hoptopia:

This post was paid for by The Rare Beer Club. Any opinions expressed below are my own and have been gleaned by being a paying member of the club prior to this post.

I have been a champion of The Rare Beer Club for some time now. I have been consistently impressed with their monthly beer selections, excellent customer service, well packaged deliveries, and the intelligently written beer essays that accompany each of the shipments.

The late, world-renowned and pioneering beer writer Michael Jackson (aka. The Beer Hunter), was heavily involved in the beer selection process for The Rare Beer Club. Some of you might be familiar with the club by its former name, Michael Jackson’s Rare Beer Club.

The kind of beers offered each month, as you will see below, are not in most cases common or otherwise easily available. Some of the selections are club-only bottlings. In 2010 for example, The Rare Beer Club offered Jolly Pumpkin’s excellent Biere de Goord, a saison spiced with kale, pumpkin seeds, pumpkin and green tea. This beer was not distributed and is still very much sought-after.

What beers does The Rare Beer Club offer?

The club specializes in bringing its members limited release, small batch, hard-to-easily obtain or truly exclusive beers from the U.S. and around the world. Beers are in the larger 750ml format. Some are capped. Some are sealed with a cork and a cage.

Many of the beers offered by the club are bottle conditioned, and are of a style suitable for cellaring.

The current selections for August, 2011 are:

Brasserie de Cazeau Saison Cazeau 

“Saison Cazeau is a light white beer, refermented in the bottle, with 5% alcohol content. As well as the Pilsen malt and two hops which give it a really nice bitter flavour, Saison is laced with elderflowers (Sambucus Nigra L.) which make it really refreshing. The elderflower only blooms for three weeks between mid-May and mid-June, which means that production of our Saison is very time-limited.” - Copy by Brasserie de Cazeau

Stillwater Artisanal Ales Stateside Saison

“Stateside Saison pays homage to old world tradition while celebrating new world innovation. Naturally brewed with the finest European malts & fresh aromatic hops from the United States & New Zealand. It’s then fermented using a classic farmhouse ale yeast and bottle conditioned to enhance stability. The outcome is a beer of unique design and exquisite taste, showcasing some of the best attributes of modern-day craft brewing.” - Copy by Stillwater Artisanal Ales

2011 has also seen the following beers offered to members:

Cigar City Jose Marti Oak Aged (Imperial Porter)

De Scheldebrouwerij Hop Ruiter (Belgian Strong Pale Ale)

De Proefbrouwerij Broederlijke Liefde (Saison)

Au Baron Cuvée des Jonquilles (Saison)

Jandrain-Jandrenouille V Cense (Saison)

Southampton Public House Cuvée des Fleurs (Saison)

Brouwerij Troch Draeckenier (Tripel)

Uinta Cockeyed Cooper (Bourbon Barrel Barleywine)

Weyerbacher Unfiltered Double Simcoe (Double IPA)

Birra Tenute Collesi Rossa (Double Amber Ale)

Jester King Black Metal (Russian Imperial Stout)

Brouwerij Slaapmutske Triple Nightcap (Tripel)

Grand Teton Imperial Scotch Ale (Wee Heavy)

Kerkom Bink Grand Cru (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)

How do I join The Rare Beer Club?

Membership is simple, flexible and available in three tiers.

Silver membership: 2x bottles each month. 1x bottle of each of the months selections. Cost is $31.95 plus $13.00 S&H per month.

Gold membership: 4x bottles each month. 2x bottes of each of the months selections. Cost is $51.95 plus $15.00 S&H per month.

Platinum membership: 6x bottles each month. 3x bottles of each of the months selections. Cost is $68.95 plus $18.00 S&H per month.

Need to know:

Each month The Rare Beer Club sends its members an email announcing the next months beer selections. This is your opportunity to up the number of bottles of the upcoming selections, substitute upcoming selections for bottles from a previous month, or skip the months shipment entirely. 

Like I said, the club is very flexible and you never feel pressured to get beers you have no interest in.

JOIN THE RARE BEER CLUB TODAY - Let them know Hoptopia recommended you!

This is a monthly food club I can get behind.