Gold Bear – It tastes exactly the same as Heineken!

This is a beer that not only looks like a bottle of Heineken it also tastes exactly the same.

Now anywhere else in the world that would be an insult but in Southeast Asia it is a quite favourable comment.

The bottle makes some reference to Singapore but my theory is that one of the many licensed Heineken breweries in the region is pulling a fast one and selling off some of the beer with a new label.

I would guess Vietnam, Thailand or Cambodia but who knows, maybe someone stole the secret recipe!

Chang Beer Wins Gold Medal at 2008 World Beer Championships

http://news.yahoo.com/s/prweb/20090109/bs_prweb/prweb1841854

The distinguished tasting panel described Chang as: "Bright golden color. Honeyed raisin toast aromas with a hint of lychee follow through on a crisp, smooth entry to a dryish medium body with a hint of apple, nut, and a solid roasted grain character. Finishes with a crisp, balanced earthy hop and pizza dough fade. A very nice food beer."


Now it is true that Chang tastes okay for a Thai beer and if you are willing to ignore the accompanying God awful "Changover" then it is feasible for the beer to win an award.

But how the hell did they come up with that taste description?

Makes you wonder about the effects formaldehyde can have on the brain...

Anchor Beer: Thailand versus Cambodia

Cambodian expats have been abuzz about the origins of their much favoured tipple, Anchor.

Since late 2008 there have been several versions of the beer available in Cambodia: one version is the "original brew" and made in Kien Svay, another made by a Cambodian company by the name of HBL and a third, decidedly inferior, version made in Thailand.

Comments on a local expat site chart this most annoying of alcoholic inconveniences:

"Some shops are selling dodgy Anchor Beer made in Thailand and tastes nowhere near as good as the Cambodian made stuff"

"Domestic demand for Anchor exceeds the brewery's ability to supply - thus the excess is being sourced from Thai brewers until they can increase capacity. The Thai stuff is lower quality and you can tell by the can - make sure you buy the stuff marked made in Kandal province..."

"Locally produced beer gets shafted on taxes while the crap smuggled over the border manages to evade a lot of that so I figure there is economic incentive too"

Eventually somebody in the know posted some good news:

"The imported, Thai made, version is no longer in the market and was stopped as a supplier several months ago now"


http://www.expat-advisory.com/forums/topic7595.html

http://www.expat-advisory.com/forums/topic7602.html