In recent weeks, a pair of beer sites that I follow have added recurring posts that detail cans (and some bottles) that are going to be released soon or that day. And while I should feel that more information is better and useful in making purchasing choices, I am a bit torn as to the long-term benefit.
It is similar to the sportswriter who covers the NFL or NBA and now just tweets the latest news in a race to be the first with the news. I don’t know if being first is of value in these cases since the niche of people who will use this information is very niche-y indeed. How does knowing that Player A was traded to Team B impact the fans or even those involved in an office fantasy league?
The same for beer. Most beer fans, even those like me, can’t possibly keep up with all the new beers let alone drive to a brewery in the middle of the work week to pick up two 4-packs of $25 hazy IPA. It is akin to seeing a Facebook post of someone who is in Italy on a long, luxury vacation while you are working. All it produces are feelings of jealousy. And if the beers featured are in such limited supply as to be well nigh impossible to get, what is the functional use of these posts? I am asking because, I know that they will be a novelty at first but I will soon lose interest and I don’t know if others will feel the same.
I am not saying that brewery only releases should be abolished or ignored but what I believe is more helpful are the e-mails from beer shoppes that list their new arrivals. Those are beers that I can possibly buy and put in my fridge without FOMO attached.
Peel the Label is an infrequent series with no photos or links. Just opinion.