Alcohol Value for Money Calculations and wholesale prices

[URMySunshine]

I'm considering moving from beer (Heineken when cashed up Leo when I'm saving ) to a Hong Thong , ice and soda brew. As I find the flavour ok and no hangovers seemingly if I don't go overboard on it. Very interested in doing a cost benefit analysis % alcohol wise.  So in order to make up my mind I've done a quick what would be the cost of making up a 5% HT/soda mix compared to the relative cost of beer. 

 

My calculations 

 

 Hong Thong 35% 700ml 249 baht.

 To dilute to 5% (7 fold) requires 4.9 liters of soda (at 325mls bottles at 8 baht = 15 * 8 = 120 baht ). 

 

So we have from 1 bottle of Hong Thong diluted to 5 % (normal beer strength) is 369 baht for 5.6 litres of grog or 15.2 mls per baht 

 

Beer equivalence (Heineken 620 mls bottles for 60 baht = 10.3 mls per baht. 

 

So my surprising conclusion (I had thought it would be much cheaper) is that Hong Thong is about 50% cheaper shot for shot when compared to Heineken. I should add I drink 2 large bottles of beer a night which I should no doubt cut down and don't drink till after 6pm ! Though the fact I am writing this might be a warning sign to give up !

 

Also interested in feedback for what are the best wholesale prices for any brews that you know of when buying by the case. 

[Vacuum]

17 minutes ago, URMySunshine said:

Hong Thong 35% 700ml 249 baht.

Red Cock 40% 700ml 151baht. 

[URMySunshine]

4 minutes ago, Vacuum said:

Red Cock 40% 700ml 151baht. 

I have seen that on the shelves and laughed at the name I thought that was what you got if you spent too long in Pattaya.  But using that would mean i had dropped into the Lao Khao sea of despair not ready for that yet ! Nice move on the 40% though got a feeling HT has been defanged from 40% rather like Chang was back the old days of 6.2%.

 

Is it a clean spirit though and what is its hangover potential ? I'm a gin person back in the UK. 

Edited February 20, 2020 by URMySunshine

[Vacuum]

1 minute ago, URMySunshine said:

I have seen that on the shelves and laughed at the name - but using that would mean i had dropped into the Lao Khao sea of despair....

 

Is it a clean spirit though and what is its hangover potential ? I'm a gin person back in the UK. 

It says 'white spirit' on the label. It's not anyhing like Lao Khao, more like a vodka thing. No hangovers, recommended.

[URMySunshine]

Looks like I should keep away from the Cock Family !

 

 

[URMySunshine]

1 minute ago, Vacuum said:

It says 'white spirit' on the label. It's not anyhing like Lao Khao, more like a vodka thing. No hangovers, recommended.

Sounds like a good recommendation - what do you mix it with ?

[Vacuum]

4 minutes ago, URMySunshine said:

Sounds like a good recommendation - what do you mix it with ?

Lemon juice and plain water+ ice.

[Surelynot]

Methylated spirits and milk? Apparently Street alcoholics go for sherry. Best bang for your buck. 

[URMySunshine]

21 minutes ago, Vacuum said:

Lemon juice and plain water+ ice.

Plain water brings the price right down - the lemon though making for an acid drink could play havoc with your teeth if you're not careful. 

 

https://www.colgate.com/en-us/oral-health/conditions/tooth-sensitivity/is-sparkling-water-bad-for-your-teeth--

[URMySunshine]

23 minutes ago, Surelynot said:

Methylated spirits and milk? Apparently Street alcoholics go for sherry. Best bang for your buck. 

Sherry would be off the scale here given the crippling import tax and meths would be fatal unless you got rubbing alcohol and put it through a few processes. I'm not that desperate. 

 

 

[BritManToo]

1 hour ago, URMySunshine said:

Hong Thong , ice and soda brew. As I find the flavour ok and no hangovers seemingly if I don't go overboard on it.

My go to drink is fake Bailey's Irish Cream made with Hong Thong.

Spoonful of Red Label coffee, 2 spoons Nescafe drinking chocolate, add hot water, 60ml of Carnation sweetened condensed milk, 70ml of Hong Thong, few ice cubes and wizz in the blender until frothy.

 

Serve poured over ice cubes.

 

PS. Red Cock is Vodka, tastes exactly the same as all the other unflavoured Vodka.

Best bang for your buck in Thailand.

Edited February 20, 2020 by BritManToo

[URMySunshine]

1 minute ago, BritManToo said:

My go to drink is fake Bailey's Irish Cream made with Hong Thong.

Spoonful of Red Label coffee, 2 spoons Nescafe drinking chocolate, add hot water, 60ml of Carnation sweetened condensed milk, 70mk of Hong Thong, few ice cubes and wizz in the blender until frothy.

 

Serve poured over ice cubes.

Top marks for that one but I'll leave that to you not being a fan of the real Baileys ! Should have bought some Gin botanicals with me this time and steeped a few litres of Red Cock with them in old gin bottles. Could make for a nice tipple coming back next year. 

