Not sure how everyone feels about this one but beers brewed in another country are not what they are when they are brewed at their home countries .

I got some bottles of Staropramem on Friday all happy with myself only to find out that they were brewed in Burton on Trent , yep should have read the labels but still conned i think .

So many drinks are not as they were so to say now i did drink Becks for a good while as it was only brewed in Bremen, Germany .

So much liked Fosters in Australia but in the UK it was bog water really .

One thing i have never done in the last 25 year is to drink Guinness in any other country apart from Ireland , hey i even only drink it in Dublin these days when i can .

Some breweries have different blends for the UK market due to tax on alcohol being higher here

Amstel and Heineken are 2 if these that do this 100% but will be loads

Tribesmen wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 4:30 pm

Not sure how everyone feels about this one but beers brewed in another country are not what they are when they are brewed at their home countries .

I got some bottles of Staropramem on Friday all happy with myself only to find out that they were brewed in Burton on Trent , yep should have read the labels but still conned i think .

So many drinks are not as they were so to say now i did drink Becks for a good while as it was only brewed in Bremen, Germany .

So much liked Fosters in Australia but in the UK it was bog water really .

One thing i have never done in the last 25 year is to drink Guinness in any other country apart from Ireland , hey i even only drink it in Dublin these days when i can .

I tend to only drink British beers (blondes and IPAs) here. Occasional Moretti or similar but that’s about it.

I’d never had Guinness until I first went to Ireland, it was OK, but must admit to preferring the Murphy’s in Cork to Guinness in Dublin.

They're brewed for taste of the local market.
Budweiser in the States is completely different to the stuff brewed and sold here,for example.

Is it still true that guinness in Ireland is different from in the UK ? I did the Dublin stag do as a young man and drunk many pints of the stuff the first night but woke up with a clear head. Just a myth ?

"Puh! HEINEKEN..."

Frank was right; licking the end of a battery tastes better.

One drink that's better in the UK than where it's brewed... Estrella Damn.

So awful in Barcelona, I've only once tried it back here, just to see.

Guinness in Ireland from a proper handpump rather than a gassed keg is a different drink, much better. Funnily Amstels drunk in Greece taste better than those in the Netherlands (but not the draught), perhaps the heat makes it a better experience.

Beers are just brand names for breweries.

They're all different in different countries, different abv different ingredients

And yes, you fall in love with a decent foreign beer, pay £2 for a can for an import one then and after a while they finally start brewing it in the UK, lower the abv, completely change the taste and charge you the same/more for an interior product

Fenwick wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 5:08 pm

Is it still true that guinness in Ireland is different from in the UK ? I did the Dublin stag do as a young man and drunk many pints of the stuff the first night but woke up with a clear head. Just a myth ?

Did something similar in the 90s in Kilarney. Met a local who took me and my ex to his club. Drank far more Guinness than was good for me as I was driving to the Dingle Peninsular the following day. Not a sign of a headache in the morning. Different drink altogether than it is here.

They have competent bar staff in Ireland as well. Serving multiple customers at once, though I’m still not convinced that the pour, settle, pour method makes much difference.

UK Guinness used to be brewed at Park Royal, West London so it was a different drink. It is now all brewed in Dublin.

Not sure if true, but I was chatting to a friend about beer and mentioned that Blond Witch wasn't as good these days and apparently due to its popularity they get it brewed at one of the major brewers, not sure which one.

Listening to boring old blokes go on about beer is like being stuck in a room full of train spotters.

A mate dragged be to a beer festival and made it sound like a right lively p*ss up and it was just a load of geeky bespectacled lads, old fat blokes with beards and not a female or anyone remotely interesting in sight

Devils_Advocate wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 6:47 pm

Listening to boring old blokes go on about beer is like being stuck in a room full of train spotters.

A mate dragged be to a beer festival and made it sound like a right lively p*ss up and it was just a load of geeky bespectacled lads, old fat blokes with beards and not a female or anyone remotely interesting in sight

I wondered who it was drinking cans of Carling instead of quaffing Old Toms armpit and other delights.

bfcjg wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 6:36 pm

Not sure if true, but I was chatting to a friend about beer and mentioned that Blond Witch wasn't as good these days and apparently due to its popularity they get it brewed at one of the major brewers, not sure which one.

It might be true for the bottled version (which has a slightly higher ABV), but the cask version is definitely brewed at the brewery on Accrington Road.

ElectroClaret wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 4:52 pm

They're brewed for taste of the local market.
Budweiser in the States is completely different to the stuff brewed and sold here,for example.

