I just drank a bottle of Gold Medal Taiwan beer, and that went down well enough.
I recommend more.
Is one bottle ever enough? 
Yes, but did you drink it as you lay on the banks of some Edenic swimming hole in Wulai with dryads and hamadryads prancing about the shady glen, writhing with the breeze and lightly carassing themselves with elephant grass, while brown skinned gypsy girls fed you peeled grapes and whispered sweet lines of erotic verse from the days of Dionysius?
Anything would taste good then.
I recommend more.
Is one bottle ever enough? [/quote]
The tag-line for another ‘great’ NA beer Scheaffer
Yes, but did you drink it as you lay on the banks of some Edenic swimming hole in Wulai with dryads and hamadryads prancing about the shady glen, writhing with the breeze and lightly carassing themselves with elephant grass, while brown skinned gypsy girls fed you peeled grapes and whispered sweet lines of erotic verse from the days of Dionysius?
Anything would taste good then.[/quote]
There wasn’t any elephant grass.
Mer wrote: [quote]The bottles are better than the cans. [/quote]
In an ideal world we could all drink from glass. My respect to those who can. I am like the bros from South Auckland - I can’t handle glass. I prefer the taste of glass, but there are too many breakages. I remember one time late at night, reaching into the Sacred Giver of Live (i.e. the fridge), when the condensation on the bottle (and perhaps my advanced state of “pissment” caused me to drop it. As soon as it shattered on the floor, my fire alarm kicked off. I tried to turn off the alarm but without success. In desperation, I grabbed a meat cleaver from the kitchen and attacked my wiring box. It was messy, it was excessive violence, but it worked. In other words, cans are safer.
In an ideal world we could all drink from glass. My respect to those who can. I am like the bros from South Auckland - I can’t handle glass. I prefer the taste of glass, but there are too many breakages. I remember one time late at night, reaching into the Sacred Giver of Live (i.e. the fridge), when the condensation on the bottle (and perhaps my advanced state of “pissment” caused me to drop it. As soon as it shattered on the floor, my fire alarm kicked off. I tried to turn off the alarm but without success. In desperation, I grabbed a meat cleaver from the kitchen and attacked my wiring box. It was messy, it was excessive violence, but it worked. In other words, cans are safer.[/quote]
I was speaking specifically of Taiwan Beer. In general, glass or can, either is fine with me. I don’t mind cans at all. However, the Taiwan Beer that comes in the tall cans (473ml?) just seems to be a bit foul tasting compared to the smaller cans or the bottles. I don’t know why.
[quote=“Elegua”]No it doesn’t. The worst beer in the Asia is Star
[/quote]
I dunno. Star beer tasted pretty darned good upon our return to KTM, after a few weeks on the Anapurna circuit.
It’s not the best beer in Asia, but I have some fond memories of Star beer, believe it or not.
But then I’m one for drinking the local beer in whichever country I am in–Beer Lao in Laos, Angkor Beer in Cambodia, Singha or Chang in Thailand, too many to remember in Vietnam, or even Haywards 5000 Strong in India or Red Panda in Bhutan.
I still say that Taiwan beer is the best accompaniment to Taiwanese food. Proof of this is at the Taiwan Beer Bar in Taipei–grilled Taiwanese sausages with cloves of garlic and a big glass of draft Taiwanese beer–nothing better.
[quote=“fee”][quote=“Elegua”]No it doesn’t. The worst beer in the Asia is Star
[/quote]
I dunno. Star beer tasted pretty darned good upon our return to KTM, after a few weeks on the Anapurna circuit.
It’s not the best beer in Asia, but I have some fond memories of Star beer, believe it or not.
But then I’m one for drinking the local beer in whichever country I am in–Beer Lao in Laos, Angkor Beer in Cambodia, Singha or Chang in Thailand, too many to remember in Vietnam, or even Haywards 5000 Strong in India or Red Panda in Bhutan.