 

[Andycoops]

21 hours ago, URMySunshine said:

I have seen that on the shelves and laughed at the name I thought that was what you got if you spent too long in Pattaya.  But using that would mean i had dropped into the Lao Khao sea of despair not ready for that yet ! Nice move on the 40% though got a feeling HT has been defanged from 40% rather like Chang was back the old days of 6.2%.

 

Is it a clean spirit though and what is its hangover potential ? I'm a gin person back in the UK. 

There is also a stalemate called Black Cock. ...

[URMySunshine]

1 minute ago, Andycoops said:

There is also a stalemate called Black Cock. ...

Shh that got the thread shutdown on my link in post 5 above. Talking about cocks..... Sangsom had a fairly racy poster many moons ago. That has been on my list of hangover loony juice i.e. a coloured spirit until I was disabused of that theory in the case of Hong Thong / soad many moons ago at a party in Phatthalung. 

 

[URMySunshine]

Here's a DIY gin recipe you could do with Red Cock. 

 

https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012/06/how-to-make-your-own-gin-recipe-juniper-infusion-easy-homemade-gin.html

[seancbk]

21 hours ago, URMySunshine said:

I'm considering moving from beer (Heineken when cashed up Leo when I'm saving ) to a Hong Thong , ice and soda brew.

 

After being a pretty standard social drinker for the past 30 years (give or take), I decided 2 months ago to stop.  So far I've not missed drinking, had no cravings for it at all.   I still go out at least twice a week with my mates, but I just drink soda water.   

The amount I was spending on booze was getting crazy and I realised I was wasting my weekends just being hungover and not doing anything.  I was also wasting at least one day a week where I'd be in the office but hungover so really not getting much work done.   

This is not the first time I've gone on the wagon. When I was 30 I stopped for a year, so I know I can quit for an extended length very easily.   

 

[URMySunshine]

2 minutes ago, seancbk said:

 

After being a pretty standard social drinker for the past 30 years (give or take), I decided 2 months ago to stop.  So far I've not missed drinking, had no cravings for it at all.   I still go out at least twice a week with my mates, but I just drink soda water.   

The amount I was spending on booze was getting crazy and I realised I was wasting my weekends just being hungover and not doing anything.  I was also wasting at least one day a week where I'd be in the office but hungover so really not getting much work done.   

This is not the first time I've gone on the wagon. When I was 30 I stopped for a year, so I know I can quit for an extended length very easily.   

 

Keep it up I know you're right - the cheapest drink is not to.....That said I have my rules which is not to drink till after 6pm , stick to beer mostly and limit the bottles to 2 large ones. 

 

Anyway back to cheap drinks !

[Denim]

There is a very good Sato available locally which is made in Khon Kaen. Nothing like the Siam Sato rubbish from 7/11 or the <deleted>       Sato from Big C .

 

This stuff , ICY , is 12 degree so has a better kick than all the other Satos. When mixed  60/40 with water it tastes a bit like Greek Retsina. Two bottles of this gets me nicely in the comfort zone of an evening and no hangover. Only 30 baht a bottle from our local wholesaler.

 

[URMySunshine]

3 minutes ago, Denim said:

There is a very good Sato available locally which is made in Khon Kaen. Nothing like the Siam Sato rubbish from 7/11 or the <deleted>       Sato from Big C .

 

This stuff , ICY , is 12 degree so has a better kick than all the other Satos. When mixed  60/40 with water it tastes a bit like Greek Retsina. Two bottles of this gets me nicely in the comfort zone of an evening and no hangover. Only 30 baht a bottle from our local wholesaler.

 

Never seen this over in Pattaya - retsina sounds nice - normally even the word Sato sends shudders down my spine. Worse drink I ever had was a ceramic pot herb drink to which you added water recorked and left it for a few days bought out of interest from a roadside stall in Isaan with my wife providing me with the cultural background. Tasted like a bottle of fermented pee that had been left out by the bins for a few days and been rejected by a tramp. 

[condobrit001]

They say that once you have tried Black Cock you never go back.

[Denim]

14 minutes ago, URMySunshine said:

Never seen this over in Pattaya - retsina sounds nice - normally even the word Sato sends shudders down my spine. Worse drink I ever had was a ceramic pot herb drink to which you added water recorked and left it for a few days bought out of interest from a roadside stall in Isaan with my wife providing me with the cultural background. Tasted like a bottle of fermented pee that had been left out by the bins for a few days and been rejected by a tramp. 

 

Yes....in the interests of science I try anything new I see. When I got my first bottle of this I fully expected it to be as bad as all the rest but was happily surprised.

 

I don't think you can judge a type of drink just from one brand.

 

Anyone who's first taste of beer was the old type Singha beer

could understandably think that all beer was a vile brew.

 

Happily there are a lot of better tasting beers out there although personally I am not a big beer fan.