Budweiser isn't American so it will not taste like the proper stuff .

Budweiser Budvar (Czech: Budějovický Budvar [ˈbuɟɛjovɪtskiː ˈbudvar]) is a brewery in the Czech city of České Budějovice (German: Budweis), best known for its original Budweiser or Budweiser Budvar pale lager brewed using artesian water, Moravian barley and Saaz hops.

Devils_Advocate wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 6:47 pm

Listening to boring old blokes go on about beer is like being stuck in a room full of train spotters.

A mate dragged be to a beer festival and made it sound like a right lively p*ss up and it was just a load of geeky bespectacled lads, old fat blokes with beards and not a female or anyone remotely interesting in sight

which was you ....
The Geeky bespectacled lad or the old fat bloke with a beard ... or the train spotter in the anorak with the pens in the top pocket

Bosscat wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 7:07 pm

which was you ....
The Geeky bespectacled lad or the old fat bloke with a beard ... or the train spotter in the anorak with the pens in the top pocket

Non, I f*cked off to a normal pub where people didnt get excited by getting a 10p CAMRA discount

BurnleyFC wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 6:59 pm

It might be true for the bottled version (which has a slightly higher ABV), but the cask version is definitely brewed at the brewery on Accrington Road.

Its all brewed at Accrington Road, bottle and cask. The bottle version is no different. Because its pasteurised, filtered and artificially carbonated it will seem different to the cask version

And wht the fcuk did strongbow drop to 4.5%?

I'm having to do a bottle of turps before I go out these days to get me on the way

Beer is always different wherever you are. It the experience what your having that changes it over time. Have a Carling in a run down boozer up north on a dreary winters day. Then have the same one in the beach in Barbados. Just using that as an extreme example. Remember stuff because if the experience rather than the taste.

Bosscat wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 7:06 pm

Budweiser isn't American so it will not taste like the proper stuff .

Budweiser Budvar (Czech: Budějovický Budvar [ˈbuɟɛjovɪtskiː ˈbudvar]) is a brewery in the Czech city of České Budějovice (German: Budweis), best known for its original Budweiser or Budweiser Budvar pale lager brewed using artesian water, Moravian barley and Saaz hops.

I knew that about Ceske Budejovice and Portillo went there last week on GCRJ and never mentioned the fact.
I had a Staropramem, brought in by visitors, recently. Bought at Lidl and tasted mighty fine to me but I’m no connoisseur. If Tribesmen reckons it’s not as good as at it’s home I’ll be sure to try some when we can travel again.

Devils_Advocate wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 7:10 pm

Non, I f*cked off to a normal pub where people didnt get excited by getting a 10p CAMRA discount

And there were birds there, presumably,

I remember living in Oz around 1999 and Guinness was brewed under license at the (I think) Castlemaine brewery in QLD. Evidently it was a different recipe to the Irish one. However, they took the decision to change to the Irish one and due to the need of closing everything down to change over Australia ran out of Guinness for a short period....

Not a lager drinker, but it’s a shame about Staropramen because it definitely used to be imported - certainly the bottled version - and I quite liked it.

A long time ago I went on a tour of the Burtonwood brewery near Warrington. At the time, they had a UK license to brew Stella and they explained the process. In order to try and replicate the “original” taste, they put additives in the water so it was the correct “hardness” and artificially cultured the yeast. So if it doesn’t taste like the “genuine” stuff it’s probably because there's a lot of sh!t in in it!

I also believe they’ve reduced the strength of Stella now as well, probably to counter its “wife beater” reputation. Most of the UK brewed “continental” lagers do tend to be weaker than the originals though, which is another reason they don’t taste of anything.

Devils_Advocate wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 6:47 pm

Listening to boring old blokes go on about beer is like being stuck in a room full of train spotters.

A mate dragged be to a beer festival and made it sound like a right lively p*ss up and it was just a load of geeky bespectacled lads, old fat blokes with beards and not a female or anyone remotely interesting in sight

Nothing like stereotyping, just remember you could end up like 1 of them one of these days, regarding no females in sight that's preferable for some men you get out to relax with nobody henpecking, mobiles switched off & tankards full.

huw.Y.WattfromWare wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 11:17 pm

I knew that about Ceske Budejovice and Portillo went there last week on GCRJ and never mentioned the fact.
I had a Staropramem, brought in by visitors, recently. Bought at Lidl and tasted mighty fine to me but I’m no connoisseur. If Tribesmen reckons it’s not as good as at it’s home I’ll be sure to try some when we can travel again.

