Get in line early for Collective’s Blackberry Petite Golden Sour
For most craft-beer lovers, beer is purely for diversion. You buy beer. You enjoy it with some friends. You might talk a little about what you like about it. Everything is cool.
Collective Brewing Project in Fort Worth most certainly fosters that atmosphere. Its bar up front and patio in the back is made to encourage a casual atmosphere where patrons enjoy a couple of pints and enjoy a laid-back time.
As a brewery grows and its reputation for producing high-quality, limited-run beers increases, some less laid-back aspects start popping up.
With its much-anticipated May 28 release of Blackberry Petite Golden Sour, Collective Brewing saw a healthy line outside the door before it opened at 2 p.m.
Craft beer — just like every other subculture — has its fair share of rabid geeks. It’s not uncommon to see some people buying as many rare bottles as they can in hopes of trading them for something else rare that they can’t get locally or squirreling them away for a rainy day. Other folks just want to try something new and exciting and are willing to wait and pay for it. The beer line can see a mix of motives.
Ultimately, it’s a cool sight to see for a brewery that is not even 2 years old. People are so excited about the product that they will stand outside for an extended period of time just for the opportunity to purchase your beers. Even if it does produce a bit of needless animosity among those who missed out on getting a bottle, it pays immediate cash dividends for the brewery and immediately frees up valuable brewery storage space.
Blackberry Petite Golden Sour sold out in a little less than an hour and Collective has talked of reducing the number of bottles it will sell to individuals so that a larger number of brewery visitors will have the opportunity to try them.
The beer is — of course — fantastic. Collective has earned the right to some fanboy love. Is it that much better than standard Petite Golden Sour or any of the barrel-aged offerings? That’s debatable, as those are also world-class.
In the end, it’s beer. It’s a loveable beverage for all to enjoy. It’s great that a Fort Worth brewery is producing such a high-quality product and people are so passionate about acquiring it that they’ll wait in line to buy as much of it as they can.
Just remember, if you really want some, you might want to get there early.
Quick sips
Untapped Fort Worth returns: After a string of bad-weather incidents, the festival organizers have their fingers crossed with Untapped Fort Worth, set for June 11 at Panther Island Pavilion.
Last spring’s festival saw De La Soul’s appearance to cap the day canceled due to a potential for tornadoes.
Both Austin entries have been affected by bad weather also, with the last one having to be canceled before it even started. Here’s hoping the weather this time reflects Untapped Dallas’ last festival.
The beer and music overload runs 2:30-10:30 p.m. with Built to Spill, Hayes Carll, Grupo Fantasma and others set to perform. $35-$119. untapped-festival.com
3 Nations Anniversary: Farmers Branch’s 3 Nations Brewing will celebrate its one-year anniversary at the brewery Saturday and will feature eight beers on tap, four of those being brewery-exclusive. $10 entry. 3nationsbrewing.com
Have a question or tip for Scooter? Shoot him an email at texasbrew@dfw.com. And for more beer columns and news, visit www.dfw.com/beer.
This story was originally published June 1, 2016 at 2:38 PM with the headline "Get in line early for Collective’s Blackberry Petite Golden Sour."