# Why does the most popular beer in almost any country always suck? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** beer\ **Created:** [February 25, 2019, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163 "2019-02-25T04:53:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Royal\_Nonesutch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecb155/32.png) [@Royal\_Nonesutch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Royal_Nonesutch)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/41 "2019-02-25T16:59:37Z")
> [@Balthisar](#): > > You can’t get Corona in a can, but you can get Heineken in a can, where it’s infinitely better. Corona is sold in cans all over the Western U.S., but it is still a really awful tasting beer. Pacifico is always my Go To Mexican beer, but Negro Modelo is also good if you want something darker yet not overly heavy. ---
**Author:** ![ZonexandScout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zonexandscout/32/544_2.png) [@ZonexandScout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZonexandScout)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/42 "2019-02-25T18:00:18Z")
What? None listed for Cyprus? I’m guessing it’s Keo, which has about 1/3 of the market. It’s not bad. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/43 "2019-02-25T18:36:47Z")
"Most Popular’ doesn’t mean ‘best’. It means ‘best-selling’. So you have to figure in 2 factors that have nothing to do with taste. 1) price and 2) availability. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/44 "2019-02-25T18:47:56Z")
> [@Royal\_Nonesutch](#): > > So then I gather then that this is the time and place for all the worldly, cosmopolitan Straight Dopers to grandly, boldly proclaim how many different continents/countries/regions/cities/towns/villages they have beered in, and how that one tiny hamlet outside Ajdovscin has a minature, unmarked, even unnamed pivovarna that has been steadfastly brewing a transendent amber nectar since back in 1474, (throughout wars, famine, political upheaval and even the dark ascension of The Bee Gees) a brew that makes grown men openly, unstintingly weep manly tears of both spiritual and temporal ecstasy, a beer that emperors and scoundrels alike would joyfully give up all they possessed for, and blah, blah, blah, fucking blah… Oh, is that place still good? ---
**Author:** ![Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/45 "2019-02-25T18:56:34Z")
People who drink crap beer tend to drink a lot of it. My brother will drink six Bud Lights in a sitting. I’d rather have one beer that costs 2-3X as much, or a scotch, or a glass of wine, or or or… ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/46 "2019-02-25T19:46:14Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > It is hard for me to imagine that German brewers were happy to use rice or corn… I don’t know about “happy”, but I think it was definitely a matter of making economically sound beers with what was available in the US at the time. Now we (well, the US and Canada) grow a whole lot of various varieties of two-row barley. But I get the impression that for whatever reason, six-row was much more common then, and therefore cheaper. Same with US hops vs. imported ones. They used the US hops for the parts where the aroma/flavor wasn’t important. Basically the rice/corn wasn’t a cost cutting measure, but rather because the six-row barley wasn’t really ideal for brewing- it had a pronounced “grainy” flavor, and very high protein levels relative to two-row, and it caused stability problems, clarity problems and taste problems. By introducing a proportion of rice or corn, they could in essence, dilute the protein so that the resulting beers were more like what they wanted to produce. It was also convenient that the diastatic (starch-converting) enzyme content of six-row is sky high as well. And I think **Typo Negative** is on the right track as far as why they’re the most popular, and I’d add marketing as well. A lot of people aren’t drinking Bud Light because they prefer it to a lot of other beers (although those weirdos do exist), it’s because it’s cheap, ubiquitous and we’re bombarded with advertising for it. A good example is that even though I’m pretty well versed in beer stuff, if someone says “light beer”, Bud Light is the first one I think of, completely due to marketing, not taste, not because anyone in my friends or family drink it, etc… ---
**Author:** ![ISiddiqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/97f17d/32.png) [@ISiddiqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ISiddiqui)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/47 "2019-02-25T20:40:33Z")
> [@Typo\_Negative](#): > > "Most Popular’ doesn’t mean ‘best’. It means ‘best-selling’. > > So you have to figure in 2 factors that have nothing to do with taste. 1) price and 2) availability. Exactly. Mass market beers are cheap and widely available. I enjoy craft beer, and there are plenty beers that are very difficult to get either due to limited supply or they don’t distribute where I live yet. Add to that they are a good deal more expensive. These are issues Bud does not have. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/48 "2019-02-25T21:16:28Z")