I still say that Taiwan beer is the best accompaniment to Taiwanese food. Proof of this is at the Taiwan Beer Bar in Taipei–grilled Taiwanese sausages with cloves of garlic and a big glass of draft Taiwanese beer–nothing better.[/quote]
Note - it tasted good after trekking. by the end of my trek to RaRa lake I was drinking local home brewed chang…
I fully agree - Taiwan Beer is excellent with most Chinese food. I think it goes best on a hot summer day in a wagon wheel mug (draft) at a harbor side seafood restaurant with steamed shrimp dipped in wasabi, same for cuttlefish, some fresh sashimi, a crab or two, some chow laaaahh or hai gua tse…etc…
The gold medal Taiwan beer in the green bottle is a superb lager.
Whenever I have visitors the first thing we do is head to the 7-11 for orientation (i.e. by a cold one). They won’t drink anything else after trying it.
I even get requests to bring a few bottles with me on my travels. 
The difference between can and glass has something to do with the carbonation I suppose …
I used to enjoy a nice bottle of Taiwan Draft (draught ) Beer, but it seems to have all vanished now. It used to be a little trouble for the stockists as it would be returned to the brewery after seven days of bottling if not consumed and when all the other import lagers came in they seemed to lack favor for the good old draught.
“Currently, the Taiwan Beer production facility is managed by the city government’s Civil Planning Department.”
Well that explains why it always gives me a headache after drinking it then.
I don’t understand how you can have ‘draft’ in a bottle …
[quote]From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Draught beer (also called draft beer or tap beer) has several related though slightly different understandings. The majority of references to draught beer are of filtered beer that has been served from a pressurized container, such as a keg or a widget can. A narrower meaning is beer that is served from a keg (or tap), but not from a can, bottle or cask, is also used. A more traditional definition is beer that is served from a large container, which could be either a keg or a cask. The different understandings may at times overlap and cause confusion.[/quote]
[quote=“redwagon”]You may think Chinese-brewed Tsingtao tastes okay, but I think it tastes like watery piss. And so do all the other Chinese beers, and all the foreign beers that are brewed in China like Kirin, Asahi etc.
It takes good water to produce good beer, and there ain’t much of that either in Taiwan or in China. At least you can get imported beer in just about any store in Taiwan. More than can be said for some places.[/quote]
Hear hear. I DREAM about Taiwan Beer… Hmmm…
The “beer” here in China is so piss-poor, I’ve given up trying to drink it. Even the Heineken is so weak you can easily race through 20 tins of it of an evening and remain sober. What a con. Luckily, imported spirits are reasonably prices. Drinking my way through a bottle of vodka at the moment. Doesn’t Vodka Tonic just remind you of being 17 in some nightclub queuing up to throw your ring? Hmmm. Rum and coke next. My next retrograde step has got to be Southern Comfort. Lovely.
Can I offer you a Malibu and Coke? Midori and Lemonade?
Nice topic but I guess none of the beers here would get higher on a scale than drinkable (just when served really cold, you know it is a good beer if you can drink it even when it is warm… 
).
Maybe I am too spoild, growing up in Austria, right next to Bavaria and very close to Cech Republic (with plenty of excursions in both regions). Even the small town of Salzburg (145k people) had 5 or 6 breweries with decent beers.
Sitting in a “Biergarten” and drinking the fresh draught beer out of a colled stone jar is something I just can dream about here.
Or experiences like catching suspicous views and questions like “Are you a girl?” when ordering a 1/2 litre glass of beer in Munich (well I had to drive back to Salzburg on Autobahn later that day 
)
Now the good thing is, I almost stopped drinking beer here now besides some special occasions.
I used to drink gallons of beer. I thought Taiwan Gold medal in the bottle OR can was the most drinkable stuff in the 7-11. I mean, Heinekin sucks, really. It’s like a Mcbeer, so generic it’s in it’s own class. Kirin is skanky. Tsingdao gives a headache. There used to be some English beers in cans that were all right for one but not really good for general consumption, like with a meal or if you are having a piss up.
Taiwan Draft that you get in the green bottles served only in restaurants is pretty good as well.
Quentin wrote:
Vietnam? Are you mad? On my one trip to Hanoi I drank the local Bia Ha Noi and it was like they had opened a bottle of Coors Light and watered it down by 50%. Maybe there are other better beers in Vietnam but that was my worst Asian beer experience.
You failed to mention Beer Lao from Laos my best Asian beer experience. I fairly light brew you can drink one after another. I only wish they exported it, I have never seen it anywhere but Laos.
