According to the Brewers Association, there are roughly 2,500 breweries operating in the United States, offering beer fans a cornucopia of hops and malt to enjoy. But the vast majority of those breweries are small operations with tiny distribution footprints. Masterful breweries like The Alchemist, in Vermont, don’t peddle their beers beyond their home states. So what’s a beer lover to do? You can only justify so many beer pilgrimages to the significant other/boss before your absence becomes an annoyance.
Enter online beer trading forums, where you can find a beer buddy on the other side of the country, or world, and trade your local beers for exotic beers from far off lands. Finally, the internet is being used the way God intended.
Different message boards have different rules, but the idea is universal: create a site-specific account, then post what beer you’re looking for and what you’re willing to trade for it. Or, list the beers you can get locally, and detail the style of beer you’re looking to sample. Make a connection through the forum, and exchange away, trading something local for something exotic.