Must admit love I loved Starprommen when we were in Prague, and we occasionally get it on draught in the local... but it is brewed in the UK under licence...

Years ago I went around the caves in Plzen on a brewery tour where they stored Pilsner Urquell ... they used these caves to hide it from the Germans in ww2

NewClaret wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 11:41 pm

And there were birds there, presumably,

Secretary birds

Gordaleman wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 5:37 pm

Did something similar in the 90s in Kilarney. Met a local who took me and my ex to his club. Drank far more Guinness than was good for me as I was driving to the Dingle Peninsular the following day. Not a sign of a headache in the morning. Different drink altogether than it is here.

As for hangovers yep you drink enough of it and you will feel bad no matter what .


Guinness can be up in down in some places but Dublin as a rule is something else , i must say have had bottles of African Guinness brewed in Nigeria at 8.5 % boy wild stuff .
St James gate brew West Indies Porter at 6% which i think is outstanding . To be honest i don't know the best places in Dublin to drink but Grogans , the Gravediggers and Ryans close to Lansdowne are as good as you can get for an outstanding pint of Guinness.

Tribesmen wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 4:30 pm

Not sure how everyone feels about this one but beers brewed in another country are not what they are when they are brewed at their home countries .

I got some bottles of Staropramem on Friday all happy with myself only to find out that they were brewed in Burton on Trent , yep should have read the labels but still conned i think .

So many drinks are not as they were so to say now i did drink Becks for a good while as it was only brewed in Bremen, Germany .

So much liked Fosters in Australia but in the UK it was bog water really .

One thing i have never done in the last 25 year is to drink Guinness in any other country apart from Ireland , hey i even only drink it in Dublin these days when i can .

Sainsbury’s own brand Czech lager is the real stuff - brewed in Prague by staropramen - and it’s cheaper than the burton shite

Tribesmen wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 4:30 pm

One thing i have never done in the last 25 year is to drink Guinness in any other country apart from Ireland , hey i even only drink it in Dublin these days when i can .

I do believe Guinness is brewed in Ireland. Only other place they brew is Nigeria. Obviously there's more to keeping it well than the distance it travels but keg beer isn't tricky to keep well.

DCWat wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 12, 2020 6:08 pm

They have competent bar staff in Ireland as well. Serving multiple customers at once, though I’m still not convinced that the pour, settle, pour method makes much difference.

The way they make it does make a difference. It means the head is firmer and won't slosh around. Neither will it be too large. As the head forms, the volume in the glass drops so if you don't do the pour, settle, pour method you're losing out on beer.

Of course, the whole thing is a gimmick though but they choose to make it that way. It's something which is necessary because they make it necessary. I once heard that Guinness know how to pour pints perfectly in a few seconds but they choose not to do so because it would devalue their product.

The true purpose of it is in the performance and making you wait. It's about giving a half-decent pasturized keg stout the ritual clout of a proper hand-pulled cask variety.

Now the have this while nossle thing at Lansdowne where they just free pour and at some speed also .

Never tried it as plastic glasses will put most off . But they do it .

Off topic. But used to love "Old dan" did a pale and brown ale around 7.5 volume. Made by Thraites i believe. Not sure they make it anymore.

I remember seeing a video from the BBC archives that showed guiness being served in the early 70's in Ireland. Two thirds of the pint was from an older, aged barrel, gravity dispensed. The final third was I think keg dispensed, fresh guiness that made it lively. Guiness was also one of the last main beers to be bottle conditioned until they stopped it in the 80's.
Its not a bad beer now but there are much better stouts available. Went on a stag do to Dublin 2 years ago and drank it solid for 2 days. It didn't really taste any different to a pint over here

Stick with some definitely English good ales, Boltmekker (Boltmaker) and Landlord from good old Timothy Taylors in Keighley.

durhamclaret wrote: ↑

Mon Sep 14, 2020 1:58 pm

Stick with some definitely English good ales, Boltmekker (Boltmaker) and Landlord from good old Timothy Taylors in Keighley.

I had a belting pint of Landlord in the Kettledrum on Saturday

Pilsner should be always Plzen brewed. Staropramen is considered a poor beer here, nevermind when brewed in Burton

From wiki:

Pilsner Urquell is today brewed solely in the Pilsen brewery. It was brewed between 2002 and 2011 in Tychy, Poland[13] and between 2004 and 2017 in Kaluga, Russia.[14]