2014 Four Roses LE Single Barrel

[OscarV]

I just got shut out again by my favorite retailer in Saline.

He said that the MI LCC came back with "out of stock" again.

OK, I am off to Craigslist to purchase a few bottles from the many KY sellers.

[Josh]

Bonne chance, Oscar. I decided to skip this year's. Too much work for a yeast strain I'm not a fan of.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk

[OscarV]

Yeah, I remember that F yeast I tried at your place, it wasn't good but like you know I am a nerdy collector, I gotta have it.

BTW, I have tried buying some other stuff from Craigslist and I asked the guy if he was on SB.com.

He never answered after asking him a second time.

Is Craigslist not cool?

Does a person have to be anonymous to sell on Craigslist if they participate on SB.com?

I don't get it.

[NWBourbonDrinker]

You cannot please everyone. Get used to it. Those to who call stores and expect to get "calls" are the ones who inevidibly miss out. As a retailer, your choice is to sell to people who actually show up in the store or those who try to phone jokey it. I certainly wouldn't sell anything to anyone who doesn't have the wherewithal to at least get their butt into my store.

You know what's funny about those damn, dirty speculators? NO ONE ever complains when they're able to find something they couldn't despite all their efforts and positive intentions. I haven't had a single person get pissed at me for selling them something they've been trying to find for months, perhaps years. You simply have no idea how the free market works if you EXPECT to buy anything for whatever price you think is "fair." So when the crash comes, find a spec and give them a nice, warm hug as they'e the ones putting up the risk and capital to put a bottom in prices.

Ahh, and thus we find out who the speculators are.

[joboyd]

A little surprised by the allocation issues. My bottle is roughly 5k out of 7,124. That's a pretty significant "limited" release. I wonder if some is being held back to distribute throughout the summer in anticipation of the Small Batch LE this fall.

[callmeox]

I must have misread because I saw that some people have gotten bottles through here.

Per the membership agreement, buying and selling of alcoholic beverages is prohibited on Straightbourbon.com.

[HighInTheMtns]

I have been bugging a couple of retailers in Saline.

For the last three weeks they have placed an order for me but MI LCC keeps coming back with "Out Of Stock".

I guess Washtenaw county isn't metro enough for them.

A little surprised by the allocation issues. My bottle is roughly 5k out of 7,124. That's a pretty significant "limited" release. I wonder if some is being held back to distribute throughout the summer in anticipation of the Small Batch LE this fall.

It's actually much smaller than last year. Guessing your bottle is high 4k because supposedly only 5k were for the domestic market.

[portugieser]

PSA to my Chicago friends. The 2014 LE Single Barrel has hit Binnys.

[Tony]

Two more bottles of this today. Might have to crack one this weekend.

Best regards, Tony

[bicktrav]

Found it at a store here in Los Angeles. I was so excited until I saw that the price was $200. At that price I couldn't do it.

[OscarV]

Two more bottles of this today. Might have to crack one this weekend.

Best regards, Tony

Really?!?

Two more?

You are killing me, MI LCC won't ship them to Washtenaw county, I keep getting "Out Of Stock" from the retailers.

[Quantum]

You cannot please everyone. Get used to it. Those to who call stores and expect to get "calls" are the ones who inevidibly miss out. As a retailer, your choice is to sell to people who actually show up in the store or those who try to phone jokey it. I certainly wouldn't sell anything to anyone who doesn't have the wherewithal to at least get their butt into my store.

You know what's funny about those damn, dirty speculators? NO ONE ever complains when they're able to find something they couldn't despite all their efforts and positive intentions. I haven't had a single person get pissed at me for selling them something they've been trying to find for months, perhaps years. You simply have no idea how the free market works if you EXPECT to buy anything for whatever price you think is "fair." So when the crash comes, find a spec and give them a nice, warm hug as they'e the ones putting up the risk and capital to put a bottom in prices.

I think you are confusing speculators and flippers. Buying a couple cases of any Four Roses LE to resell later that week does not count as speculating, as there is already a demand for it. You are just charging a premium to people who were an hour late to pick a bottle up, which is not really much of a service. You are causing a temporary artificial spike in demand, reducing available supply, then taking advantage of the increase in prices.

If you are buying them to hold for an extended period of time, you are reducing the current supply and driving current prices up. You think you are doing everyone a favor by risking your capital while you hold it, but I don't think there is really a demand for this kind of investment. There are not hordes of people saying "There is so much unsold bourbon on the market, I wish someone would come in and invest some capital to purchase it!". This is a market where current demand outstrips supply, so the exact opposite is true.

I'm not saying flippers and speculators are evil, but stop kidding yourself and pretending you are doing anyone any favors. You are exploiting the system for a profit, plain and simple.

[OscarV]

You cannot please everyone. Get used to it. Those to who call stores and expect to get "calls" are the ones who inevidibly miss out. As a retailer, your choice is to sell to people who actually show up in the store or those who try to phone jokey it. I certainly wouldn't sell anything to anyone who doesn't have the wherewithal to at least get their butt into my store.

You know what's funny about those damn, dirty speculators? NO ONE ever complains when they're able to find something they couldn't despite all their efforts and positive intentions. I haven't had a single person get pissed at me for selling them something they've been trying to find for months, perhaps years. You simply have no idea how the free market works if you EXPECT to buy anything for whatever price you think is "fair." So when the crash comes, find a spec and give them a nice, warm hug as they'e the ones putting up the risk and capital to put a bottom in prices.

