Around this time of year, when contemplating how much beer to order and stock up on, I always think of my then Coors Beer sales rep Greg Styp (click here for previous post on him.)
When I first took over Buzzy’s Country Store in August 2007, I was heading down the road one day when I passed Cook’s Liquors in Park Hall with a Coors beer truck parked in the lot. Staged alongside of the truck was literally hundreds of cases of beer that would eventually be brought into the store as their delivery.
Knowing that periodic quantity sales were sometimes offered, I called Greg and asked if there was a current sale that he had not told me about. I noted “There must be 500 cases here being delivered to Cook’s.” Greg laughed and said “That’s a pretty good estimate J. because they actually did order 450 cases.”
I asked him “What are they doing getting that much beer this time of year when the season is winding down?” Greg then pointed out to me that Cook’s “season” differed from the traditional Memorial Day to Labor Day timeframe that I observed. Cook’s “season” centered on the re-opening of St. Mary’s College in late August/early September. Thus, they were stocking up accordingly for that season of the year.
Conversely, for Buzzy’s and me, August is that time of year when I start to reduce the quantity beer sales because after Labor Day, my sales will slack off. COVID-19 in 2020 and the last three years’ closure of the camp grounds at the State Park have negatively impacted beer sales, and all other sales for that matter.
So what is the problem with simply over ordering and just having lots of beer on hand, I hear you ask. Well, unlike whiskey and other spirits, beer has a “best by/drink by” date of 3 to 6 months on it which means that it needs to be out the door by then. (Note that if you have some brewskis that have been in your fridge for awhile, you may want to check the best by dates on them. For a good article on beer best by dates (click here.))
Thus, August is always a tricky month regarding beer orders. Fortunately, all three of our beer distributors Buck, Bozick and Guy have excellent sales reps who are good to deal with and work with me to keep the Buzzy walkin well stocked.
Music-wise, if I told you that one my all time favorite songs is an instrumental titled Soulful Strut, would you know the tune I was talking about? Had I said that it’s title is “Am I the Same Girl” perhaps you would then know it. Here is the story behind the song’s two versions (click here.) (Note this link contains Barbara Acklin’s version with lyrics along with giving you info on Young and Holt.)