Beer for my boys, or not?

September 16, 2006 10:49 PM

I'm thinking about about doing a beer of the month club for my 4 groomsmen. Any suggestions as to which one?

There was one question I came across on MeFi relating to this, and they mentioned www.beerofthemonthclub.com.

Anyone out there ever given or been the receiver of a beer of the month club membership? I'm thinking about doing a 3 month stint for each of the guys, which would be about $375 at the place mentioned above (sorta pricey, but I don't think I could get out for much cheaper).

On another note, if anyone has any other suggestions for unique groomsmen gifts (I've looked at this thread: http://ask.metafilter.com/mefi/17118 and honestly didn't see too much that jumped out at me), I'm still open to ideas.

posted by mrhaydel to food & drink (8 comments total)

I assume you know them well. But I'd make sure there weren't any recovering alcoholics or religious ones among them first, just in case.
posted by muddylemon at 12:02 AM on September 17, 2006

how about BACON?! And this is along the "of the month club" line

Evefryone loves bacon, right? Unless your groomsmen are the sensitive vegetarian type.
posted by lannanh at 12:06 AM on September 17, 2006

My wife gave me a six month subscription to one last christmas. I enjoyed the beers a lot but the logistics were a pain in the ass. At least in MA, they require an adult signature to deliver alcohol. So if nobody was home during the day they would try again twice and then ship it back. This happened every month. I eventually had them deliver to my office but then I had to lug a 12-pack home on a packed train.

It was a great gift but make sure they'll be able to receive it.

I second the bacon club. Mmmmm... bacon.
posted by bondcliff at 5:39 AM on September 17, 2006

Check out Beer on the Wall. They have a beer of the month club, but they also sell beer gift baskets. I received a California beer gift basket once and I really enjoyed it.
posted by Otis at 6:02 AM on September 17, 2006

I got this as a present once, and I have to say it was a nice idea, but didn't live up to the promise. There was nothing I received that I found all that impressive, and that's sorta a good thing because they were all regional beers that I couldn't go out and buy if I wanted to. On top of that, everything is shipped room-temp, with an unknown brewery-warehouse-your house transit time, and in some cases it tasted like the transit time could have been months.

It's a great idea, and I did love the idea of it, just not their particular execution. Is there a local bar that has a beer club you could buy them all a membership to? That would provide both better beer, and an excuse to get together. Failing that, you're better off spending your money on some good single-malt and perhaps NFL Sunday ticket cable subs, if they're into that.
posted by Mr. Gunn at 7:14 AM on September 17, 2006

My girlfriend gave me a 3 month subscription a couple of years ago when I was living in Missouri. It was a nice gift, especially since it's not easy to find interesting beers in MO. I live in Boston now and can walk down the street to a liquor store with 150 different beers, so I'm not sure I would enjoy at as much these days. The BOMC didn't really have beers that one couldn't find at a good liquore store in Boston.

As others said, the logistics are a huge problem. They shipped DHL, and would only deliver to me personally. They wouldn't leave the beer in the foyer, or in the office building below me. I had to call DHL every month when I got the delivery notice and ask them to hold the beer at their warehouse. Then I had to drive 30 minutes to pick up. Major pain in the ass. On the other hand, the beer was tasty and it was a thoughtful gift.
posted by david1230 at 8:47 AM on September 17, 2006

Well, you don't mention in your profile which country you're in, and everybody just seems to assume it's in the States. But on the off-chance you're in Australia and forgot to mention it, my husband and I have been in the Australian Beer Club for about a year now. Each quarter they deliver a case of four sixpacks from different micro-breweries. Their delivery guy is happy to leave them behind a wall on our front porch. I highly recommend it. (The only bad beer we've gotten so far is the horrible new Chopper Reed beer. It's awful stuff.)
posted by web-goddess at 3:00 PM on September 17, 2006

I was given a year's subscription to the Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club and have been very pleased with the beers. Many I've never heard of nor found in liquor stores. Check out the
past selections.

I have it delivered to my office, so it isn't a logistical problem, but I can see where it might be.
posted by pedantic at 3:03 PM on September 17, 2006