Reading the dope, and elsewhere, I got the picture that many famous foreign beers in America are really not popular or noticed in their original countries. Fosters, Corona, Heineken, etc. But is that is so, can somebody point to reliable sources that show what is the preferred local beer in other countries? Input from foreign dopers will be appreciated.
Related to that: What about Guinness? It is still popular in England? I am also interested in the status of Sapporo beer from Japan.
Finally: Are there any international beer competitions that beer connoisseurs follow? In other words: can we trust that the medals beer x claims to have won in international competitions = quality?
Sapporo is number three in market share out of the 4 big Japanese brewers. Kirin is number one by quite a bit, followed by Asahi. I lean towards Sapporo myself (although that faith was sorely tested when they changed the taste of their Ebisu brand).
Tsingtao is the number one beer in China, and IMHO the best of the mainstream beers here. The fresh stuff from the Qingdao brewery is pretty tasty. A lot of their subsidiary breweries pump out some foul carbonated water.
GIGO: Keep in mind that popular doesn’t always mean good. All About Beer magazine regularly reports on international competitions in addition to regular features on foreign and microbrewed beer. I believe their website is: www.allaboutbeer.com
Cheers!
Sapporo’s not alone in screwing up, I guess. Why, oh why, did they change the taste of Ebisu? Kirin, IMHO, really blew it years ago when they quit making Biru Ginjo.
The Japanese beers brewed in China are absolutely horrible, and nothing like what is brewed in Japan. The Asahi is probably the worst of the lot. Ditto Steinlager, which is one of the finest light lagers in the world but tastes like sweetend cat piss brewed here in China.
I’m not a Tiger beer fan, but yes the Tiger girls are worthy of mention.
when I was in Vietnam, I ended up gravitating to Tiger. It’s bland and inoffensive, but that can be a good thing in the tropics. It beats 333 and the locally brewed Fosters (yech) which was everywhere last time I was there. Bia Sai Gon is nice, but it’s only 3.5% alc.vol.
Oh, and Singha has to be one of the worst beers I’ve ever tasted. It has this weird not-brushed-my-teeth-for-a-week aftertaste.
So is Tsingtao still owned by Fosters? Can we forgive them for that? It is more drinkable than Fosters (not that that’d be hard).
Nothing to forgive as Tsingtao is not owned by Fosters. It is listed on the HK Stock Exchange. The Anheiser-Busch company owns a 5% stake in Tsingtao and is in talks with Tsingtao for further something.
Guinness certainly is popular in England, but that’s not related to your question about beers being popular in their original countries – Guinness is Irish, and I’d advise you never to refer to it as English in the presence of an Irishmen (which I’m not, so don’t worry!)
While I was in Germany the beer of choice was Bitberger. Took a little getting used to, it played hell on my digestive system. It was strange seeing Budweiser on the list of imported beers.
NOTE: I tried an imported Bitberger when I got back, belch it was like sex in a canoe again.
Whenever I’ve been in the States, there has rarely been a problem getting Molson Canadian or Molson Export, both of which are awful but not quite so bad as American beer! And yes, these are popular in Canada - both lagers aimed at the lowest-common-denominator market.
I understand that Moosehead (lager, from New Brunswick on the East Coast) is available in New England; it has quite a following in Ontario. I believe the same can be said for Keith’s (pale ale).
You probably won’t get the chance in Arizona, but try Upper Canada Dark Ale if you get the chance. Very hoppy, with a nice bite to it. Most people don’t like it and won’t drink it … which is wonderful! Imagine, a domestic (to me) beer with enough taste to arouse a reaction!
I drank Budvar in the Czech Republic. I don’t think it’s sold in the U.S. which sells Budweiser – not the same thing. Budvar is very good. Smooth. No comparison. Anyone know if Budvar is available in Canada?
There’s a presumtion in the question that the natives know better about beer than the pasty Americans who buy the watered-down export product. But here in America, domestic beers sell in inverse proportion to how good they are; Sam Adams soesn’t sell in Budweiser numbers. Aren’t foreign beer drinkers as susceptible to marketing as we are? Don’t Mexican and Chinese working stiffs buy whatever’s cheap and ubiquitous?
oooh GIGObuster! c’mere to me while i slap you!
Guinness is IRISH!
(and personally i don’t drink it outside of Ireland…including England, it tastes funny)
in Ireland it is (of course) very popular, but in the west of the country Murphy’s stout is the drink of choice. it’s similar, but sweeter.
most of the traditionalists drink their Guinness (but not lager) at room temperature, the young and trendy prefer the Extra Cold version.
as for a pale beer…Harp lager, brewed by the Guinness company is very popular, as are McCaffrey’s, Tennents and Kilkenny. I like Smithwicks, but it’s a bit of an old man’s drink.
Beck’s, Miller, Heineken, Stella Artois, Erdinger Weissbier and Budweiser are available in most bars, and have their own followings.
the most popular beer among my fellow students is Dutch Gold…it’s wet, cold and a can costs 1euro
it’s also nothing like beer!
as for Czech beer…in Prague Pilsner Urquell seemed to be the beer on offer in most places…
and as for Dutch beer, i’ll admit i quite like Amstell, it reminds me of holidays in Italy and Greece…where it was either that or the cheapest wine on the menu!
The Fosters sold here in the States say “Product of Canada” right on the can/bottle. Can someone explain that? How can they say it’s Austraillian for beer when the stuff they sell here is actually being made under contract in Canada?
In Venezuela, the beer of choice is “Polar”. They almost have a monopoly here. They have several different beers, and a premium beer called “Solera” (my preference goes with this one). If you haven’t tried it, you should.
I think you’re right. Go to a normal pub on a Friday night in the UK and chances are most people will be drinking whatever tap lager is on (usually Stella Artois, Foster’s, Carlsberg, Carling, Heineken or any more ‘premium’ lagers), or bottles, occasionally Guinness, or spirit-based bottled drinks. Real ales do not sell in the same quantities.
