Tooheys Pale ale

[Ducatiboy stu]

They are calling it an Ale, both the pale and old, but from what I understand old is a lager. Do we know if the pale is an actual ale?

I think Old is actually an ale

 

[joshuahardie]

Had one last night,
non challenging is exactly the word, light on the malt but clean crisp, and the hop flavour and aroma was surprisinlg present. so was it out and out ****, like we expect. well no.
it was simple but fine, and sadly reminded me more of fat yak than anything, which probably points to how bland i find fat yak. but i digress.

points for trying, but I doubt it will take off

 

[quantum8]

Give it another 5 years and they may try to cash in on this new fandangled IPA craze too

 

[mckenry]

Seeing as Lion already owns James Squire, why the need for an ale?
My guess is so the 'Tooheys Die Hards' that wont touch any other 'brand' can get their hipster on and be pretend to beer snobs too.

Now they'll have 4 beers to choose from. One for EVERY occasion
New at the RSL. Bog standard.
Tooheys Pale Ale to impress the inlaws at the family BBQ
Extra Dry for when he wants a Euro style crisp lager to impress mates on the fishing trip
And Old for St Patricks Day.

 

[winkle]

I think Old is actually an ale

Was a few years back Stu, not anymore (or so I'm told).

 

[TheBigD]

if they taste ok with some hop flavour and they put it in a dirty thirty can pack at the same price as new id certainly give it a crack as a regular swill in between home brews.

but Im guessing it will be at a premium price of which there are far better offerings,

 

[GalBrew]

I think Old is actually an ale

I also thought this was the case. Either way, they better not screw around with Old or I will not be happy.

 

[Dave70]

WELL I SUPPOSE UNTIL YOU DRINK IT YOU WILL NEVER KNOW it's all in the palate of who ever drinks it .
I have not even seen it let alone tasted it so the jury is out I reckon
they might reckon what you brew is ****

Thats true. But don't forget, we're talking about a company who described this product as 'full flavored'.

 

[madpierre06]

They musta paid Dougie a motza to get him to promote a light beer.

 

[Dave70]

Likely paid him in full strength beer.

 

[Rocker1986]

I remember reading one of his books where he talked about shooting ads for that beer. He joked that they called it 2.2 after his batting average on the 1972 England tour... :lol:

 

[Dan Pratt]

The problem I see with this attempt at craft beer is the effect of what people think craft beer is.

Firstly, the faithful will try this beer trusting that the brand they are culturally driven to consume is worth trying and think that ALL craft beer eg ales are ****.

Secondly are the others that don't know beer or craft beer and will think that a big brand like tooheys is worth trying and likely not try craft beer again after tasting the New pale ale.

This is a problem, they will sell some but a large portion of the tooheys faithful will be cemented in making sure they go back to and continue to buy tooheys new, never trying craft beer again, telling there mates what they think of it etc etc and the culture of the brand grows stronger.

It's a shame really, cos I reckon the big boys could pump out a top level pale ale or IPA but they just don't give a ****.

 

[TheWiggman]

It's a shame really, cos I reckon the big boys could pump out a top level pale ale or IPA but they just don't give a ****.

They do, they give a **** about making money. Gotta make what the punters want, because that's what sells.

 

[Brew Matt]

The problem I see with this attempt at craft beer is the effect of what people think craft beer is.

Firstly, the faithful will try this beer trusting that the brand they are culturally driven to consume is worth trying and think that ALL craft beer eg ales are ****.

Secondly are the others that don't know beer or craft beer and will think that a big brand like tooheys is worth trying and likely not try craft beer again after tasting the New pale ale.

This is a problem, they will sell some but a large portion of the tooheys faithful will be cemented in making sure they go back to and continue to buy tooheys new, never trying craft beer again, telling there mates what they think of it etc etc and the culture of the brand grows stronger.

It's a shame really, cos I reckon the big boys could pump out a top level pale ale or IPA but they just don't give a ****.

There could be some truth in what you say, as well as many of the previous comments. Or this could just be a strategy that was put forward by some marketing consultant with a degree (And we won't go there!). Keep in mind that the big boys already put out some good pale ales - Tooheys are owned by Lion, and look at some of their other brands/aquisitions such as James Squire, Little Creatures, White Rabbit etc.

Really, at the end of the day, whether they have got things right (from an economic point of view) will ultimately be reflected in how well their shares are valued - even though to us, this may seem to be a long way from 'for the love of beer'.

One thing for sure, I am really looking forward to trying this beer once I see them turn up locally.

 

[Fylp]

This convo brings up a few issues with labelling. It seems impossible but there needs to be a definition of craft beer.

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

It's a shame really, cos I reckon the big boys could pump out a top level pale ale or IPA but they just don't give a ****.

They can pump out some decent beers. Tooheys Old and Sheaf Stout are really good beers.

Coopers have been doing Ales for nearly a thousand years, and they are not exactly small anymore.

