With many 'foreign' beers now brewed in Australia, is it time for clearer labels?

[earle]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-10-...d-in-australia-time-for-better-labels/9035576

 

[DanBrewer]

I can think of at least one labeling case in the U.S. where Anheuser Busch was successfully sued because it had bought the Beck's brand, started brewing it in St. Louis, Missouri, but still implied the beer was made in Germany and charged "import prices" accordingly. Crafty.

 

[GalBrew]

I read this article too and found that while yes clear labelling is better for everyone, the author doesn't know much about the importance of beer freshness. This guy might know the law but when you are jumping up and down for the stale version of a crappy beer, your taste obviously is lacking.

If he wants to get that 'authentic' flavour he so desires, why not just leave his BUL slab sitting in the sun for a few weeks.

 

[Danscraftbeer]

Haha. So something on the label like: "Its Authentic foreign beer and better because its fresher brewed here in Australia"

 

[GalBrew]

Haha. So something on the label like: "Its Authentic foreign beer and better because its fresher brewed here in Australia"

Well that wouldn't be inaccurate and isn't accuracy in labelling what everyone wants?

Can't see it happening myself though. That being said if it has been transported cold then there really isn't that much of an issue. Furthermore if sweet euro lagers in green bottles are someone's idea of a good time then labelling is the least of their worries. [emoji23]

 

[2cranky]

Remember years ago I was drinking Stella Artois and i was in Fiji at the time. Unintentionally did a side by side with the European and the Aussie made one the barman had 2 batches. The European was a lot better.
Few weeks later a Kiwi made one turned up - it too was better than the Aussie made one.
But hey if I want to buy imported beer don't I have a right to expect it is imported.
Next thing you'll be telling me my imported German car is not made in Germany. Wait, what?

 

[manticle]

I like Hollandia AND Rochefort 10 though.

The freshness issue is a totally different kettle of fish - this really is about disingenuous marketing, especially when applied to pricing. Paying for imported beer at premium prices when it's brewed much more locally is misleading, regardless of the consumer's actual knowledge about beer and brewing.

On a side note, there's a bar near work that sells moo brew (brewed about a 20 minute drive away) for something like $15 a schooner.
They also have cascade draught/lager whatever for upwards of 12 which is similarly local and similarly a rip (moo brew is better beer but 15 for a not quite pint is crazy)

 

[barls]

i have sent beer back in a restaurant because it wasn't what they had it listed as.
ie imported when it was brewed two suburbs over under license.
i had the owner come out and tell me off and say i was going to be charged for it. i replied nope ill have the imported one that you have listed on the menu please as thats what you have advertised it as.
i was promptly told not going to happen so i said no problem I'm sure the dept of fair trading would love to take my complaint about false advertising. he quickly changed his tune and decided to go back and have a look for the imported version.
next time it was under premium beers not imported.

 

[Bribie G]

The problem with BUL is that the various overseas breweries seem to have different criteria for the "brewed under the supervision of... "

In the case of Fosters in the UK for example, I seem to recall that all they needed to do was use the Fosters B strain yeast, but apart from that it's all UK ingredients in the dreadful 4% swill.

Coopers have taken over brewing Carlsberg here and it's also tasteless crap. To me all Coopers attempts at lagers taste like that ghastly 63 ****.

On the other hand Lion seem to make a fair job of BUL. I remember the Becks on tap when they took that on and didn't realise it was BUL, and drank it for a week at a UNE summer school. But I've never tasted a reasonable BUL from CUB.

Considering that Colesworths, Aldi and bigger liquor chains like Liquorstax are parallel importing really drinkable Euros like Henninger, Hollandia or Sainte Etienne and putting them out for around 30 you'd think that the BUL brewers would put more effort into authenticity.

If they can produce something like XXXX Gold at 4 different plants with complete uniformity tthen surely they have the systems in place to brew a beer that tastes the same as the Overseas version.

 

[Dave70]

Next thing you'll be telling me my imported German car is not made in Germany. Wait, what?

