Only fill their own growlers?

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JohnAdam

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Hi all,

A local gourmet-ish grocery store started filling growlers a while back, and I subscribed to their emails about what they had available. Mostly it's been things I consider a bit weird, so I didn't actually go there until yesterday. They had a Mild I really wanted to try.
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I knew about the Maryland law that requires a label warning you that the stuff in the growler is beer (snark) and that it is the customer's responsibility to be sure the growler is clean (ya think?) so I selected a growler from a local brewery that had the required label.

I was told that they only fill their own growlers, and that they would exchange my growler for theirs at no charge.
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That rubbed me the wrong way. Seems to me that it defeats the purpose of keeping a growler when you try new breweries if you have to buy a new one at every brewery where you want a fill.

Anyway I said "Never mind" and walked out.
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What do you folks think?
 
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I've heard of that before, when I lived around columbia. It sucks but at least it's an even exchange. I wonder what they do with all the ones that aren't theirs?

What part of MD are you in? I'm near Baltimore
 
Weird that they do a growler trade in, but it’s their store, their rules. They’ll either succeed or fail based on everyone’s acceptance of the program.
 
JohnAdam said:
Hi all,

A local gourmet-ish grocery store started filling growlers a while back, and I subscribed to their emails about what they had available. Mostly it's been things I consider a bit weird, so I didn't actually go there until yesterday. They had a Mild I really wanted to try.

I knew about the Maryland law that requires a label warning you that the stuff in the growler is beer (snark) and that it is the customer's responsibility to be sure the growler is clean (ya think?) so I selected a growler from a local brewery that had the required label.

I was told that they only fill their own growlers, and that they would exchange my growler for theirs at no charge.

That rubbed me the wrong way. Seems to me that it defeats the purpose of keeping a growler when you try new breweries if you have to buy a new one at every brewery where you want a fill.

Anyway I said "Never mind" and walked out.

What do you folks think?
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Why would they exchange as there's no value to them with taking your old growler, and then not charging you for the new growler. Doesn't sound like they thought out their program very well. But then again, in this day in age with a litigious society, they may be trying to protect themselves from a lawsuit due to filling a growler that they can't verify is clean. Strange nonetheless.
 
Maybe their insurance policy or a law won’t allow them to fill other growlers. Maybe it’s their investors. There are probably factors in the program that consumers aren’t aware of.
 
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Sounds like California. My wife and I spent a few days brew pub hopping in Dan Diego and came home with several new growlers we didn't need. While a few breweries would sell you a sleeve for your growler, some would only fill their own stating that it was the law. Oh well, It is California!
 
Our beer and brewery laws are weird here. They are going through an update hopefully soon.
If it's a hassle and not worth the effort, I'd think it'd be based on some law or regulation as the reason they're doing it
 
Mase said:
they may be trying to protect themselves from a lawsuit due to filling a growler that they can't verify is clean.
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That's my vote...
Also, if I were making sure that my product was going to make the best impression, packaging it as perfectly as possible would be a priority. Not only would I prefer it to be clean and properly sanitized so it wouldn't pick up any off flavors, I'd want the container to be super cold so that the CO2 would remain in suspension during filling.
Given that they were willing to exchange at no cost, I wouldn't have a problem with it. If my growler was different and special to me for some reason and I didn't want to let it go, I'd pay for one of theirs and know that I'd exchange it next time.
I know how the OP feels, being miffed about something like that and walking away, but we have to choose our battles. :)
 
Probably State law. When Oklahoma started growler fills all brewers made you use their growlers. Stated it was law. Some have started backing off that stance recently. Not sure if they found a loophole or are just ignoring the rules.
 
i've mostly seen that the basic glass growlers are fairly cheap in comparison to the cost of the beer
 
JohnAdam said:
Hi all,

A local gourmet-ish grocery store started filling growlers a while back, and I subscribed to their emails about what they had available. Mostly it's been things I consider a bit weird, so I didn't actually go there until yesterday. They had a Mild I really wanted to try.

I knew about the Maryland law that requires a label warning you that the stuff in the growler is beer (snark) and that it is the customer's responsibility to be sure the growler is clean (ya think?) so I selected a growler from a local brewery that had the required label.

I was told that they only fill their own growlers, and that they would exchange my growler for theirs at no charge.

That rubbed me the wrong way. Seems to me that it defeats the purpose of keeping a growler when you try new breweries if you have to buy a new one at every brewery where you want a fill.

Anyway I said "Never mind" and walked out.

What do you folks think?
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It doesn't matter what we think. The company is protecting itself from the State of Maryland by insisting on using growlers that comply with State law. I don't like the outcome - I prefer to use my stainless, vacuum-insulated growler (the warning label isn't required in Colorado) but if I were buying beer in Maryland, I'd have to comply with their law, regardless of how ridiculous. As does the store. You can choose to comply or not get your growlers filled there but it's the fault of the State, not the store, that you have to use a growler compliant with the law.

Of course, you could choose to run for office and try to change the law....
 
I wonder if they will fill one of their bottles that a customer brings in.
 
Mase said:
I wonder if they will fill one of their bottles that a customer brings in.
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They would exchange it, just as they offered to do with the one that the OP brought in.
 
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Huh weird, I don't usually travel with growlers but in Alberta the liquor store near my house with 36 taps doesn't care what you bring in. I've started going with stainless ones cause they're cooler. So when travelling I occasionally buy one.
 
One of our local breweries (weldwerks) stopped filling growlers about a yr and a half ago citing quality and sanitation concerns. They only sell crowlers now.
 
thunderwagn said:
One of our local breweries (weldwerks) stopped filling growlers about a yr and a half ago citing quality and sanitation concerns. They only sell crowlers now.
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Can still bring any old growler into our local brewpub and they'll fill it up, no questions asked.
 
thunderwagn said:
One of our local breweries (weldwerks) stopped filling growlers about a yr and a half ago citing quality and sanitation concerns. They only sell crowlers now.
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That is a big concern for many breweries. If the growler gets fill from the tap, which some breweries do, it needs to be consumed almost right away to avoid oxidation. The brewery gets blamed for improperly handled growlers, the beer doesn't represent brewery well and the reputation of the brewery takes a hit.

I personally hate growlers anyway, to much beer unless you have a group to share it and by the time you get to the second beer from it, it's flat and oxidized. Yuck. Give me a properly filled crowler, please.
 
The hell is a crowler? And what kind of amateur hour is this where you need help with a growler?
 
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