We are not even half way through with 2014, and two of the fastest growing craft breweries, located in The Full Pint’s back yard, are releasing significant new products seemingly every other week. Very recently, both Stone Brewing Co. and Firestone Walker Brewing have unveiled a ‘year round Session IPA and a Saison. Over the past 5 years, both companies have been compiling an awfully similar portfolio, and right now, it’s never been so apparent. It is my opinion that both have their fingers on the pulse of the craft beer consumer, and after one company unveils a new product, the other follows suit shortly after. I’m not calling either group a bunch of copy cats, but with consumer’s dollars and retailer’s shelf space at stake, you can’t help but see a little bit of competitiveness from both breweries. This is what my parents referred to as keeping up with the Joneses, or in this case, keeping up with the Stoneses (FireStone and Stone Brewing). Here is a matrix of similar products from both camps, along with some notes on what and why certain beers were placed or not placed in the matrix. If you are an up and coming craft brewer or one struggling to hit your stride, please take note of this formula. It seems to be working quite well for both breweries.

Firestone Walker Stone Brewing Co Amber Ale DBA Levitation Pale Ale Pale 31 Pale Ale Session IPA Easy Jack* Go To IPA IPA Union Jack IPA Double IPA Double Jack Ruination IPA Triple IPA RuinTEN IPA Porter Smoked Porter Stout Velvet Merlin Imperial Stout Imperial Russian Stout Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout Parabola/BA Merkin Saison Opal Stone Saison Barleywine Old Guardian Bourbon Barrel Aged Barleywine Sucaba Anniversary Ale BA Strong Ale Blend Hoppy Strong Ale** Widely distributed One-Offs Collaboration Series Boutique Barrel Program BarrelWorks Quingenti Millilitre

Notes: