So I Drunk A Bud

[Zardnaar]

Eh, Budweiser is fine. You drink it when your out and about and it's hot. It's like a beer to have at the zoo with the kids and you need to drive home afterwards. It's more water-y and less beer-y than most beers and let's be honest. We only like beer because we got used to it. It's revolting.

I enjoy beer now, when I was younger not so much. NZ Bud equivalents are just as bad if not worse as there are some I would stuggle more finishing the bottle.

It's mostly due to craft beer, and not liking the spirits plus soda I used to drink. Canadian Club, ginger ale and a splash of line juice is about the only mix I like now.

 

[Berzerker]

Eh, Budweiser is fine. You drink it when your out and about and it's hot. It's like a beer to have at the zoo with the kids and you need to drive home afterwards. It's more water-y and less beer-y than most beers and let's be honest. We only like beer because we got used to it. It's revolting.

we had to, the water was terrible

 

[civvver]

Alcohol is a plague upon humanity. I would fully agree with prohibitionists if enforcement were not such a disaster, and it would not enrich organized crime, and turn the streets into (worse) gangland warzones. My step-father, two ex-girlfriends, and several friends and former friends are, or were, alcoholics, and it's not pretty. There are more deaths every year related to alcohol than from all illegal street drugs combined.

*takes off Puritan hat, complete with buckle, and steps down from makeshift pulpit*

Cultural, my father was boozer as well. I drink almost every week but only get drunk maybe once a year.

You can regulate how people buy booze and drugs, you can't regulate how they consume them.

Anglo Saxon culture also leans heavily on binge drinking (UK, USA, NZ, Aussie etc).

There's a stat out there that 90% of the alcohol in the US is consumed by 10% of the population. Half of people don't drink at all, then a good 20-40% do it in some moderation, then the rest that really drive the industry are straight up functional or non-functional alcoholics. So yeah, it's pretty dangerous unfortunately. I handle mine, but I can say I've been drunk and said stupid things before. It's not always the best time.

Although there is usually some kind of consensus with food, like how steak is best prepared medium rare for example, it's subjective in the end (just like music, tv, movies, video games). With that said, I find Miller products vastly superior to anything Anheuser Busch. Bud and bud light are terrible while I find Miller lite perfectly drinkable for a session beer and actually enjoy High Life and MGD out of a bottle. Maybe because they are more pils than lagers, though neither has the true hops flavor of a real pils. Busch is a terrible beer as well. I guess AB owns Goose Island now as well, and I like some of their products, and the Bud brewery tour and beer garden in St Louis is really fun.

With beer, if it's a social setting like a bbq that's going 4-6 hours I want one that goes down like water so you don't get too sleepy in the middle of the party. It's Miller lite, rolling rock, high life or if I want to go a little fancier I'll have a linekugels summer shandy, or a landshark, maybe a heniken or a becks. It's not just the ABV, I also don't want to feel super full if I am noshing. Like one really good hefeweizen makes you full. At home I like something with flavor and a higher ABV like a belgian triple. Not as into IPAs but a good one now and then is nice.

 

[Lexicus]

I might as well drink water if I'm drinking beer that's under about 6%. Beer gives me bad stomach problems though so I really only drink liquor and wine these days.

 

[civvver]

Ha I'm the opposite. Beer makes me really regular, it's awesome. Meanwhile wine and liquor give me acid reflux. Wine and coffee are the worst offenders.

 

[yung.carl.jung]

I think you're supposed to smoke those, not drink em

 

[yung.carl.jung]

What about Ivan ? (Finland, Baltics etc)
The statistics are quite grim, since they consume mostly Vodka, and there soft drink Kavas is actually alcoholic, Plus you know being under the rule of soviet I too would drink myself into an early grave

kvass is not a soft drink my man, it's fermented bread juice, honestly just disgusting. and it has incredibly low alcohol content, so low that kids can drink it safely. about 0.5% to 1%, a quarter of a good beer, don't know bout American volumes. unless there is somehow a drink called kavas that is common in all of eastern Europe that I missed?

 

[Zardnaar]

kvass is not a soft drink my man, it's fermented bread juice, honestly just disgusting. and it has incredibly low alcohol content, so low that kids can drink it safely. about 0.5% to 1%, a quarter of a good beer, don't know bout American volumes. unless there is somehow a drink called kavas that is common in all of eastern Europe that I missed?

I want to try that. Wonder why former Soviet republics have booze problems.