> [@GreedySmurf](#): > > … They original makers of Bud based it of a pre-existing Czech recipe, hence using the Budweiser name. (Which FYI they’re not allowed to use in the EU)… Huh? [https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/299970666](https://www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/299970666) Of course they use the name Budweiser in the EU (still hanging on grimly). The situation is complicated by the fact that, in the UK at least, there is also a Czech beer available called Budweiser Budvar, which is very good. > **[Budweiser Budvar Czech lager | Waitrose & Partners](https://www.waitrose.com/ecom/products/budweiser-budvar-czech-lager/060279-30462-30463?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIs-j9u-XX4AIVq73tCh2nqgsgEAQYAyABEgLIDPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds)** > > Buy Budweiser Budvar Czech lager online from Waitrose today. Picked, packed and delivered by hand in convenient 1-hour slots - so you have to be careful what you ask for. This explains the naming of the American beer: [Budweiser Budvar Brewery - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budweiser_Budvar_Brewery) j ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/49 "2019-02-25T21:49:53Z")
> [@pkbites](#): > > Whenever I travel to a foreign land I try to find the cheapest brew available. You know, the “Milwaukee Best” of that locale. Something that would never get imported into the USA. I find that whatever it is it’s usually better than our premium beers. Go figure. What are you considering premium beers? ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/50 "2019-02-25T21:52:10Z")
Can’t comment on the other countries, but here’s the only reason why Oettinger is the most popular brand in Germany: because it’s the cheapest beer you can get. A case of Oettinger costs about half as much as most other, much better regarded brands. And because a lot of people drink a lot of beer here, it’s not hard to explain. ETA: and yes, it tastes awful. Never had a bud so I can’t compare. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Borgia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/larry_borgia/32/156_2.png) [@Larry\_Borgia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Borgia)\ **Post date:** [February 25, 2019, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/51 "2019-02-25T22:05:46Z")
I definitely prefer a Budweiser or Natty Boh to whatever overflavored crap craft brewers are putting out. I think a lot of people are looking for an easy drinking lightly flavored alcoholic beverage. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 3:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/52 "2019-02-26T03:24:29Z")
Some countries don’t have a beer listed. Not Surprising. But I would expect Saudi Arabia to be one of those countries. But googling, Moussy is non-alcoholic beer. Isn’t “non-alcoholic beer” an oxymoron? ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/53 "2019-02-26T04:39:36Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > Of nearly all the beers pictured on that map that I’ve had, they were almost all essentially indistinguishable from an American Budweiser or Bud Light, and I’m willing to bet that holds true for a vast majority of the ones I’ve not tried. Budweiser doesn’t suck. It’s nothing exciting, but it’s a balanced, refreshing drink that gives you a buzz and doesn’t cost much. What sucks about that? I mentioned this in the other thread about controversial opinions, but will repeat it here, because let’s get serious: Most craft beers are terrible. Credit to people trying, but the great majority of craft beers are genuinely awful and a lot of the oohing and aahing over them is gushing over the emperor’s new clothes. Bud isn’t my favourite beer but I can see why people rely on it when they just want a decent beer. Cost matters, too. Bud’s cheap. Even slightly better consumer beers like Stella or my current go-to, Krombacher, are sufficiently more money that if you drink a lot or you’re just a little short on funds, that can mean a lot. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/54 "2019-02-26T05:15:50Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Budweiser doesn’t suck. It’s nothing exciting, but it’s a balanced, refreshing drink that gives you a buzz and doesn’t cost much. What sucks about that? > > I mentioned this in the other thread about controversial opinions, but will repeat it here, because let’s get serious: Most craft beers are terrible. Credit to people trying, but the great majority of craft beers are genuinely awful and a lot of the oohing and aahing over them is gushing over the emperor’s new clothes. Bud isn’t my favourite beer but I can see why people rely on it when they just want a decent beer. > > Cost matters, too. Bud’s cheap. Even slightly better consumer beers like Stella or my current go-to, Krombacher, are sufficiently more money that if you drink a lot or you’re just a little short on funds, that can mean a lot. Right. Beer is a _beverage_, not some kind of holy elixir that has to be the most exquisite taste sensation every time I drink it. I really like beer. But when I have a couple of glasses with a restaurant meal or when eating at home, it may as well be a Bud or equivalent, because I want something refreshing to wash down the meal, not something that will overwhelm the food. I may have a Guinness or other dark beer sometimes, but that only works with something really hearty like beef. When I go out drinking with a bunch of friends, we may go to a brew pub and try a bunch of different craft beers. Then I can concentrate on the taste. Some I like a lot, but probably three out of four I wouldn’t order again. (And I can’t understand the fad for IPAs - I don’t really like them very much. For New Year’s Eve my trendy brother got almost nothing but IPAs and some weird fruity brews. Fortunately there were a few Sam Adams in the back of the fridge.) What I find particularly annoying is people who think that liking something different than what they like must be due to some intellectual or moral failing. (Now of course almost everyone is prone to this to some extent. I like pretty spicy food, and when someone orders something marked with fewer than three chiles on the menu at a Thai or Mexican place I do feel a bit of smug superiority. :)) Unfortunately, although the development is much more recent, beer snobbery in the last decade has started to approach wine snobbery in pretentiousness and obnoxiousness. