09 May 2009

New Clipper City 22-ounce Bottles & Contents

Clipper City will be introducing its 22-ounce big-bottle Heavy Seas limited-edition beers, with the first of the series, a 10% double IPA, being debuted on tap at their BBQ Feast at the brewery next week, with the bottles reacing shelves by June (all going well).

I have the press release, and was sworn to secrecy regarding the name, only getting it because I had a story to file that would go on the press literally as they were announcing the beer name. Someone else, however, didn't get the memo. If you scout about in the beer news universe, you'll find someone blabbering the name.

By the way, tickets are still available for the excellent BBQ fest, 12 to 4 on Saturday the 16th--go to www.ccbeer.com . It's the first time they haven't had such an event sold out before I could mention it here, in spite of excellent BBQ from Andy Nelson's and seven firkins. "I think it's because we're up against the Preakness," said CC head Hugh Sisson.

Also on the website: details of their homebrew contest. They're looking for ideas for more "big beers" (7% and above) for their 22-oz. bottles. Bottles must be there in June.

7 comments:

Brad said...

The name was released in the Clipper City email newsletter from Hugh.

Alexander D. Mitchell IV said...

Quoting said newsletter directly:

"These soon to be released beers will be available in 22 oz bottles in VERY limited batches. The first to sail out of our harbor will be a double IPA. This is so secret we aren't sharing the name nor has it been posted to our website.

We wanted our eNewsletter crew to be the first to know about these new great brews!
As part of the crew, you are invited to share a sample of our Secret Treasure which will first be available to taste exclusively at our Clipper City Real Ale & BBQ Festival - here at the brewery on May 16."

Try again.

Alexander D. Mitchell IV said...

Chodite just said in a post I rejected,

"Yeah, scratch that. It was announced on [WEB SITE NAME REDACTED]."

Hey, dudes, I made MY promise, and I'm sticking to it. <:-/

Brad said...

LOL sorry about that.

So the site I posted, broke the news first and another site picked up the story and also posted it (assuming by now, it was ok to talk about)

If it was supposed to be such a timed "secret", why did everyone seem to have press releases already? Just curious more than anything.

Either way, I'm pretty excited about the news.

Alexander D. Mitchell IV said...

As we've just seen by the example here, we can't really control what others do.

I made MY promises to both Hugh and the PR person (not being named simply to protect the possibly innocent), and I was sent what I was told was a sneak preview of the press release, only because my deadline for the MABN column was over a week before the BBQ fest, and we were going to press about the time they would have "announced" it. The press release in question still has not been posted on their website, for what it's worth.

"Embargoes" like this are standard practice in the newspaper and magazine industry, and you violate them at your own peril. If I blabber news that Sisson wants to debut himself on his own terms, I'm probably never going to get any news from him again, or at least not any "exclusives" like this. I really can't say how important this issue is to Hugh--he could, after all, only be playing games to stimulate interest--but I certainly wouldn't want to be that website that leaked the name, or responsible for any miscommunication that might have left them to think it was okay to release the name.

Alexander D. Mitchell IV said...

And by the way, I just got the REAL reason for all the "hush-hush":

The name and labels don't yet have Federal approval.

(Editor asked for label artwork. I asked Clipper City. That as their response.)

NOW do you get it?

Brad said...

Thanks for the update.

One of the sites has since edited the story and deleted the name of June's beer.