Recently in Administrative Category

Over the past few days, spammers have managed to post dozens of spam comments to this blog, evading all anti-spam measures that I've attempted, including captchas, IP address range blacklists, content filters, etc. I don't have the time to spend deleting these comments manually several times daily, so I am forced to disable the comment feature completely.

I apologize for removing this discussion forum, but the spammers have won.

If you have a question or comment about the blog, you may contact me by email at plcbusersgroup@gmail.com.

A handful of people emailed me privately to express their frustration that they didn't find out about the Rittenhouse Rye in the online store until it was sold out. I imagine most folks don't have the time or inclination to hit up the "New Products" page in the online store several times a day just in case something comes in, so I created two ways for you to keep tabs on newly-stocked spirits.

The most timely source of updates will be my new Twitter account, aptly named "plcbusersgroup". This will mostly contain notifications of new online products, as well as occasional breaking news that can't wait for the weekly update.

For old school users who don't do the whole Twitter thing, there is also an RSS feed (Atom, actually) where new online products will be posted, including descriptions:

http://plcbusersgroup.org/fwgs/atom.xml

Both Twitter and the RSS feed will be updated every 20 minutes. Keep in mind that your Twitter client or RSS reader may not check for updates that frequently, however.

I'm proud to announce a major new feature on the PLCB Users Group website: the PLCB Spirits Product Guide. This is a searchable database of all the spirits available in PLCB retail stores, in the online store and by SLO. The data is synchronized with the official PLCB catalog thrice weekly, so the information won't grow outdated.

The guide is accessible from the main PLCB Users Group website in the left-hand sidebar, searchable by name or PLCB code, or browsable by spirit category or SLO distributor.

You'll find the guide to be much nicer than the official PLCB product catalog.  Specifically:

• Almost 90% of the product names have been verified and in many cases corrected. Most corrections are for simple misspellings, but I've also fixed up the product names that are ambiguous or completely unrecognizable. (A big thank-you to the distributors that helped me out with this!) Over the next couple months I'll finish verifying the names of the remaining 10% of the catalog.

• Different packages containing the same spirit have been correlated together. Instead of four listings for "BACARDI SUPERIOR P.R. RUM", two for "BACARDI LIGHT-DRY P. R. RUM" and one for "BACARDI LIGHT P. R. RUM", the guide has one listing for "Bacardi Superior Silver Rum" with seven different-sized bottles.

• Spirits are sorted into sensible categories. Instead of randomly filing cachaças under "Specialties", "Rums", "Distilled Spirits - Other" or even "Cordials", they are all filed under a single category named "Cachaça".

• The search engine will correct your spelling for you, so feel free to butcher the brand name. Especially those hard-to-spell scotches.

• In many cases, if the spirit you're looking for isn't listed in Pennsylvania, it'll be returned in your search but labeled "unavailable".  No more wondering if "0 results" means it's not available here or if you're just not looking hard enough.

• Finally, you'll notice that a few spirits are graced with product photos and descriptions. Not many yet, but the number will grow over time.

Take a look and let me know what you think!

I've put up a couple pages to help out PLCB customers who want to place a Special Liquor Order (SLO). There is a how-to guide and also a partial list of which vendors supply which products. The vendor list is collected from my and other's personal notes from our SLOs in the past, so if you have more data to add, please send it along. Especially if you are a vendor and don't mind sharing your product list!

Hello world!  Welcome to the PLCB Users Group!

Many of you computer geeks out there in cocktail land will find some humor in the name of this blog.  If you didn't spend the 80s staring into a monochrome CRT, you might need an explanation:

Years ago, before the Internet was officially named "The Internet", enthusiastic owners of then-novel personal computers formed local clubs called users groups.  These groups would meet regularly to exchange news and ideas and share advice for getting the most out of their PCs.  Joining a users group was often the best way to get help solving problems, because then, as now, computer manufacturers did not tend to provide very good technical support, at least not for free.  Today, online forums and mailing lists have largely supplanted users groups, as the 24/7 availability and geographic reach of the Internet provide more immediate gratification than toting three-ring binders and boxes of floppies down to a basement meeting room at the Methodist church every other Wednesday.

These days, my hobbies are no longer in the realm of mysterious software crashes and configuration errors, but instead the tedium and frustration of locating and purchasing ingredients for craft and classic cocktails in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  Juices, syrups and bitters can be tracked down with some effort, but to purchase wines and spirits, there is no other choice but to learn the arcane ways of the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board, whose state-owned liquor stores are the only legal source of wines and spirits.

In this blog I'll be posting advice on how to get the most out of the PLCB, particularly the overly-complicated special-order (SLO) system, and regular updates on changes to the product selection.  Hopefully this will encourage more individuals and licensees to purchase items by SLO.  I'll also post hints on where to find non-alcoholic cocktail ingredients in Pittsburgh, and maybe some suggestions on how to survive if you're forced to leave your kitchen and order a drink at a local bar.