What I’m about to share with you, dear readers, could be life-changing. It will change the way you interact with your friends, affect where you go. . . and at the very least, it will help you become a person with very well organized cabinets.
And lo – the first Craft Beer Case Swap was born.
The idea is simple, and the execution slightly less so. You, as the host, should be aware that there is a lot of organization required (and just a teeny bit of lower back pain!). In the end, however, all will be happy and satiated.
The Rules:
For each round of swapping, there will be 12 participants. Each participant agrees to purchase a case of quality, bad-ass craft beer between $35 – $60. Confirm your beer choice with the host in order to eliminate duplicate brews. There will be a drop off date, shortly followed by a pick up date. The host will repack all the beers back into cases, giving each participant 24 beers of 12 different varieties! Buy your beer, drop it off, pick it up, and then drink it! Easy-peasy.
The Basics:
- Gather 12 of your most beer-loving friends (you can ‘forget’ to invite the friend who has a Miller High Life glued to his lips, no one will be the wiser). It helps if these people are also reliable!
- Send out an email explaining the rules to each person. Make sure they confirm with you! This is also a good time to reiterate the part about eliminating duplicates – make sure everyone lets you know what they want to submit to the Swap, so that everyone can enjoy a variety of beers. No one wants to be the guy who messes it up!
- As the host, be as flexible as you can – I have a tight schedule, so I run an equally tight ship. Give enough notice so that drop off & pick up days can be attended by all (and if they can’t, be flexible in between.)
- Re-pack! Line up all the open cases in a row, and start from left to right. Leave the first two beers of the first case, and take the second two, and rotate them with the first two of the second case. Keep going until the entire first case is unpacked into the others, and full of the following cases. The first case can then be shut, and you start again with the next, etc. That might not make any sense, but after way too many mistakes the first time, I found this to be the easiest option.
- If you have the time, write some notes! Make a little sheet with information on the beers and send it out with each case. (Honestly, I do this every other time, depending on how busy I am. I should do it every time!)
You are now left with a delicious, home-crafted, variety pack of what will hopefully be some of your new favorite beers! Go through your cabinets, throw away all that stuff you swear you’re going to use but never do, and make yourself a designated space to showcase your finely-tuned collection. Repeat the process as often as possible, changing it up with different styles and themes, until you systematically remove all of the food from your house in order to store just one more case. Then, you’ve gone too far. (Or have you?)Live in Kennett Square? Waywood Beverage (624 Millers Hill, Kennett Square) is a go-to craft beer distributor that is always a successful stop if you’re looking to grab your case for your upcoming swap. Click here to peek at their beer list.
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