I had a SABL in DC at a hotel recently. The hotel had that and a BMC on tap. It was super fresh and I loved it.
I liked it so much I went home tried to brew a clone. Alas, my clone is not as good as the SABL from that hotel.
Re: SA variety packs. I buy them all. I like them. They are never the best for a given style, but, I trust SA to do a pretty good job and to not waste my money on bad beer like many craft brews I find at the bottle shop.