About once a week I motor down to my local mom & pop shop where they fill a nylon bag (they gave me) with 8 bottles of tall Taiwan beers. For something like NT$350 it is also very well priced. I really enjoy Taiwan beer from the bottle. From the can however, is another story. And Taiwan draft (on tap) is also very good. Not to mention they sponsored the WINNING SBL team this past season. I will always be grateful for Taiwan Beer. I still have yet to visit their brewery on Bade Rd. Has anyone been and how is it?
On a side note, I took a trip to Malaysia recently and they did not seem to have a national beer. In addition, all alcohol was ridiculously overpriced. The equivalent of a tall bottle of Taiwan beer (say Carlesburg) costs about NT$145. There is also no price difference between buying it in a 7-11 and buying it in a bar, both the same price. I could not for the life of me figure out why. And liquor prices were through the roof. A bottle of Johnny Walker was something like NT$1,500. Anyone know why this is?
Laos Beer IS really good. Went on 2-wk trip to Laos in 2002 and loved the beer, coffee (Laotian coffee rocks) and french bread. Loved the beer so much, bought like 5 Laos Beer t-shirts to take back for my family and friends.
As for Taiwan beer. Anyone remember the only beer that came in a bottle was in the brown bottle. Now, that was skanky, but that was in early 1990s.
Then Taiwan Beer came out with the Draft Beer (Sheng Pi-Jiu) in a bottle, and was extremely good. But, alas, as noted above, can’t hardly find it anymore in Taiwan. (anyone in Taipei know where???)
The Gold Medal Taiwan Beer now in green bottle is good enough.
I’ve stopped buying Tsing-Tao beer in bottle (CostCo has it) for many years, as too nasty.
Asahi Draft beer (green bottle, gold label) is good. Most RT Marts have it.
Also try Radler Bier. Anyone been to Bavaria knows of this. 2/3 draft beer, 1/3 lemonade. Even my wife (Taiwanese, who never drinks) likes it. RT Mart sells OeTTINGER Radler (yellow can, 500cc) all the time (in Taipei). Try it out.
[quote=“Elegua”][quote=“fee”][quote=“Elegua”]No it doesn’t. The worst beer in the Asia is Star
[/quote]
I dunno. Star beer tasted pretty darned good upon our return to KTM, after a few weeks on the Anapurna circuit.
It’s not the best beer in Asia, but I have some fond memories of Star beer, believe it or not.
But then I’m one for drinking the local beer in whichever country I am in–Beer Lao in Laos, Angkor Beer in Cambodia, Singha or Chang in Thailand, too many to remember in Vietnam, or even Haywards 5000 Strong in India or Red Panda in Bhutan.
I still say that Taiwan beer is the best accompaniment to Taiwanese food. Proof of this is at the Taiwan Beer Bar in Taipei–grilled Taiwanese sausages with cloves of garlic and a big glass of draft Taiwanese beer–nothing better.[/quote][/quote]
Yeah, I (vaguely) remember drinking chang on occassion in Tibet and in other areas of the Himalaya mountains.
How about “tongba”? I had some nice tongba in Darjeeling, and in parts of Sikkim, if memory serves.
You’ve probably had it, Elegua, but I’ll post a quick Wiki-description here for others who might be interested.
"Tongba is a millet based alcoholic beverage found in the mountainous region of Nepal and the neighbouring Darjeeling district of India. Tongba is prepared by cooking and fermenting whole grain millet. The millet is then dried; traditionally it is stored under a roof for about six months. It is consumed in a unique way: the fermented millet is put in a container, also traditionally called a Tongba, and boiled water is poured in it to the brim. It is then left undisturbed for about five minutes. Once the five minutes has passed it is ready to drink; a fine bamboo straw with a blind end, but perforated on the side to act as a filter, is inserted into the container to suck out the warm water and alcohol from the millet grains. More hot water is added as the tongba becomes dry, and the process is repeated until the alcohol is exhausted.
Tongba is the traditional and indigenous drink of the Limbu people of eastern Nepal. To the Limbu, Tongba is like what Vodka is to Russians, Wine to French, Guiness to Irish and Saki to Japanese."