ on a beer, you shouldn't be spending 12$ on a beer. Don't buy mikkeller, de molen, de struise, Firestone xv, cascade, etc. it's all perceived value. Wine is considered a luxury while beer is the every day drink. If you believe either of those lies, why are you on beer advocate? no one is ripping you off with singularity, trust me. With that said, whole foods will be selling singularity for 15.99 all day tomorrow I apologize for any sense of hostility.i just genuinely do not understand the comments about a beer being "worth it" for a few dollars more than hell shire 2. As Podunkparte said, so many unheard of breweries release beers that don't pan out. hellshire 2 was 14.99 and an infected mess. Was that too much money? Maybe I'm just so used to bruery reserve prices that 20$ for a limited release seems normal to me.
$20 is a lot of money to some people. It took a while for me to break the $20 threshold for a single bottle of beer. I remember standing in line for Wisdom Seeker bottles and wondered out loud why some people stood in line so long just to buy one or two. The guy next to me said that it's because that's all they can afford. Point: it's easy to forget that not everyone has as much money as you do. Cool! I was at Whole Foods in Lynnwood today and didn't see any out - and I looked for it this time. Do you have to ask for it? Will definitely be there to snag another couple if I get the chance. Which Whole Foods has it for sure?
It should just be out in the open, that location may not have it. I've seen it at the Bellevue and Redmond location. Didnt the Lynwood location just open? That might be why they don't have it.
Whole foods Roosevelt, whole foods Westlake and whole foods Roosevelt are the only ones that have it old cellar dweller too. May 20th only though! Sunday! Regarding money though, I still believe its about perception and priorities. Why do some poor people have 200$ sneakers and some rich people shop at Payless. I guess I just can't get past the current zeitgeist that wine is absolutely allowed to be expensive but beer must be less thn 15$.
I assume you've read Grape vs. Grain by Charles Bamforth. You sound like kindred spirits. Would be fun to continue this discussion over a bottle or three.
I think some people are poor because they make decisions like buying $200 sneakers when they can't really afford them, and some are rich in large part because they make frugal decisions like shopping at Payless. I'm in between, so I just do whatever the hell I want and hope it works out.
Singularity is much cheaper in BC. There's at least a 50-60% mark up here in the States, and to be honest, there are far better beers for the price tag. But yeah, it's everywhere around Seattle.
Acquiring Driftwood products Step One: importer buys the beer from Driftwood Step two: Driftwood palletizes and packages beer Step three: put pallet on boat to vancouver step four: truck pallet from vancouver to border step five: pay customs broker to negotiate and handle all paperwork step six: pay US taxes and duty to bring alcohol over the border step seven: pay WA state MORE taxes for greater than 10% abv beer tax/non-WA beer tax step eight: distributor buys beer from importer step nine: retailer buys beer from distributor step ten: you buy beer from retailer Acquiring beer from American brewing and Boundary bay brewing step 1: retailer buys the beer from American or Boundary bay brewing step 2: Brewery delivers beer to retailer step 3: you buy beer from retailer "far better beers for the price tag" is a value statement. No one is trying to say because it's expensive, it's the best beer ever. It just takes a lot to bring the beer into the states. THAT is why it is expensive. Although i'd love to know which beers you think are "far better" that are commercially available in bottles in WA.
Haha, right... that's what I'm saying. It's obviously pricier because of the import taxes and fees. The cost of the product makes up such a small amount of the price tag. This is true for anything that's imported, and I understand it, I just think there are better valued BA stouts out there, both for cost and taste... Abyss, Bbomb, Parabola, Labyrinth, Serpent's Stout etc., not to mention to countless other styles without the heavy markup.
Singularity is amazing. It's just not the best option in the Northwest as far as barrel aged stout (in my opinion, and it seems to be a consensus). We are a bit spoiled in Seattle, and have a bunch of options to choose from. In Political Economy, a connoisseur good is one that depends more on quality than price. A slight increase in quality can lead to a dramatic increase in price, and people will still pay it. However, if there is a higher quality product, people will be attracted to that. Due to import taxes and such, Singularity is not the top of the style, and is heavily priced compared to other beers of the style. It simply can't get away with it. That said, it is still an amazing beer, and if it is still on the shelves in June, I might pick up another.
I liked it but I think it'll be a lot better after a year or so of aging. Still tasted like everything needed more time to meld together, especially when had alongside a number of other BA stouts.
