Red-Shirts Blamed For Falling Beer Sales

[featography]

Of all the things I can think of that the red shirts could be blamed for, a drop in alcohol sales is the last one.

I don't know, 100,000 of them here not drinking instead of being back home and drinking = falling beer sales

Reds responsible for falling beer sales, probably falling numbers of alcohol related traffic acidents...

a rise in blood donations at hospitals nationwide....

If those crazy like a fox Reds take the suggestion of one poster, and set another example for the nation by picking up trash on the streets as they migrate around the city, I might get wild and crazy and join them, along with the masses that have been watching, cheering and passing out water to them as they go by.

[Bagwan]

Promoting a good-tasting beer of lower alcohol content, such as Chang Lite (which is an acquired taste) can possibly help reduce the road toll at Songkran as well as the extent of unarmed domestic violence which is most likely to be from husband to wife or that sort of way of gender. It's not the solution in total but just a small part of the integral whole in these negative aspects of good sanuk over a drink or two.

Chang Lite is the drink of champions.

Champions are mushrooms in Spanish... I thought they like Red Wine better...

The Spanish for mushroom is setas. The French for mushroom is champignon.

Here endeth the First Lesson. We shall now sing hymn number 69 in your hymnbook. Amazing Grace (Not a reference to the carpark at 12 Soi Nana Nua after 0100)

[Bagwan]

What else can we blame the Red Shirts for?

Well Chelsea are looking for an excuse after this week's debacle. :D

[Bagwan]

Since you can't get Watneys Red Barrel here,

what's the point of talking about beer?

Ugh! Yuk! Where is John McInroe when you need him? You cannot be serious.

From at least 50 years ago :-

What is the difference between Watney's Red Barrel and having your end away on a riverbank?

None. Both are f***ing near water.

[Bagwan]

Since you can't get Watneys Red Barrel here,

what's the point of talking about beer?

Ugh! Yuk! Where is John McInroe when you need him? You cannot be serious.

From at least 50 years ago :-

What is the difference between Watney's Red Barrel and having your end away on a riverbank?

None. Both are f***ing near water.

[stevemck]

Did a few bars in S C last night and not many floging beer at less than Rol Bt...which I REFUSE to pay....Nuffing to do with the Reds ...

Spoke to a couple of me old mates (now mama Sans...) and even they admit prices have got silly....still pays yer dosh and all that...

Offshore still OK.......yeah ...old git....MPR

Just curious, is this English??

[stevemck]

Sorry but I think Chang Draught tastes like a 'Lite' and the Lite just doesn't taste - of anything. I must admit however only trying it once when I was mistakenly served Lite instead of Classic. I thought I was drinking my wife's soda, although that would at least have had a 'taste'.

Chang has always been my preferred tipple here but if not served ICE COLD (and in the Thai way with ice) it can taste revolting and only of chemicals.

If there was decent wine available and at a reasonable price I would change (or at least alternate) to that.

Promoting a good-tasting beer of lower alcohol content, such as Chang Lite (which is an acquired taste) can possibly help reduce the road toll at Songkran as well as the extent of unarmed domestic violence which is most likely to be from husband to wife or that sort of way of gender. It's not the solution in total but just a small part of the integral whole in these negative aspects of good sanuk over a drink or two.

Sorry have to agree with Hung..... lite and draught just don't do it! as far as kicking my wife's a-s I'm 230lbs, shes 100. I wouldn't even dream of it. I'd probably get mine kicked. (joke) It isn't beer that makes an a-s hole, it's their personality, if your going to beat on women, then it has to do with you and your upbringing not whether you drink regular beer or "lite". BTW I drink about 7 or 8 large Changs a day, and have never thought of raising my hand to my wife. In fact the very idea strikes terror into my heart LOL

[hextac]

BTW I drink about 7 or 8 large Changs a day

Holy crap, I thought I had a problem.

[stevemck]

Yes quite convenient to blame poor sales on a demo by 100,000 people.

My wifes folks run a general provisions shop up North and tell her that the price of everything has gone up recently. This and the fact there is no water for crops=work=not much money for beer.

Funny since Afta came into affect, my heineken at the local family mart has gone down 4 baht a can.

Canned beer? No wonder some people think Thais look down on farang! I am guessing here but I bet they only look down on farang that drink canned beer! (particularly in the daytime!)

Not forgetting those eager to show off their macho tendencies by drinking straight out of a bottle.

I'm not quite sure where that comment came from, but after spending most of my life traveling around the world with the Army, from one hel_l hole to another.I've learned that a lot of these countries know squat about sanitation. How many of these local bars, restaurants, etc. do you think use Boiling, or even hot water to sterlize your drinking glass? On the other hand The breweries do it because it keeps their product from spoiling, I never drink out of a glass if I have a choice, and it has absolutely zip to do with "macho"!

[stevemck]

BTW I drink about 7 or 8 large Changs a day

Holy crap, I thought I had a problem.

Problem?? I drink I fall down, No Problem!! Seriously, I've been drinking like this for years. Sometimes I wonder if I have a drinking problem, and when I'm honest with myself I say yeah you probably shouldn't drink so much. But in all honesty I drive and offer to let my wife (same age as me 62) drive and she usually says no. The only time I'm uncomfortable is when I drink the hard stuff. (Not much anymore.) I enjoy my life, I don't stagger around, and slur. So do I have a drinking problem? by AA standards yes. But I've always said the difference between us drunks and those alcoholics, is I don't have to attend those dam_n meetings!!