 

[Patine]

I want to try that. Wonder why former Soviet republics have booze problems.

You would too, in the old Soviet system where vodka, the ballet, the hockey games, the circus, and, in the very latter days, Tertris, were the only legal forms of escapism - and ONLY because they were utterly non-political.

 

[Zardnaar]

You would too, in the old Soviet system where vodka, the ballet, the hockey games, the circus, and, in the very latter days, Tertris, were the only legal forms of escapism - and ONLY because they were utterly non-political.

It's also dirt cheap over there especially in places like Belarus. Room for $4 a night, meal+ 2 small bottles of vodka $5.

 

[Patine]

It's also dirt cheap over there especially in places like Belarus. Room for $4 a night, meal+ 2 small bottles of vodka $5.

Is that New Zealand or American dollars you're quoting those prices in, if I may ask?

 

[Zardnaar]

Is that New Zealand or American dollars you're quoting those prices in, if I may ask?

American. Ours is roughly 2/3rds value.
Motel

Meal plus vodka

 

[Patine]

American. Ours is roughly 2/3rds value.
Motel

Meal plus vodka

The Canadian dollar is usually between 75-90% of the value of the American dollar, sometimes very close to on par, and every now and then, tops it in value by a few cents.

 

[Zardnaar]

The Canadian dollar is usually between 75-90% of the value of the American dollar, sometimes very close to on par, and every now and then, tops it in value by a few cents.

Currency fluctuates. Few years ago ours hit 80 cents and postage on eBay and Amazon was a lot cheaper.

Half price stuff vs local prices.

 

[yung.carl.jung]

I want to try that. Wonder why former Soviet republics have booze problems.

the fermented bread juice is weird. I can drink it but I don't like it all that much. on the other hand there is also beet kvass and that stuff is absolutely golden.

I've made it myself a few times, it's really easy.

 

[Lexicus]

Is beet kvass sweet? Has anyone ITT ever tried kumis?

 

[yung.carl.jung]

Is beet kvass sweet? Has anyone ITT ever tried kumis?

yes, it's sweet, but it's a root vegetable sweet like a carrot, not a white sugar kinda sweet.

kumis is basically fermented horse milk, so it should taste similiar to milk kefir, which is also fermented milk. both have a low alcohol precentage between 1 and 2.5%.

I've done a lot of animal milks I can tell ya, even human and llama milk, and the best ones are really goat, cow and sheep, in that order. the ones with less sugar I liked much better, and horse has pretty high sugar content. probably tastes like rancid condensed milk to be honest. goat milk otoh freakin rules. I drank a whole bottle of goat milk today so fight the inferno I got from making 7 different hot sauces.

 

[Patine]

yes, it's sweet, but it's a root vegetable sweet like a carrot, not a white sugar kinda sweet.

kumis is basically fermented horse milk, so it should taste similiar to milk kefir, which is also fermented milk. both have a low alcohol precentage between 1 and 2.5%.

I've done a lot of animal milks I can tell ya, even human and llama milk, and the best ones are really goat, cow and sheep, in that order. the ones with less sugar I liked much better, and horse has pretty high sugar content. probably tastes like rancid condensed milk to be honest. goat milk otoh freakin rules. I drank a whole bottle of goat milk today so fight the inferno I got from making 7 different hot sauces.

You seem to have a braver palette and stronger stomach than I do, I'll give you that.

 

[Lexicus]

The idea of kumis kinda grosses me out but also intrigues me, I am fascinated by the various aspects of nomad horse culture so yeah.

 

[Socrates99]

Kvass sounds neat. I've heard of homebrewers doing it. Might have to give it a shot sometime. Kumis on the other hand sounds like a wretched glass of lactic acid, blech. Maybe I shouldn't judge until I've tried it but out of curiosity I had to look up the process. Sounds sort of like making Kombucha except instead of sweetened tea you're using a milk and grain combo.

Light lagers like Bud, Miller, Coors, etc are just boring. I used to think they were made flavorless to ease people back into beer after prohibition but they actually predate it. American 6-row barley had a lot more protein in it than the European 2-row and German brewers who immigrated to America struggled to make clear Helles lagers. The protein caused haze. So they added adjunct grains like corn and rice as 30-40% of the grist to reduce the haze. The sugars from corn and rice starch are almost 100% fermentable so the result is a more watery version of German or Czech Pilsners. The pre prohibition version was probably hoppier like their German cousins but that was reduced over time.

So we have the desire for the clear aesthetic to thank for boring American light lagers.