Stone Brewing Co. Releases Limited Edition Beer
BY TANYA RODRIGUES
Staff Writer
When you hear that a new version of an “Arrogant Bastard” is being “released” soon, you might automatically think “incarceration.”
In a recent media announcement, Stone Brewing Co. pointed this out itself.
However, the San Marcos-based company is quick to clarify that the questionable party is not a person at all.
It’s a limited edition of its Arrogant Bastard Ale, named in part because its alcohol content is 7.2 percent.
Last week, Stone Brewing launched the new product, Double Bastard, whose alcohol content is 10 percent.
According to the company, Double Bastard’s first release produced a lot of interest.
“It disappeared off the shelves faster than a dot-com venture capitalist off, well, the face of the earth,” the company said in its media announcement.
CEO Greg Koch relayed more tales.
“Even though we placed a note in each case requesting retailers to limit customers to a maximum of three bottles, all the stores I know of sold out within just a few hours,” he said.
Koch said he got an e-mail from one customer who confessed to following the Stone Brewing delivery truck from retailer to retailer so he could stock up more than his share.
The company, founded in July 1996, currently sells its products in California, Arizona, Ohio, Oregon, Tennessee, Washington D.C., Virginia, Washington, Kentucky, Nevada and New Mexico. This month, it began selling in Texas.
According to Koch’s estimates, Stone Brewing had sales of $4 million in 2001.
