Whitstable Bay Pale Ale. Dud batches?

[TheLurker]

Anyone else had iffy cans of it? 

I've had several cans in the last 3 or 4 months where it has been cloudy and tasted off. Other cans have been fine. The latest dud was today.  Had to tip it away after only a couple of mouthfuls.  Annoyingly, the only other cans I have in the house are all the same batch so are probably also tainted.

[nicknack]

I'd have a whinge at Shepherd Neame. They're usually pretty reliable.

[Basil]

Trouble is that cans are so flimsy these days that it is very easy to dent them on delivery to the store and produce a tiny crack.  I've had a couple of duff cans of Old Speckled Hen recently from our local convenience store.
Luckily the slightly further away (Not very) supermarket has it in bottles.  Which is nicer anyway.

[TheLurker]

I'd have a whinge at Shepherd Neame...

Aye, I've done that.   Just wondered if it was Waitrose's handling of their stock, or if others had encountered probs.  If other people were finding the same it would suggest a production issue rather than transit / storage.

Trouble is that cans are so flimsy ... Luckily the slightly further away (Not very) supermarket has it in bottles.  Which is nicer anyway.

No evidence of damage to the can, contents still under pressure when I opened it.  Nowhere hereabouts seems to stock WBPA in bottles any more, not even Waitrose.

[PaulF]

I'd have a whinge at Shepherd Neame...

Aye, I've done that.   Just wondered if it was Waitrose's handling of their stock, or if others had encountered probs.  If other people were finding the same it would suggest a production issue rather than transit / storage.

Trouble is that cans are so flimsy ... Luckily the slightly further away (Not very) supermarket has it in bottles.  Which is nicer anyway.

No evidence of damage to the can, contents still under pressure when I opened it.  Nowhere hereabouts seems to stock WBPA in bottles any more, not even Waitrose.

My local CoOp has it in bottles, perhaps yours does?

[ian]

Drink hipster beer fools, it's supposed to be cloudy. This Howling Hops pale ale looks like someone has dissolved a body in it. It's lush though.

[lahoski]

Definitely a QC problem at packaging - tell Shepherd Name, they won't be pleased there's an issue.

[TheLurker]

My local CoOp has it in bottles, perhaps yours does?

Alas, no.  My local Co-Op is tiny, tacked onto the petrol station and has very little choice by way of bottled beers.  Hmmm, this should have been in 1st World Problems, shouldn't it? 

[TheLurker]

1. Yes. There has been a problem* with cans. 
2.  Bottles are fine.
3.  Waitrose had neither bottles nor cans.
4.  Nor did the Co-op.

*It's brewed at Faversham (bottled there too as far as I can find out) but sent elsewhere for canning.  Seems it's very much a can by can problem rather than a batch problem.  Goes into the cans fine, but in some cases goes cloudy and flavour degrades in storage. Canning operation has either been moved or in process of being moved elsewhere until they can work WTF is going on.  Will work through my remaining cans hoping that they aren't affected.