The 2012 GO BIG OR GO HOME Surly nordic ski suit!
This is for all you folks who are requesting Surly flames for the Birkie and beyond.
Cost: $175 (at cost to Surly Nation).
Find your size right here.
To order: email mary@surlybrewing.com with your size and we will get it made.
Deadline: Ordering closes at 5 pm, Tuesday, February 14. Suits to arrive by Wednesday, February 22.
Ski on!
Here it is: the 2012 GO BIG OR GO HOME nordic ski suit!
Cost: $175 (at cost to Surly Nation).
Find your size right here.
Deadline to order: Friday, January 13th. This will ensure you will get it in time for the City of Lakes Loppet on Feb 4th-5th and the rest of the race season that you may have tee’d up.
To order: email mary@surlybrewing.com with your size and we will get it made. We will let you know when it arrives at the brewery for pick up.
BONUS: all orders get a chance to win a FREE Loppet race entry.
It’s been a crazy couple of days since Darkness hit liquor stores, and there’s been a lot of back and forth about the differing pricing of Darkness. We’ve learned about some stores selling it in excess of $35 per bottle while others sell it for under $20 per bottle. It’s created a bit of a tempest in a bottle, and there’s been questions about who or what drives retail pricing and purchasing policy (limiting one bottle per customer, for example) and overall production of our Russian Imperial Stout. Here’s a little background: The first year we bottled Darkness was in 2007, and we sold 500 of them. Every year we’ve increased production as best we could to keep up with demand and in 2011 we sold close to 18,000 bottles – both during our Darkness Day event and via liquor stores. Even with brewing close to 20,000 bottles just four years after brewing our first, demand still outweighs production. Yet, when Darkness is sold during Darkness Day it sells for $18. In the last three years that price has gone up exactly $1.
By law, Surly can’t set prices at retail. In other words, bars and liquor stores are free to set prices at whatever level they see fit. Darkness is an allocated product, as all of our beers are. That means, there is not enough beer to meet the demand so we have to determine stores and quantities with that in mind. When we determine our allocation, we take into account a number of factors. That includes the sales volume but is also includes the relationship with Surly and therefore our consumers.
We are well aware that the prices of some of our beers end up selling at retail below what they could fetch at market prices. We believe the long-term relationship we have with our consumer is most important. That’s what built Surly. That’s what built Surly Nation. Yes, we could make a few extra bucks if we raised the price every year or went after a certain target, but at what long-term price (no pun intended)? We believe that would be at the expense of our relationship with our consumer, and many of our liquor stores share that same vision. The consumer relationship is much too valuable. It’s invaluable, really.
Ultimately, it’s the consumers who will drive the market and dictate what is bought and sold. Literally. They have built Surly and more than anything we value our relationship with them—that’s why we throw big and small parties—so we can celebrate over a beer and connect with our consumers. It’s good all of this has been brought to our attention and it has been an interesting discussion over the past few days. What you can do is demand better and help each other out—share tips on finding our beer and tout those stores who value the long-term relationship.
Now, go get Surly!
Important Info from the Brewery
Thanks to all who have expressed interest in getting together at Surly Brewing starting this Friday for Darkness Day 2011!
Please remember when camping or parking at any of the businesses around the brewery not to block/park in their driveways. There should be signs posted by such businesses starting Friday, so please be respectful of them. Also, please keep your areas cleaned up as much as possible! There will be a dumpster for everyone to use, so please use it.
Also, we will have numerous portable toilets. USE THEM! In the past, some people have relieved themselves in the neighborhood and I have had to deal with some irate business owners due to that behavior. If you want this event to continue, use one of the many toilets that we have set up.
The pre-Darkness gathering on the street is not a Surly event. The local authorities have always been chill and I’m sure they will swing by Friday night. As they have stated in the past, “If everyone is happy, we’re good. If someone complains, we have to respond.” So, if someone is being a jackass, it’s in your best interest to keep them acting responsibly so this event can continue. Remember, there are a block of apartments very close to the street.
Bands start when the gates open and go until 5:00 when the gates close. Getting a wrist band guarantees your ability to purchase up to 6 bottles of Darkness. You do not have to get in line immediately to purchase your bottles. So, even if you don’t get a wristband, hang out, enjoy the free music. Draft beer and food are available for purchase.
Now the big one!
The starting line for Darkness wrist bands will be at the corner of 48th and Dusharme Drive and NOT at the front gate at Surly Brewing. The street of Dusharme Drive is reserved for the vendors, biffs, and the stage. Around 7:00am on Saturday morning we will be moving everyone off of Dusharme and onto 48th. The official line starts at Dusharme and 48th, so setting up before that time on Dusharme Drive will not hold you a spot.
Thanks for reading and see you drinking on Darkness Day!
Omar
Michael Berglund's Darkness Art
Now that you’ve seen the zombie-themed 2011 Darkness art, meet the designer who created it:
Designer Michael Berglund has had quite a Surly year. We first met Michael in May 2011 when he submitted the winning design in our Surly Coaster Design Contest, in which we asked Surly Nation to design our new beer coasters to be used in bars that serve Surly.
Berglund wasn’t a hungry design student in need of a portfolio piece. Instead, he’s a veteran artist with a serious love for Surly, who also happens to be the co-owner of MNFX, a special effects, models, and prop studio in Minneapolis.
So, since we liked his work and his passion for Surly, we asked him to design the 2011 SurlyFest art. Once again, he stepped and delivered awesome work.
Michael Berglund's self portrait
The more we got to know Michael, the more we realized he’d be perfect to design this year’s Darkness art as well. He showed us some zombie art he created for fun and we thought it’d be perfect for Darkness. So he asked him to design the Darkness bottle label, swag, and the promotional posters we featured in our Face the Darkness Photo Contest on Facebook.
You’ll certainly see more of Berglund’s Surly creative work in the near future.
Check out more of Michael’s work at MNFX.com and on MNFX’s Facebook page.
Omar is running in the ING New York City Marathon on Nov. 6, 2011 and needs Surly Nation’s support! He’s raising money for LIVESTRONG, which supports people affected by cancer, and wants you to help him reach his fundraising goal of $7,600. Surly will match every donation, dollar-for-dollar, until we reach the goal of $7,600.
Support Omar and LIVESTRONG by making a donation of ANY amount via Omar’s LIVESTRONG fundraising website: http://run.livestrong.org/teamls2011/omaransari
We’ll randomly pick six donors to reward with a free $20 gift card for Surly’s swag shop at the brewery.
Also, the person who donates the most money will win a private brewery tour with Omar for a group of up to ten people, during which they’ll get the RARE opportunity to sample Darkness from 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011! The private tour will be on a Friday evening, after a regular brewery tour.
We’ll announce the current highest donation amount each afternoon for the next six days on Facebook and Twitter, and announce the winning highest donor at 6pm CST on Wednesday, Oct. 19.
So please donate and be sure to fill in your contact information in the donation form so we can contact you if you win a gift card, or if you win the private brewery tour and Darkness sampling as the highest donor.
We’re proud to announce that we’re sponsoring the Minnesota RollerGirls! We’re excited to join forces with the Surly-est girls in Minnesota and serve Surly beer at the RollerGirls’ bouts and at after party locations. Don’t miss the 8th season opener on Saturday, Oct. 15th at the Roy Wilkins Auditorium, Omar will crack open the first ceremonial beer of the season and lead the countdown to the first bout.
Check out the RollerGirls season schedule and make plans to see them, you won’t be disappointed!
Surly Nation, since we’re building our Destination Brewery to make more beer for you, we want to get your suggestions for the new brewery. If you have thoughts regarding our Destination Brewery, send them to buildit@surlybrewing.com. This includes ideas and info on architects, builders and land/location. We want to hear from you! We appreciate and look forward to your input.
UPDATE: SURLYFEST TICKETS ARE COMPLETELY SOLD OUT!
Guten news! SurlyFest is back, Sept. 10, from 2-6:17 pm. Ja! Your ticket gets you a commemorative half-liter SurlyFest stein and 4 beer tokens. If you have a designated driver ticket you will receive 2 pop tokens. There’ll be bike parking, live music from The 4onthefloor, The Sex Rays and the Bratwurst Brothers, food vendors, and of course, Surly beer. Beer tokens will NOT be available for purchase at the event.
As you may know, Summit is having their 25th anniversary party on the same day. We realize this may be a conflict for some, but if you’re thinking there’s something behind it, your aluminum foil hat is too tight. The reality is we’ve had this date set since last year, it’s always difficult finding a weekend in a busy fall that works for everyone. All in all, Sept. 10 will be a great day for Minnesota craft beer fans. Period. However and wherever you choose to celebrate, have fun, be safe and celebrate with Minnesota beer!
Check out the SurlyFest Facebook Event
What:
4th Annual SurlyFest
When:
Saturday, September 10, 2:00 pm – 6:17 pm
Where:
Surly Brewing Co.
4811 Dusharme Dr.
Brooklyn Center, MN
Tickets:
Tickets are now SOLD OUT!
Live Music:
Surly Brewing is happy to announce that we’ve chosen The TEGRA Group as a real estate consulting partner to help us move forward with plans for our Destination Brewery.
Since we’re new to the whole multi-million dollar construction project thing, we chose The TEGRA Group because they’ve “been-there-done-that”—having provided leadership for several major projects in the Twin Cities, including Target Field, the headquarters of Great River Energy, and the Walker Art Center.
The TEGRA Group will help us navigate the real estate development process, starting with site selection. We’ll be considering a variety of raw land, redevelopment, and existing building locations in the coming months. The TEGRA Group will help us narrow the list of potential sites, finalize financing for the project, and select architectural, engineering, and construction companies for our $20 million Destination Brewery project.
But we haven’t forgotten the people who played such a huge part in getting us to this point—Surly Nation. We want your input as we move forward with the project. We’ll post info on our Facebook page in the near future on how to submit your ideas and suggestions.
