tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post965131902265009966..comments2024-03-29T08:01:51.705+00:00Comments on The Pub Curmudgeon: More beer wateringCurmudgeonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02558747878308766840noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-35082222273783108362021-09-27T21:42:21.649+01:002021-09-27T21:42:21.649+01:00Have a look in your local corner/paper shops where...Have a look in your local corner/paper shops where they sell single cans. Nearly all near me have stella 5% becks 5% san miguel 5,4 & French kronenbourg. I used to drink the 4.8 stella but sacked it off when it dropped to 4.6 bar having a pint down the local.Simonbnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-17857197478867652982021-01-05T09:26:40.510+00:002021-01-05T09:26:40.510+00:00Some independent off-licences stock Belgian-brewed...Some independent off-licences stock Belgian-brewed Stella. The Bottle Stop in Bramhall have had it in the past, but I can't say it's something I tend to look for.<br /><br />The deterioration in flavour has more to do with cheapening the recipe than reducing the strength as such. I remember in the 1990s it used to be quite a decent drink.Curmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02558747878308766840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-91757220893132412762021-01-04T22:55:42.240+00:002021-01-04T22:55:42.240+00:00Just a couple of weeks ago, I was sat at home watc...Just a couple of weeks ago, I was sat at home watching TV and cracked open a bottle of Stella. I was seriously worried for a moment that I was losing my sense of taste (a worry with the covid situation)...only after looking at the bottle did I notice it was 4.6%. Very disappointed to say the least. Stella now has little taste, just an awful sweetness that lingers. Horrible. Such a shame. Interestingly, they still brew it at 5.2 in Belgium...I used to have it shipped over, but currently not possible to the UK because of brexit. Sad.IanJhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04663439482946739870noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-58859641845491532902020-12-01T16:28:32.917+00:002020-12-01T16:28:32.917+00:00It's now less wife-weater and more give the mi...It's now less wife-weater and more give the missus a gentle slap.Thurston McCrewnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-39186204321998026552020-12-01T10:24:51.707+00:002020-12-01T10:24:51.707+00:00"(Some have suggested it was once even strong..."(Some have suggested it was once even stronger than 5.2%, but I’ve seen no evidence for this.)"<br />The March 1973 Which? report on Lager has Stella Artois at 1049 OG and 5.2% ABV with a 33cl can selling for 15p. The Stafford Mudgienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-64457053247975122682020-12-01T09:48:56.374+00:002020-12-01T09:48:56.374+00:00But a "penny pinching attitude" of savin...But a "penny pinching attitude" of saving 6½p a pint ( 99.2p a litre for 5.2%, 87.8p for 4.6% ) amounts to a lot of duty saved for a beer brewed is such large volumes.<br />It won't be in my lifetime but Stella might eventually be dropped to 2.8% - "without having to sacrifice on the taste" of course - to halve the duty paid.<br />I remember when of Whitbread's two keg lagers Heineken was much weaker than Stella Artois, but that appears to have been reversed now. The Stafford Mudgienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-15221717714285195352020-11-30T20:40:19.026+00:002020-11-30T20:40:19.026+00:00Yes, and there is no conceivable benefit for compa...Yes, and there is no conceivable benefit for company declaring a strength that is *lower* than that on which they are officially paying duty. Curmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02558747878308766840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-86213665544796827402020-11-30T19:11:51.428+00:002020-11-30T19:11:51.428+00:00The tolerance only refers to labelling regulations...The tolerance only refers to labelling regulations and for beers of 5.5% and more is wider at +/- 1%. HMRC take a rather different view if your ABV measurements or calculations differ by such a wide tolerance from your stated strength. It is about tax but in the Carling case Coors were deceiving customers by technically meeting EU labelling regs by describing their beer at the upper limit of the tolerance, and paying duty, perfectly legally, on the actual but lower ABV. HMRC wanted the difference, ie, have their cake and eat it, and lost. A macro brewery like Coors should be producing beers at no more than 0.2% variation of declared ABV before taking control action.electricpicshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09144970068645280352noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-37526787401121038972020-11-30T18:52:21.170+00:002020-11-30T18:52:21.170+00:00Maybe not, but it's boiling a frog, isn't ...Maybe not, but it's boiling a frog, isn't it? And there are still plenty of other comparable beers at 5.0%. Peroni, which occupies a similar market position to that which Stella enjoyed thirty years ago, is 5.1%.Curmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02558747878308766840noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-13127814041287697442020-11-30T18:21:16.697+00:002020-11-30T18:21:16.697+00:00Budvar is 5% isn't it? Pilsner Urquell as a cr...Budvar is 5% isn't it? Pilsner Urquell as a crispier and dryer beer at 4.4% is my usual choice.https://www.blogger.com/profile/10603987317820861401noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-87330832984538824812020-11-30T16:58:55.094+00:002020-11-30T16:58:55.094+00:00I'm not sure even the most buzz-sensitive drin...I'm not sure even the most buzz-sensitive drinker will notice this last cut. Six pints at 4.6% equates to approximately five at the original 5.2%, but five and three-quarters at 4.8%. Philhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07009879034507926661noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-30814592133690381532020-11-30T16:20:25.542+00:002020-11-30T16:20:25.542+00:00The stated ABV can be +/- 0.5% either side, much l...The stated ABV can be +/- 0.5% either side, much like Carling Black Label did, its about tax.<br /><br />https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/carling-alcohol-volume-lower-advertised-tribunal-tax-hmrc-a7914731.htmlBoozy Pnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-13038229978764027952020-11-30T15:01:04.704+00:002020-11-30T15:01:04.704+00:00Pint of Johnny Depp please.Pint of Johnny Depp please.KJPhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06643613741945132841noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5623537812609722663.post-64545483567239924502020-11-30T14:27:01.954+00:002020-11-30T14:27:01.954+00:00San Miguel or 1664 for me then. This penny pinchin...San Miguel or 1664 for me then. This penny pinching attitude will lose them sales. I don't drink premium lager for the taste but for the buzz after three pints or more. Happy Hour at my local they are all the same reduced price. So I will always go for the strongest one. Am not of course driving.Dr Evilhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00176521760477086914noreply@blogger.com