[hextac]

BTW I drink about 7 or 8 large Changs a day

Holy crap, I thought I had a problem.

Problem?? I drink I fall down, No Problem!! Seriously, I've been drinking like this for years. Sometimes I wonder if I have a drinking problem, and when I'm honest with myself I say yeah you probably shouldn't drink so much. But in all honesty I drive and offer to let my wife (same age as me 62) drive and she usually says no. The only time I'm uncomfortable is when I drink the hard stuff. (Not much anymore.) I enjoy my life, I don't stagger around, and slur. So do I have a drinking problem? by AA standards yes. But I've always said the difference between us drunks and those alcoholics, is I don't have to attend those dam_n meetings!!

Same here mate, no offence intended, I'm just used to the looks I get from the neighbours when the Chang (Lite) delivery arrives each month and offloads 20+ boxes.

[geriatrickid]

I'm pretty much just drinking import beer at this point. Why drink Chang when I can drink Beer Lao? Why drink Leo when I can drink Blanche de Namur? There's so many better options in Thailand than just the local swill. When it comes to tap beer though, Tawandaeng still has my strong support. Absolutely fantastic wheat beer for the price.

Never heard of Tawandaeng. I will go in search of this beverage. Yes, I am unsophisticated. I don't have much of a refined beer palate. A cold Pilsner will do me fine. Sadly, most of the beer joints in Patong don't have the decent ones or serve them at the right temp. Sometimes I look for the roly poly Germans and watch where they congregate, but these aren't the beer connaisseurs of ancient times and I've been disappointed to see them drinking the local piss in a bottle. So much for my assumptions that Germans still knew their beer.

Heck, I can't even find a bottle of Newcastle Brown Ale when I am feeling naughty. BTW, Newcastle has probably one of the best websites around in terms of education about its product. Very well put together and the lady that greets you, well, I'd down a pint with her instead of the typical non-artistically tatooed bargirl Chang drinker. Now that would be paradise; A Newcastle, a sunset over Patong bay from the balcony and the Newcastle babe.

[nikster]

I'm pretty much just drinking import beer at this point. Why drink Chang when I can drink Beer Lao? Why drink Leo when I can drink Blanche de Namur? There's so many better options in Thailand than just the local swill. When it comes to tap beer though, Tawandaeng still has my strong support. Absolutely fantastic wheat beer for the price.

Freshness, my friend. The true connoisseur knows that a beer will start to lose its taste about 1 month after it was bottled. Now granted, this wisdom I got from a guy who builds breweries for a living and loves beer just so very much as well. But since I have started to pay attention to the filled-by date, I couldn't help but admit that it's absolutely true. This is why German beer in Germany tastes so much better than here.

As good as it may be, any exotic beers will have a very low sales volume and sit on the shelves for too long, or take too long to get here in the first place.

And this is why I now buy only Leo or Heineken, and only from the 7-11 where the sales throughput is so high that the beer is rarely older than a week. I was never into Chang fresh or not, though by sales it must be some of the freshest out there.

@SeanMoran: LOL, that is just too funny, I had no idea. Oh no, increasing the price can't possibly have anything to do with it... particularly in this market with hardly any competition and new brands showing up seemingly every month...

Edited March 21, 2010 by nikster

[SeanMoran]

@SeanMoran: LOL, that is just too funny, I had no idea. Oh no, increasing the price can't possibly have anything to do with it... particularly in this market with hardly any competition and new brands showing up seemingly every month...

It's just one of the rare things here in this fine land where prices seem somewhat equivalent of those back in Australia, along with just a few things I can think of such as cars and computer hardware. So what costs me $1 AUD for 375ml or around 30 THB, the equivalent here costs me 28 THB for 330ml, therefore beer here is the same as back there.

Considering the disparity of average incomes between here and Australia, and at a guess around 25% of the average Australian cost of labour (or equivalent brain stress), it stands to reason that such a luxury item as Beer Chang might suffer a great deal in lost sales after a sudden 12.5% price increase.

Also remember that this is a predominantly Buddhist country, so there's not as much consumer loyalty as one might expect back in Oz.

[mahtin]

Also remember that this is a predominantly Buddhist country, so there's not as much consumer loyalty as one might expect back in Oz.

You mean I might not drink Beer Lao in a future reincarnation?

[Tod Daniels]

Chang and Singha will NOT be happy with this too good to be missed breaking news.

Wonder when it will hit CNN-Asia

Remember the beer companies motto; “drunken thais are happy thais”.

And who can forget the never popular ban on alcohol during voting because as always "thais don't let thais vote drunk..."

[Rinrada]

Did a few bars in S C last night and not many floging beer at less than Rol Bt...which I REFUSE to pay....Nuffing to do with the Reds ...

Spoke to a couple of me old mates (now mama Sans...) and even they admit prices have got silly....still pays yer dosh and all that...

Offshore still OK.......yeah ...old git....MPR

Just curious, is this English??

Keep taking the pills with possibly a nice cup of Lap Such (avec lemon) plus no less than 3 sugars to compliment the cucumber sarnies.

Avoid the mothers ruin untill at least after sundown....theres a good chap.

[Jerrytheyoung]

Gotten the following information (direct from Nana Thai and Cow boy streets)

The frequentation of massage parlours and spas has decreased by 20%. Apparently an important part of the customers is now abducted to Thaivisa forum.

Edited March 22, 2010 by Jerrytheyoung

[Zamor]

Thank you guy's, your comments made me roll of my chair, keep'm coming :-)