A Small Rant

I was at Lou Reed in The Marquee in Cork last night. There was a big Budweiser Tent. I know that this is too big for The Beer Revolution to fight but my complaint is quite specific. I grudgingly accept that bars at big events like this are going to be dominated by the multinational breweries. I know that there will be no real choice. I've come to expect that despite a captive audience and a complete lack of competition, the prices will be somewhat inflated (€5 for a Guinness - not too bad). But what I do not accept is the refusal to sell half pints.

This didn't really affect me personally. I chose not to drink at all. But why couldn't my friend who just doesn't like drinking pints get a half pint of Guinness in a plastic glass?

I've written on this subject before here.

Great gig, by the way (apart from the awful Mick Jagger & Tina Turner meets James Last version of The Velvet's Rock 'N Roll during the encore).

My last drink was not a pint of Budweiser or Guinness from a plastic glass.

Drink Small, Stay Fresh

The Beer Revolution has been busy the last few days and hasn't updated the blog. Apologies.

Now here's a crazy idea and I've a feeling it won't be very popular but it kinda makes sense to me.

Nobody seems to disagree that we have a problem with alcohol in this country. This is a subject that TBR will discuss periodically. We have a problem with under age drinking and with binge drinking.

What people can't seem to agree on is what measures to take, if any, to tackle this problem.

It is my belief that what is needed is a paradigm shift in the relationship with alcohol and the manner in which it is consumed. There is no quick fix solution. You cannot change the habits of a large sector of the population overnight. No single measure will cure the problem. A somewhat more holistic approach is needed.

My, possibly unpopular, idea is not a cure for Ireland's drinking problems, it is simply one of many possible measures (I may discuss more in the future) which may help to slowly change the drinking culture.

Here goes; I want the standard, most commonly used measure for beer to be the half pint. I don't want the pint banned - I simply don't want the default measure to be the pint. It seems that the easiest way to influence people's behaviour is to hit their pockets.

Currently most bars charge more for two half pints than for one pint. I simply wish to reverse this trend. This could be done with a tax imposed on larger measures but as I suspect the unpopularity of this scheme of mine already, I don't wish to exacerbate the situation by adding more tax onto alcohol. Passing legislation that ensures a pint costs, for example, 20c more than two half pints would probably do the trick (let the publicans do the maths).

But why do this?
Because of our 'pint' culture, there seems to be a machoism associated with the larger measure - it's not considered 'manly' for a man to drink halves and conversely considered unladylike for women to drink pints. Let's move on from this place, folks.

If people habitually drank glasses, I believe, there would be a more social focus on drinking rather than a quantity focus. Rounds become cheaper and less intimidating and people would be more inclined to drop out if they've had enough, not having forked out a fortune for their round. The notion of 'one for the road' is less harmful. Something similar could be done with spirits.

I don't naively think this will reduce peoples drinking significantly - what I'm after is a subtle and gradual change to our habits. Most European countries typically serve beer in 25 - 30cl glasses. Anyone ever been to Cologne? Their local beer style, Kolsch is served in 20cl glasses - in Germany! Almost everyone looks to a more 'European' style of drinking.

Is there anything worse than a flat, dead pint of stout, than a warm, headless lager. Drink small, stay fresh! Have as many as you see fit, drink pints if you want to pay the difference - the choice would be yours. 'Can I buy you a glass?' That won't break the bank!

I tentatively publish this post awaiting the backlash.

P.S. I'm not crazy about the standard half pint glass, there are many other designs to choose from.

My last drink was; Maradsous Bruin 8%abv 33cl.