Beer-loving Aussies are turning to a softer brew

Metro-Mates?

[quote]Beer-loving Aussies are turning to a softer brew
By Rob Taylor, Tue May 1, 11:00 AM ET


A bottle of Foster’s beer stands near a freshly poured glass of beer on a bar of a hotel in Sydney, in this February 10, 2004 file photo. Australians, long regarded as a nation of beer drinkers rivaled only by the Germans, seem to be turning soft, or sober. (Will Burgess/Reuters)

CANBERRA (Reuters Life!) - Australians, long regarded as a nation of beer drinkers rivaled only by the Germans, seem to be turning soft, or sober.

After 113 years, the country’s biggest selling beer, Victoria Bitter, or VB, is to be produced in a mid-strength version to keep pace with the country’s fast-changing beer tastes.

VB, with its distinctive green label, has since 1894 been a staple of hard-drinking backyard barbecues, student revels and football games, not to mention healthy overseas exports.

Now brewer Foster’s has decided for the first time to produce the beer in a weaker yellow-label version with 3.5 percent strength, down from 5 percent, as Australians abandon it for scores of more upscale “boutique” or craft beers.

“The change has been dramatic. The drinking habits of Australians have been changing over time and what we have found is that the markets in growth are the premium and mid-strength markets,” Foster’s Brand Manager Felicity Watson told Reuters.

Mid-strength and boutique beers are the new darlings of Australia’s A$5.5 billion ($4.5 billion) beer industry, with 12 percent annual growth against flat sales for mainstream beers.

New boutique breweries including Cascade, Boag’s and James Squire have won huge followings in most city pubs, while so-called microbreweries such as Little Creatures, Mountain Goat and Blue Tongue have lured drinkers away from VB in droves.

“There is just a lot more choice and consumers are no longer attached to just one or two brands,” Watson said. “They will have a different brand for different occasions, if you’re out with a group of friends and you want to impress.”

In April boutique breweries in the state of Western Australia demanded the government provide them with tax breaks enjoyed by the country’s global wine industry to help them grow further.

Hundreds of craft breweries are opening and aiming to rival small European makers, turning Australians away from traditional lagers and on to more complex beer styles.

Watson said the new yellow VB would be backed by a A$35 million advertising campaign.

“We think the competition is a positive thing to be honest, because what it means is there’s a lot of interest in beer,” she said.
($1=A$1.20)
Yahoo News[/quote]

Mid-strength is for girls. That said, Australia is turning into a nation of wine drinkers. Of course drinking mid-strength simply means that it takes 30% more beer to get $hitfaced and you also take in 30% more calories.

Not only that, perhaps the brewers have finally worked out that just as much alcohol is consumed, but they get paid more for it because each beer is weaker.

One of the best beer commercials…

Tooheys beer commercial

I think the Sequel Advert should have involved the kiwis utilizing a sheep

TycOOn wrote [quote]I think the Sequel Advert should have involved the kiwis utilizing a sheep[/quote]

How typically Aussie. i hope the good posters of forumosa have noticed how obsessed Australians are with New Zealand. I guess we should take it as a compliment because the fact is that they resent our cultural and sporting achievements, not to mention our sophistication.

Anyway, back to beer. When I was in NZ, I used to brew a low strength beer (3%) for the summer months. You could drink it throughout the day without getting bagged. Of course, in the evening i would switch over to normal strength.

What really confuses me about that article is the presence of Fosters, when everybody knows Australians don’t drink that stuff.

HG

But its the only Australian beer that foreigners know about.

They’ll never water down Coopers, of that we can at least be sure!

HG

Coopers is made with water? Well, blow me down and bugger me with a chicken. I thought they made it with that shit they pulled out of the Murray River. Damn Croweaters. Tricky little devils.

There is enough sediment in Coopers for it to have come from a river.

Oz beer is just OK-lah. Some of the Cooper’s is OK while Boag’s and Cascade and another Tassie brew I can’t recall the name of are outstanding.
Stuff they sell in hotels is utter shite – worse than McEwan’s and Tennent’s.
Wine, though, and food. For average wining and dining (the only kind I can afford), Oz totally outstrips average French or Italian,IMO.
I can safely say that THE best grub I’ve ever tasted in my life was in OZ.

Now there’s a man who knows his beans… and his beers.

James Squire’s lager, anyone? Clyde river oysters? (right time of year for them)

I’m making myself homesick.

No, Oz beer is the 2nd worst in the world, following the US.

Squire’s lager? Can’t say I’ve had the pleasure. The porter I got in Breeze was a bloody lovely drop, though.

You have to try Matilda Bay Brewery.

[quote]At Matilda Bay, our philosophy is to brew in small, craft batches, creating beer with more flavour and character. We will continue to provide a diverse range of beers that offer real variety in terms of flavour and style.

Perennial favourites such as Redback, Bohemian Pilsner, Beez Neez and Rooftop are accompanied by an eclectic selection of small batch beers in our Brewer’s Reserve and ‘out-there’ ranges.[/quote]

These guys basically moved into my old local and transformed it around me many eons ago. Superb!

HG

Which acheivements would those be? You guys won any World cups recently or even made the finals of one?

The much vaunted Kiwis Rugby and Cricket teams have lost in the last 5 semi finals they made it to… Often to the less mere mortals from Australia who have taken 5 world cups.

Satellite TV wrote: [quote]Which achievements would those be? You guys won any World cups recently or even made the finals of one?

The much vaunted Kiwis Rugby and Cricket teams have lost in the last 5 semi finals they made it to… Often to the less mere mortals from Australia who have taken 5 world cups.[/quote]

GOD I HATE YOU!!!

The next Rugby World Cup is going to be different. We will win it. Because we bloody well deserve to win it - that’s why! I’ll give you good odds.

Anyway, we have lots of achievements to be proud of, but they are too numerous to mention.

Thats cause you never had any real US beer. Of course most people haven’t unless you live in Milwaukee. Sprecher, Lakefront, Capitol Brewery etc… all top notch beers, none of that Miller, PAbst, Schlitz, Blatz, Huber shit that also comes from Miltown or Beer City as it is known.

[quote=“almas john”]Satellite TV wrote: [quote]Which achievements would those be? You guys won any World cups recently or even made the finals of one?

The much vaunted Kiwis Rugby and Cricket teams have lost in the last 5 semi finals they made it to… Often to the less mere mortals from Australia who have taken 5 world cups.[/quote]

GOD I HATE YOU!!!

The next Rugby World Cup is going to be different. We will win it. Because we bloody well deserve to win it - that’s why! I’ll give you good odds.

Anyway, we have lots of achievements to be proud of, but they are too numerous to mention.[/quote]

Maaaaate, ewe best flock off home and sort out the lil’ women.

HG

HG wrote: [quote]Maaaaate, ewe best flock off home and sort out the lil’ women. [/quote]

Okay mate, but I want people to know that us Kiwis are not sick bastards. Sheep are seldom an A choice. We prefer women of the human variety. Sheep are just a substitute.

Anyway, I thought of better come back for Satellite TV. Here goes. Although Australia wins more than its share of sporting events, this is very misleading. Below this top tier, Kiwis are much more sporty. We have higher levels of participation and are a much fitter bunch. The OZ government pumps money into the sporting elite but the average OZ bloke is a fat drunken bastard who just watches sport.