The Good: The travel section of my morning paper informs me that, after having been closed for long enough that I thought it would be consigned to the annals of history, La Fleur en Papier Doré has reopened in Brussels. While hardly a great beer destination, at least in its former life, this endearing artist café has long been a favourite of mine, and of Magritte, Scutenaire and many others before me.
The Bad: Molson Coors Canada has come out with a new beer called Canadian 67, with 3% alcohol, 67 calories and about as much flavour as a bowl of unsweetened tapioca. It seems the company has forgotten the lesson of the spectacular flame-out of Molson Select back in the 1990’s, which had 3.3% alcohol and, to my recollection, more taste than the new beer. Or maybe that’s the point.
The Stupid: The beer blogs are awash with the news that Scottish & Newcastle, soon to be Heineken UK, is moving production of Newcastle Brown Ale to Tadcaster in Yorkshire. It’s Pete Brown who has hit the nail on the head, though, observing that far beyond the usual flap and fury of a revered brand being moved or an old brewery shut down, this move simply doesn’t make any sense from a business or marketing perspective. I mean, there’s a picture of the city of Newcastle on the label, for crying out loud!
Well, neither the first nor the last such a case.
I assume you’re referring to “The Stupid,” Leszek, and no doubt you’re quite right on that front. Doesn’t make it any less boneheaded, though.
As for the bad, perhaps Molsen Select was simply ahead of its time. With Miller and AB-InBev battling to the bottom to make the lightest beer in the world (we shall see to what success), perhaps the time is now ripe for a beer that is even less…