At the end of the day the production run of this beer is probably going to make zero affect to the breweries. They are big enough to make something like this not even noticable to their production. Ingredients & packaging costs the same. I doubt they will gain many new drinkers, but will just recycle the current ones they have. Not forgeting that they probably have about 40% of the drinking public drinking their beer

 

[yankinoz]

With a "non-challenging flavour"; sounds like they are trying to keep their usual market.
XXX
See, I can drink "craft" beer, too; without the strange aroma and taste that small breweries call flavour. I only need a stick on beard, wear my sister's jeans and take the gear lever off my bike, then I will be a non-challenging Hipster

Or they want to intrude on someone else's mass market.

Marketing departments like to err on the bland side, and I don't mean just with beer. It's a philosophy that emerged 60 years ago in the Anglophone countries and appeared in trade journals.

The goal is to get consumers loyal to the brand, especially newbies in the young demographic. Think about your macroswilling mates, who order VB or XXXX or somesuch over and over again. Then consider this site, Ratebeer or Beer Advocate, we who wake up every morning eager to try something new. As a big brewer, whom do you target, us fickle hopheads, maltheads, esterheads and phenolc heads, or a Pure Blonde drinker who's heard of pale ales? Big breweries can and have made excellent beer, but the marketers outvote the brewers every time.

It would be nice to see something like Boston Brewing (Sam Adams) here. They brew some very big and distinctive beers, but the flagship brew remains Boston Lager, unchallenging but a giant step above Bud, Miller and the like. Sam even makes a decent Lite.

Cooper may be going that way.

 

[luggy]

I think Old is actually an ale

I did the brewery tour at xxxx yesterday, the tour guide told me that it's fermented with ale yeast

 

[mje1980]

What do xxxx ferment super dry with??

 

[Motabika]

What do xxxx ferment super dry with??

Wild yeast, from horse defecate

 

[eMPTy]

Haven't listened just yet, but the Radio Brews News podcast episode 58 includes a chat with Mark Toomey from Tooheys about the pale ale if anyone is interested.

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

I tried one the other night, on tap.

Very little arome

Was kind of watery in a way

After 2 mouth fulls it sort of tasted like nothing

 

[GABBA110360]

I tried one the other night, on tap.

Very little arome

Was kind of watery in a way

After 2 mouth fulls it sort of tasted like nothing

exactly STU
i'd drink it if someone else was buying

 

[Matplat]

I tried a stubby of one of these last week,

I gave it its fair chance and poured it into a glass, literally no head.... disappointing from the start.

Flavour was also equally lacking, kinda tasted like a weak version of those Miller Chill lime flavoured things.

I am actually partial to a tooheys new now and then h34r: but seriously glad I only bought one of these to try.

The only good thing about it was that after only brewing for 7 months, I know I can turn out better beers than a major brewery!

I don't think this beer will last very long, I don't think it will appeal to your standard megaswill drinker, and I am certain it won't appeal to craft beer drinkers either.

 

[BottloBill]

Call it a bold statement but enjoyed this more than a cage road break water, which I consumed the same night.....both poured from a stubbie into a headmaster glass.

 

[Judanero]

I tried one the other night, on tap.

Very little arome

Was kind of watery in a way

After 2 mouth fulls it sort of tasted like nothing

They have it on tap at one of the clubs I work at, tried it after work and it was EXACTLY as you describe it. A little aroma, after a quarter of a schooner it kind of just tastes like wet.

 

[pist]

Had it on tap, certainly got nothing in the way of hop aroma despite it being marketed as such.
Watery, lacking flavour, another outstanding effort from a tightarse megaswiller.
Another confirmation here on the shitness. Better than New but still not great.
At the price they are asking too, I'd happily put a carton of coopers pale in the fridge instead. Runs rings around it

 

[mckenry]

Conspiracy theorists hat on;

I wonder whether these beers (this and XXXX pale and whatever that CUB Golden Ale was) are a ploy to get mega drinkers to try 'pale ale / craft beer' while being loyal to the brand and decide they're not as good as their favourite mega lager.
Once sales drop off and the loyalists go back to their preferred drop, they can ditch the pale ales, secure in the knowledge the one beer brigade wont stray.

 

[Bribie G]

Just tried a schooner at Woolgoolga Diggers as a follow on from a Reschs Original Draught. Much prefer the Reschs.
In fairness letting it warm up a bit there's a bit of floral hoppiness unlike Tooheys Extra Dry that tastes like a wheelie bin above 8 degrees.

 

[kalbarluke]

I had a schooner of this today. My local usually has a rotating 'craft'' tap for $5 a schooner. Last week it was Rogers'. The month before it was JS hop thief. This week it's Tooheys pale ale. It's not the worst beer I've had but compared to the other taps that rotate through it is pretty ordinary. It tastes a bit watered down. Very mild hop flavour. Kind of insipid.