The best beer... statistically

Given that the entire nation of China has 1.4 billion people that is not all that surprising to me.

With a consumer base of 1+ billion people there is no wonder that they can have so much business influence (e.g., NBA, etc.).

Cheers!

 

I'm from ct and you must not detect the note of sarcasm in my words.Or rather the symphony of sarcasm.., i am aware that IMbev is buying up shit left and right ah....capitalism

 

Any standouts worldwide?

http://chartsbin.com/view/41531

Of the several I’ve had, I believe Stiegl is my highest rated. Many are in the 3-3.5 range for me, good average baseline beers.

I would like to try Australia’s Victoria Bitter and New Zealand’s Red Lion.

 

The claim that the popularity AALs and Light adjunct lagers all being due to massive advertising is, well, bunk.

The flavor (or lack of), the lightness, etc. are all a result of the big brewers responding to consumer demand. No one is being fooled or deceived into buying AALs instead of NEIPAs. The very idea is absurd.

The worldwide (again, for emphasis, worldwide) consumer demand for lighter beers has been going on for a century, or perhaps longer. See, for example, the various threads about Oktoberfest beers. Even in tradition-minded Munich, the trend has been toward lighter and lighter beers.

The huge advertising is largely attempting to get these light lager customers to buy "My Company's" light lager instead of "That Company's" light lager.

The post above about Budweiser sponsoring F1. Does anyone really think the increased sales of Bud as a result are due to customers switching from Belgian Trappist beers to Budweiser? As I said above, that is absurd. It is trying to get people to switch from, say, Carling, to Bud.

 

Wait? Someone from Connecticut accusing someone, from Freaking Jersey!, of all places, of not grasping sarcasm?

Might wanna reset your Sarcasmomoter there buddy.

Jess' reply was perfectly pithy and sarcastic, and should be on the curriculum in any locality where there is an overabundance of sensitivity.

 

Wait?!?! There's a new megamonster conglomerate the local hayzebois have to defend against?
Raise thoust pitchforks!

 

This is something to do with your friends at your own tastings, with beers you have available to you, and in styles you enjoy. Blind tasting certainly is a great way to determine which beer you like better between two samples at that moment in time.

I think I read 600 new beers are released every day on avg.. You can see how unworkable any system of judging is, including the present ones in use at beer fests. Expecting there to be enough people and ability to accurately do blind tastings on a meaningful level in order to offer help to consumers is misguided, at best.

 

What did you use for quarters? 1 DM coins?

 

And as a BA member we all see the holes in any type of ratings, personal preference is just that.

This topic comes up every few months about rating to style or rating to enjoyment. Personally I buy and drink for enjoyment so my ratings would obviously lean that way. Rating to style is probably beyond my tasting skills except for a few styles. I’m comfortable in a rut, I don’t really experiment and branch out and seek new beers. Now there’s more than a few guys or gals who are terrific at reviewing beers, they’re knowledgeable, unbiased imo, and well versed in beers of all styles from many countries. A few also home brew which I think is invaluable in understanding the science behind the brewing. I used to think that ratings to style was the way to go, but I think I’ve changed my mind, I don’t feel qualified to rate to style.

Me? I’m good giving out smiley faces, it says a lot with very, and based on how much I like that particular beer nothing more or less.

 

Permit me to tell you a story.

I went to Australia for a business trip several decades ago. I had a gabby taxi driver pick me up at the airport and he talked (I mostly listened) and he discussed various topics. One topic started with him asking: "What does beer cost in the US?". I responded with x dollars per case (PA beer stores sold by the case then). The taxi driver educated me that in Australia they refer to the case as a crate and he went on to say that a crate of Australian beer cost y dollars (with y>>x). I responded with "Whoa!". Later on he asked if I ever tasted VB (Victoria Bitter) and I responded "I have never heard of that beer"? I like the Bitter Ales of Great Britain (served via hand-pump) so I made a mental note to try some VB. During my first visit to an Australian pub the first beer I ordered was VB and to my surprise the beer was served cold, very carbonated and just by looking it at it I said to myself "This ain't no Bitter Ale". I took a sip and I was correct, the beer is a lager. And while I would have preferred a Bitter Ale I did enjoy drinking VB. For that trip I consumed a fair bit of VB - it was my Australian beer of choice.

I should point out that this was long ago; before Australian's started to really produce their craft beers.

Cheers to VB!

 

Question. You said you were surprised that the beer was cold, is it the norm elsewhere to serve beer at cellar temps? I’ve never been Down Under, but I see it as an inferno, and beer as cold as I could get would be the norm.

My brothers been to Italy where ice is short or not used to a great degree and sometimes no AC. They stayed at a hotel that had AC but at night they cut it off. I don’t think I could do Rome in the summer like that.

 

Honestly I think I could live with a thumbs up as worthy of buying or a thumbs down for not. I have trouble with degrees, what’s average? It’s not the high end we love or the low end we pour out, it’s the ones in the middle that are hard.

 

Upon first hearing the name of the beer: Victoria Bitter I made a mental association that this beer would be a Bitter Ale (i.e., like they serve in English pubs). In Great Britain, Bitter Ales are served in pubs via hand-pump delivery and those beers are at cellar temperature (i.e., not cold).

And you would be correct here. The beers of Australia are served cold (just like America). And for the case of VB that beer is brewed with adjuncts (e.g., corn) so for all intents and purposes it is an AAL type beer.

Yes, it is not unusual (and perhaps typical?) for hotels in Europe to not have AC. My wife and I went to the Czech Republic last year (end of September - early October) and I insisted that we not visit during the summer since the hotel likely would not have AC. As it turned out the hotel we stayed in did have an AC unit in the room that we controlled. We did not really need it but it was there. If you ever decide to visit Europe in the summertime make sure to ask/confirm that AC is available to you. Better yet travel during the non-summer months and you will both avoid hot weather while sightseeing and you will mitigate crowds if you are staying in a tourist popular spot.

Cheers!

 

Talk about the need to re-read. Jeez.

 

My brother went in July I think, the dates were set to Dragon Boat races outside of Rome, my Sister in Law belongs to a crew. My brother also spent a good part of that visit in a hospital in Florence with severe stomach problems. He also the only person in America who’s also had amoebic dysentery twice, last time after vacation at Myrtle Beach.

 

Well, if you consider that more Bud Light is produced than all craft beer produced, in total, by far, you get an idea that we are a niche, and a small one.