"brewer":vrmiyc32 wrote: I agree that "good beer" should be the goal. I have had some rotten cask beer. I also understand the skill involved with serving cask beer. I am not trying to say that cask beer is the way forward. I like the enthusiasm of CAMRA but think that they forget that taste should be the important factor.
My question comes from the view of an outsider. There is quite a lot of good cask beer sold right next to force carbonated beer on the west coast of the US. The key is variety and quality of products. I am shocked to find that for a country that loves its pints as much as Ireland your options are fairly limited. On that front I am happy to find a community that embraces new and unique beers. There is a wonderful world of beer out there and we should do our best to enjoy it! Personally I don't care if its cask or keg or bottle. I just want it to be good and sold at a fair price.[/quote:vrmiyc32]
"brewer":3off9agj wrote: I am shocked to find that for a country that loves its pints as much as Ireland your options are fairly limited.[/quote:3off9agj]
For a lot of the public they like quantity not quality, especially in the off trade market
&quot;brewer&quot;:3dkhfyut wrote: I am shocked to find that for a country that loves its pints as much as Ireland your options are fairly limited.[/quote:3dkhfyut]I'm always surprised that people are surprised at this <!-- s:) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_smile.gif" alt="" title="Smile" /><!-- s:) --> We're one of the highest per capita beer drinking countries in the world, and that has long put us on the radar of greedy multinationals and made us a target for wholesale market consolidation, with the reducation in beer quality that inevitably follows.
Look at the other big beer drinkers: Germany and the Czech Republic. Massive market domination by global players and the drinker expected to take whatever yellow fizz is on offer and pretend it's the best beer in the world.
Tragically, many German, Czech and Irish people [i:3dkhfyut]do[/i:3dkhfyut] believe that theirs is the best in the world. <!-- s:roll: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_rolleyes.gif" alt="" title="Rolling Eyes" /><!-- s:roll: -->
&quot;brewer&quot;:2au5d8oc wrote: I am shocked to find that for a country that loves its pints as much as Ireland your options are fairly limited.[/quote:2au5d8oc]I'm always surprised that people are surprised at this <!-- s:) --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_smile.gif" alt="" title="Smile" /><!-- s:) --> We're one of the highest per capita beer drinking countries in the world, and that has long put us on the radar of greedy multinationals and made us a target for wholesale market consolidation, with the reducation in beer quality that inevitably follows.
Look at the other big beer drinkers: Germany and the Czech Republic. Massive market domination by global players and the drinker expected to take whatever yellow fizz is on offer and pretend it's the best beer in the world.
Tragically, many German, Czech and Irish people [i:2au5d8oc]do[/i:2au5d8oc] believe that theirs is the best in the world. <!-- s:roll: --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_rolleyes.gif" alt="" title="Rolling Eyes" /><!-- s:roll: -->[/quote:2au5d8oc]
Interesting. Is there any beer market that does not have the above characteristics ? I can't think of one.
Look at where the world's best beer does come from. Heineken, Carlsberg and Bud are the biggest brands in the Netherlands, Denmark and the US, but the people who them drink aren't under the impression that they're somehow the greatest in the world -- they're simply ubiquitous and cheap. People who actually care about what they drink in those countries pick something else and have a wide variety of independently brewed craft beers to choose from.
" title="Smile" /><!-- s:) --> We're one of the highest per capita beer drinking countries in the world, and that has long put us on the radar of greedy multinationals and made us a target for wholesale market consolidation, with the reducation in beer quality that inevitably follows.
" title="Rolling Eyes" /><!-- s:roll: -->