something's rotten in the state of beer. . .

R

robert ames

robert ames
on the way home grabbed a couple beck's bombers (the 24oz. bottle) and poured the first into an imperial pint (19.2oz) took a good slug, and poured the rest into the glass. the level didn't come up that much; the glass should have refilled. and it didn't taste at bit like beck's. i put it down to competing flavours in my mouth left over from dinner.

i looked at the bottle. 22oz(!!). wtf? and it didn't taste like beck's?!? hmmm. paranoia started creeping in to me thoughts.

sure enough--on the front label, instead of brewed in bremen, brewed in st. louis. fuck. another of life's simple pleasures killed by the bean counters.
 
Loyal customers is why they bought the brand. You're just part of the 1-2% that (eventually) noticed. Look at it as form of blind tasting.
 
Sold to Interbrew in 2002 for $1.8 Billion and brewed in St. Louis since 2012. There is also a suit for deceptive labeling practices maybe you can join in.
 
Had a similiar experience years ago with a bottle of Heineken (yeah, I know). I was in Singapore , ordered it at a bar, took one swig and almost gagged. It was brewed in Asia somewhere and was ghastly.
 
You mean the Beck's brewed in St. Louis is even worse than the Beck's from Bremen! I didn't know that was possible.

If you take the brewery tour in Bremen and they give you the full-on best-case scenario spiel, even there the main selling point is that Beck's became famous for its ability to survive long journeys without spoiling. Nothing about the actual taste.
 
I thought the model ship collection at St. James Gate showing all the different tanker configurations that were employed throughout the years was really cool. However, despite all the shipping measures and the rocket widget - it does taste better the closer you get, as they say. Apparently that terroir doesn't travel.
 
originally posted by Tom Glasgow:
Sold to Interbrew in 2002 for $1.8 Billion and brewed in St. Louis since 2012. There is also a suit for deceptive labeling practices maybe you can join in.
Click to expand...

probably a telling comment on how long it takes the pipeline to re-fill all the way to walla walla.
 
just checked: at least in these parts, st. pauli girl still from germany.

used to be not quite as good as beck's. now will be far superior.

that being said, beck's filled an "i'm really thirsty and i just got off work" niche, so st. pauli girl doesn't have big shoes to fill. but the new beck's just plain doesn't taste more-ish when i'm dry and just off the clock. in fact, not good at all.
 
If anybody was discussing here any wine on a similar level to Beck's (Bremen or St Louis) he would be buried under an avalanche of ridicule. That stuff always was boooooring, even when just compared to the other major German breweries. It is our answer to Bud light.
 
originally posted by georg lauer:
If anybody was discussing here any wine on a similar level to Beck's (Bremen or St Louis) he would be buried under an avalanche of ridicule. That stuff always was boooooring, even when just compared to the other major German breweries. It is our answer to Bud light.
Click to expand...

here in the fat cave, that ridicule is reserved for sullen faced northern europeans wandering bologna's mercato centrale and bemoaning the absence of echt turnips and the dearth of reindeer at the butcher's counters.

for those sensitive souls who are forced to travel, locating a prophylactic beverage in amongst the swill proffered by your average airport lounge can be the difference between life and death. indeed, blessed is the man who has never been so desperate that his chubby heart hasn't filled with joy at the sight of a stella pump in amongst the lites, the over-hopped faux-ales and those odd, oversized flagons of oak-chip chardonet sauv. oftentimes, ignorance really is bliss.

as one who is frequently forced to play the lousy hand life deals in these circumstances, i feel a keen sense of our inmate's disappointment, and am grateful for the heads up. better to read it here than have my meagre expectations dashed while silently praying that xxy 617 manages to make it out of ord before the weekend.

fb.
 
originally posted by georg lauer:
If anybody was discussing here any wine on a similar level to Beck's (Bremen or St Louis) he would be buried under an avalanche of ridicule. That stuff always was boooooring, even when just compared to the other major German breweries. It is our answer to Bud light.
Click to expand...

georg--your point is well made.

beer and wine meet vastly different needs for me, thus i have vastly different expectations and requirements for the two beverages.

(mind you i'm not sayng that there are no profound beers. it's just that i don't drink say, duvel, samuel smith nut brown, or [insert your favourite beer here] to meet an immediate thirst.)

and the st. louis beck's tastes nothing like the bremen beck's. it's as though the folks in st. louis felt no compunction to replicate it or were unaware that there would be that expectation.
 
originally posted by robert ames:
originally posted by georg lauer:
If anybody was discussing here any wine on a similar level to Beck's (Bremen or St Louis) he would be buried under an avalanche of ridicule. That stuff always was boooooring, even when just compared to the other major German breweries. It is our answer to Bud light.
Click to expand...

georg--your point is well made.

beer and wine meet vastly different needs for me, thus i have vastly different expectations and requirements for the two beverages.

(mind you i'm not sayng that there are no profound beers. it's just that i don't drink say, duvel, samuel smith nut brown, or [insert your favourite beer here] to meet an immediate thirst.)

and the st. louis beck's tastes nothing like the bremen beck's. it's as though the folks in st. louis felt no compunction to replicate it or were unaware that there would be that expectation.
Click to expand...

Robert, I totally understand and usually beer has a similar role for me.

It is just that Beck's was the first of the major German beer brands that went totally tame, while the others at least maintained a bit of hoppy bitterness. Though I guess your observation shows that one can make bad things always worse.
 
originally posted by georg lauer:
originally posted by robert ames:
originally posted by georg lauer:
If anybody was discussing here any wine on a similar level to Beck's (Bremen or St Louis) he would be buried under an avalanche of ridicule. That stuff always was boooooring, even when just compared to the other major German breweries. It is our answer to Bud light.
Click to expand...

georg--your point is well made.

beer and wine meet vastly different needs for me, thus i have vastly different expectations and requirements for the two beverages.

(mind you i'm not sayng that there are no profound beers. it's just that i don't drink say, duvel, samuel smith nut brown, or [insert your favourite beer here] to meet an immediate thirst.)

and the st. louis beck's tastes nothing like the bremen beck's. it's as though the folks in st. louis felt no compunction to replicate it or were unaware that there would be that expectation.
Click to expand...

Robert, I totally understand and usually beer has a similar role for me.

It is just that Beck's was the first of the major German beer brands that went totally tame, while the others at least maintained a bit of hoppy bitterness. Though I guess your observation shows that one can make bad things always worse.
Click to expand...

i'll share a beer or three with you on that. your choice.
 
originally posted by robert ames:
originally posted by georg lauer:
If anybody was discussing here any wine on a similar level to Beck's (Bremen or St Louis) he would be buried under an avalanche of ridicule. That stuff always was boooooring, even when just compared to the other major German breweries. It is our answer to Bud light.
Click to expand...

georg--your point is well made.

beer and wine meet vastly different needs for me, thus i have vastly different expectations and requirements for the two beverages.

(mind you i'm not sayng that there are no profound beers. it's just that i don't drink say, duvel, samuel smith nut brown, or [insert your favourite beer here] to meet an immediate thirst.)

and the st. louis beck's tastes nothing like the bremen beck's. it's as though the folks in st. louis felt no compunction to replicate it or were unaware that there would be that expectation.
Click to expand...

I think the folks in St. Louis want to sell lots of beer. I would look elsewhere for compunction.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top