[smiggley]

More cheap charlie's, if you can't afford to drink give it up.

[URMySunshine]

6 minutes ago, smiggley said:

More cheap charlie's, if you can't afford to drink give it up.

Cheap yes but what we are looking here is value for money with low or no hangover potential the spec is quite clear. Be interested in Lao Khao feedback but I'm pretty sure my instincts are right on that. Which is that it is one step up from meths and the juntas secret weapon for keeping the poor men down and therefore docile  (for women it is looking at the babies). 

 

Edited February 21, 2020 by URMySunshine

[BritManToo]

47 minutes ago, URMySunshine said:

Keep it up I know you're right - the cheapest drink is not to.....That said I have my rules which is not to drink till after 6pm , stick to beer mostly and limit the bottles to 2 large ones. 

 

Anyway back to cheap drinks !

Maybe in Thailand, but in Vietnam and Cambodia soft drinks are often twice the price of beer.

Back in Siem Reap my hotel charged 50c for a beer, and $1 for a pot of tea.

I ended up drinking beer with breakfasts.

 

Edited February 21, 2020 by BritManToo

[URMySunshine]

 

10 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Maybe in Thailand, but in Vietnam and Cambodia soft drinks are often twice the price of beer.

Must be Thailand's Buddhist anti-drinking culture that keeps the price of soft drinks so high ! Have noticed the Russians of Jomtien are a Chang/Sansom-coke crowd on the whole. 

 

 

Edited February 21, 2020 by URMySunshine

[Denim]

48 minutes ago, URMySunshine said:

Be interested in Lao Khao feedback but I'm pretty sure my instincts are right on that.

 

Well, since you ask I can provide my observations on it since I drink it often when the Sato is not available.

 

It gets a lot of negative comments mostly from people who have perhaps only tasted it once and thereafter , wishing to appear knowledgeable on things Thai , slate it as all bad.

 

It's bad rep comes mostly from the fact that being the cheapest booze out there , it is drunk in vast quantities by the rural folk , who not being too clever when sober , become complete idiots when drunk.

 

I drink it regularly but never before 6.00 pm or after 9.00 pm.

One small bottle ( if 40 degree ) will get you pretty hammered.

 

As with other drinks there is a difference between brands. The most common stuff :

 

 

both tastes and smells pretty awful and needs a strong mix to hide the fact . ( locals don't bother since mixers are in their opinion , a waste of money )

 

My prefered brand is :

 

 

 

This is much cleaner with little smell. The best mix by far in my experience is bitter lemon. Mix it thus ...1 third water, 1 thirdlemon and 1 third booze.

 

Hangovers not a big issue with this brand.

 

A lot of people are down on it but when compared to other alcohol of the poor like Vodka Gin or Tequila then it is about the same.

 

 

Edited February 21, 2020 by Denim

[URMySunshine]

50 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Maybe in Thailand, but in Vietnam and Cambodia soft drinks are often twice the price of beer.

Back in Siem Reap my hotel charged 50c for a beer, and $1 for a pot of tea.

I ended up drinking beer with breakfasts.

 

Breakfast beers currently scare me and my sober wife keeps me on a tight wagon. Nice beer though same for Beer Lao - those pesky colonialists sure left some positives behind.

[Denim]

Also worth noting is that there is a lot of opinion that states that clear alcohol is better for you than darker types .

 

https://www.bustle.com/p/7-shocking-facts-about-drinking-clear-alcohol-vs-dark-alcohol-15950549

[URMySunshine]

4 minutes ago, Denim said:

 

Well, since you ask I can provide my observations on it since I drink it often when the Sato is not available.

 

It gets a lot of negative comments mostly from people who have perhaps only tasted it once and thereafter , wishing to appear knowledgeable on things Thai , slate it as all bad.

 

It's bad rep comes mostly from the fact that being the cheapest booze out there , it is drunk in vast quantities by the rural folk , who not being too clever when sober , become complete idiots when drunk.

 

I drink it regularly but never before 6.00 pm or after 9.00 pm.

One small bottle ( if 40 degree ) will get you pretty hammered.

 

As with other drinks there is a difference between brands. The most common stuff :

 

 

both tastes and smells pretty awful and needs a strong mix to hide the fact . ( locals don't bother since mixers are in their opinion , a waste of money )

 

My prefered brand is :

 

 

 

This is much cleaner with little smell. The best mix by far in my experience is bitter lemon. Mix it thus ...1 third water, 1 thirdlemon and 1 third booze.

 

Hangovers not a big issue with this brand.

 

A lot of people are down on it but when compared to other alcohol of the poor like Vodka Gin or Tequila then it is about the same.

 

 

I shall try a bottle in the name of research and your positive comments particularly as to not much taste or smell. That usually defines a 'clean spirit' without much congeners. 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congener_(beverages)

 

 

[Jaggg88]

9 hours ago, condobrit001 said:

They say that once you have tried Black Cock you never go back.

Are you speaking from experience or was it a friend? ????