Yup, BMW? South Efrica. Mercedes? 'Born in the USA!'

Unlike my reliable Japanese Hilux. FULLY IMPORTED. (From Thailand)

 

[Bribie G]

I hopped onto "The Conversation" version as I'm a fully paid up Conversationista myself, and left a couple of comments. It's refreshing to see that a fair few of the commenters there have finally realised that Australian megaswill is pretty dismal and that the sun doesn't shine out of VB's arse.

 

[2cranky]

Yup, BMW? South Efrica. Mercedes? 'Born in the USA!'

Unlike my reliable Japanese Hilux. FULLY IMPORTED. (From Thailand)

Hardly! Only a South African VW golf.
At least my old Landrover was made in the UK. - But maybe new ones will be made in India one day.

 

[Bribie G]

I drive a 2005 Mazda 2 made in Hiroshima, and it was clearly made on a day shift when the board of directors were touring the factory causing the workforce to snap to rigid attention, bow, then return to the assembly line with renewed enthusiasm as they, and of course the numerous robots, immaculately assembled my car to the beaming approval of the Board.

Everything works perfectly. It's pushing 200,000 and still has the original brake pads, radiator, exhausts, the lot. Onto its second battery and third set of Yokahamas but that's it.

Unlike my mate's 2010 Sarth Efrican Ford Focus that's now in landfill.

 

[yankinoz]

Long ago in a far off land (one now ruled by a mad orange-hued king), Lowenbrau's Helles was by far the top-selling import. Then Millers bought domestic rights, kept the foil around the neck, but changed everything else, used adjuncts and cut lagering time. Several years of big profits, ruin of Lowenbrau's reputation in the land.

It's a story repeated many times since then and in several countries. I suspect the big breweries don't care if they buy an import, make a few bucks and kill it. As with buying up craft brands, the idea is to keep new labels swirling around their flagship brands and crowd their real competitors out of tap and shelf space. In the meantime their profit on each bought item soars.

 

[good4whatAlesU]

Gave into temptation and grabbed a 4 x 500mL Carlsberg at Aldi today ( none of the Christmas specials in stock). Bad move.
It tastes like water with a dash of marzipan... Blrrrk.

 

[Bribie G]

For some reason, Coopers brew some of the best Ales in the World but seem to be totally incapable of doing lagers properly. They go to great lengths .. for example I also got conned by the half litre cans. Up to now, there were no Australian based 500ml canning lines AFAIK and I guess they had to build one to get the Carlsberg gig.

Dreadful dreadful imitation.

 

[good4whatAlesU]

Yes, tipped out half the can and went downstairs for a homebrew. My homebrew is not great, so that's saying something...

 

[mondestrunken]

I'm in two minds about this.

On the one hand, yes, it should be obvious on the labelling where your beer is brewed.
On the other hand, I recall reading, a few years ago, a news article, yes indeed, about some Italian guys who felt Peroni wasn't the same here (brewed locally) as it was in Italy. Here are some of my thoughts as I recall them:

1. Drink a better beer, or maybe stick to wine
2. Imported over that long non-refrigerated sea-journey your Italian Peroni would definitely taste *********
3. Why not try a fresh, local beer?

Is it co-incidental that the rebrewed beers are normally the ****** ones?

 

[Brewnicorn]

Even domestically brewed beers have a difference in quality and taste overtime. Not to say it slides down, but occasional bad batches and irregular tastes. Most likely out of the hands of the brewers and not like drastic recipe changes. But the locally brewed o/s beers pretty well exclusively taste different. I tasted a fosters in London one day & I wanted to know whether it was brewed there or in Aus. They couldn’t tell me but it tastes better than any fosters I ever had here. [emoji3]

 

[mondestrunken]

I tasted a fosters in London one day & I wanted to know whether it was brewed there or in Aus. They couldn’t tell me but it tastes better than any fosters I ever had here. [emoji3]

To my mind, it's hard to tell whether they're better or worse since I honestly don't recall every seeing, let alone drinking, a Fosters in Australia... but yes they all over the UK supermarkets like a bad rash.