I gotta agree with this guy.

But my problem is my retailers never come up with anything I want.

[sutton]

I'm not saying flippers and speculators are evil, but stop kidding yourself and pretending you are doing anyone any favors. You are exploiting the system for a profit, plain and simple.

+1 and the reason why I have no problem with either the distillery or the retailer charging whatever they feel is the market-clearing price ... the problem is exacerbated by uneven distribution. Speculating and flipping is an arbitrage opportunity that will be eliminated when the first sale is priced appropriately for the demand at the time.

[OscarV]

Or as they say, the 2nd mouse gets the cheese.

[Restaurant man]

You cannot please everyone. Get used to it. Those to who call stores and expect to get "calls" are the ones who inevidibly miss out. As a retailer, your choice is to sell to people who actually show up in the store or those who try to phone jokey it. I certainly wouldn't sell anything to anyone who doesn't have the wherewithal to at least get their butt into my store.

You know what's funny about those damn, dirty speculators? NO ONE ever complains when they're able to find something they couldn't despite all their efforts and positive intentions. I haven't had a single person get pissed at me for selling them something they've been trying to find for months, perhaps years. You simply have no idea how the free market works if you EXPECT to buy anything for whatever price you think is "fair." So when the crash comes, find a spec and give them a nice, warm hug as they'e the ones putting up the risk and capital to put a bottom in prices.

So your a flipper and quite rude. You may be a cashier in a liquor store. If so, enjoying a modest employee discount on the "rare" bottles you rush to the internet to flip. What else would you like to tell us about yourself?

[HighInTheMtns]

So your a flipper and quite rude. You may be a cashier in a liquor store. If so, enjoying a modest employee discount on the "rare" bottles you rush to the internet to flip. What else would you like to tell us about yourself?

The liquor store cashier who talks shit about his potential customers at the same time as dipping in the black market is one of my favorite characters.

Know why they don't get their butts in your store? I bet it's because you already flipped the bottles they want.

[Josh]

Oh goody. This debate again.

[Tony Santana]

Sorry Josh, but I feel compelled to weigh in. One of the reasons SB.com is my favorite bourbon site is the lack of the flipper mentality. I suppose if someone wants to go on the black market to get a coveted bottle they are entitled to do so. I have never done so. I never say never, but don't anticipate ever wanting something that badly when so many other reasonably priced options are available.

To me, flippers are the scourge of this hobby. They are part of the problem, not the solution. To paint yourself as a "speculator" who is providing some sort of altruistic service is self-deluding BS.

[dcbt]

+1 and the reason why I have no problem with either the distillery or the retailer charging whatever they feel is the market-clearing price ... the problem is exacerbated by uneven distribution. Speculating and flipping is an arbitrage opportunity that will be eliminated when the first sale is priced appropriately for the demand at the time.

This is the crux of the issue as I see it; the bourbon market is inefficient, similar to sporting events and concerts where there is a finite supply. In these cases, the powers that be have decided to keep prices below equilibrium to allow the 'average Joe' a chance to participate. Sounds fine in theory, but it opens the door for scalping.

[flaminiom]

Really?!?

Two more?

You are killing me, MI LCC won't ship them to Washtenaw county, I keep getting "Out Of Stock" from the retailers.

I think it's the state's distributor and brand rep making these decisions. Best I can tell, nothing has left SE Michigan.

[MyOldKyDram]

I think you are confusing speculators and flippers. Buying a couple cases of any Four Roses LE to resell later that week does not count as speculating, as there is already a demand for it. You are just charging a premium to people who were an hour late to pick a bottle up, which is not really much of a service. You are causing a temporary artificial spike in demand, reducing available supply, then taking advantage of the increase in prices.

If you are buying them to hold for an extended period of time, you are reducing the current supply and driving current prices up. You think you are doing everyone a favor by risking your capital while you hold it, but I don't think there is really a demand for this kind of investment. There are not hordes of people saying "There is so much unsold bourbon on the market, I wish someone would come in and invest some capital to purchase it!". This is a market where current demand outstrips supply, so the exact opposite is true.

I'm not saying flippers and speculators are evil, but stop kidding yourself and pretending you are doing anyone any favors. You are exploiting the system for a profit, plain and simple.

On. Point. So much this.

[Yeti]

On. Point. So much this.

--------------------------

[garbanzobean]

I think you are confusing speculators and flippers. Buying a couple cases of any Four Roses LE to resell later that week does not count as speculating, as there is already a demand for it. You are just charging a premium to people who were an hour late to pick a bottle up, which is not really much of a service. You are causing a temporary artificial spike in demand, reducing available supply, then taking advantage of the increase in prices.

If you are buying them to hold for an extended period of time, you are reducing the current supply and driving current prices up. You think you are doing everyone a favor by risking your capital while you hold it, but I don't think there is really a demand for this kind of investment. There are not hordes of people saying "There is so much unsold bourbon on the market, I wish someone would come in and invest some capital to purchase it!". This is a market where current demand outstrips supply, so the exact opposite is true.

I'm not saying flippers and speculators are evil, but stop kidding yourself and pretending you are doing anyone any favors. You are exploiting the system for a profit, plain and simple.

[dcbt]

I suppose I combined them in my kudzu post, but that is an excellent distinction. It's sort of like the difference between day traders and long term investors, except for the part where there are people who would rather drink their stock than resell it.