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/55 "2019-02-26T05:23:12Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Budweiser doesn’t suck. It’s nothing exciting, but it’s a balanced, refreshing drink that gives you a buzz and doesn’t cost much. What sucks about that?. Honestly, the language was provocative because I know that gets clicks and responses. Some people focus on that, others address the rest of it, or both. Sorry. But it got everyone in the room. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/56 "2019-02-26T05:24:41Z")
And full disclosure, when it comes to beer I both love it and am not particularly discerning, as some of you have suggested (or said outright). Frankly my regular beer purchases for home consumption are 30-pack cubes of Tecate or Miller High Life because they’re cheap and they come in bulk. When I want to spring for something “fancy” I get a 12-pack of Yuengling. I am fully aware these are not “great” beers, but they and their ilk are not the bottom of the barrel either; they are clean, consistent products that are produced specifically for mass consumption and value, and that is a very difficult thing to do. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/57 "2019-02-26T07:27:33Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Cost matters, too. Bud’s cheap. Even slightly better consumer beers like Stella or my current go-to, Krombacher, are sufficiently more money that if you drink a lot or you’re just a little short on funds, that can mean a lot. Man, I hate Stella. It doesn’t taste bad or anything, but it’s not particularly good for the inflated price. I’ll absolutely drink it. And as it’s from Belgium it’s pretty embarassing. The other Belgian macro (at least in the US) is Hoegaarden, and that’s pretty good. If you spend a little more, you have a world of Trappist beers in Belgium and other countries. > [@DCnDC](#): > > When I want to spring for something “fancy” I get a 12-pack of Yuengling. I am fully aware these are not “great” beers, but they and their ilk are not the bottom of the barrel either; they are clean, consistent products that are produced specifically for mass consumption and value, and that is a very difficult thing to do. Yuengling is a very cheap beer. But in my opinion, and I think objectively, it’s really quite good. Sadly it’s impossible to find west of the Mississippi or thereabouts. Pennsylvania beer with inroads in the south. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/58 "2019-02-26T08:51:53Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > Man, I hate Stella. It doesn’t taste bad or anything, but it’s not particularly good for the inflated price. I’ll absolutely drink it. And as it’s from Belgium it’s pretty embarassing. The other Belgian macro (at least in the US) is Hoegaarden, and that’s pretty good. If you spend a little more, you have a world of Trappist beers in Belgium and other countries. In the UK, Stella is known as Wife Beater, as it’s stronger than similar lagers and associated with binge drinking as a result. Yeuch. ---
**Author:** ![polar\_bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ec9cab/32.png) [@polar\_bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/polar_bear)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/59 "2019-02-26T10:11:53Z")
Hoegaarden makes a wheat beer. Typical pilsner in Belgium is often Jupiler. Verstuurd vanaf mijn moto g(6) met Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![Wrenching\_Spanners](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/ecb155/32.png) [@Wrenching\_Spanners](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wrenching_Spanners)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2019, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163/60 "2019-02-26T13:17:04Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > In the UK, Stella is known as Wife Beater, as it’s stronger than similar lagers and associated with binge drinking as a result. Yeuch. I’ve heard the Wife Beater jokes, but these days they’re mostly nostalgic. Stella Artois in the UK is 4.8% ABV. That’s stronger than the 4% lagers such as Carling, Carlsberg and Fosters, but the same as Budweiser and Becks and lower than Heineken and Kronenbourg at 5%. Carlsberg Special Brew at 8% seems to be the high strength beer of choice. Stella’s as good as any other mass-marketed lager. Put me in a blind taste test and I doubt I could tell the difference in any of them. (Well, probably Special Brew but I’ve never tried it.) My personal favourite is Old Empire IPA but that’s definitely not a best seller. BTW, Carling was identified as the most popular beer for Britain. However, it’s not actually very popular. I’m guessing it’s because all the other listed popular lagers have foreign origins, even though many of them are actually brewed in the UK for the domestic market. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-does-the-most-popular-beer-in-almost-any-country-always-suck/830163.md?page=4)