A kick in the teeth for beer lovers


Fosters is the only one of the cheap tier mainstream lagers (Carling, Coors etc) which has the distinct taste as if you've just licked an old 1p piece that's been festering in the bowls of an arcade machine for about 15 years.

Horrid stuff.

Makes me want to vomit just recalling the taste.

I'm not even an IPA (although I do like them) snob.

Just cannot stand Fosters.

I agree. Out of all the mainstream lagers, fosters is the worst.
 
If i remember, lagers in the 80's was around 3.5-4% anyway, started my drinking around then (15/16yo), even was bought a few pints off my parents as it wasn't considered strong. Was in the 90's that it started rising, especially when the wife beater came on the scene, which I liked, although for session drinking not the gear you should be on. 3.7% wouldn't bother me if was a nice pint and out for a few.

Heineken when it sold in Whitbread pubs was 3.4%. They changed strength measurements from ABV to % about 1985.
 
Fosters is the only one of the cheap tier mainstream lagers (Carling, Coors etc) which has the distinct taste as if you've just licked an old 1p piece that's been festering in the bowls of an arcade machine for about 15 years.

Horrid stuff.

Makes me want to vomit just recalling the taste.

I'm not even an IPA (although I do like them) snob.

Just cannot stand Fosters.
Always tastes stale to me.

My Dad used to love it, as does my youngest lad, but I personally wouldn't thank you for it. By far the worst of the 'cooking' lagers.
 
Heineken when it sold in Whitbread pubs was 3.4%. They changed strength measurements from ABV to % about 1985.
ABV is measured in % though?
There's Alcohol by Weight, which I never see used, but that's displayed as a percentage too

Before those, we had either degrees proof or gravity based measures. I could be missing others, that's just what I'm aware of.
 
ABV is measured in % though?
There's Alcohol by Weight, which I never see used, but that's displayed as a percentage too

Before those, we had either degrees proof or gravity based measures. I could be missing others, that's just what I'm aware of.

Aye. Might be Original Gravity (OG) I'm getting mixed up with.
 
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Fosters is the only one of the cheap tier mainstream lagers (Carling, Coors etc) which has the distinct taste as if you've just licked an old 1p piece that's been festering in the bowls of an arcade machine for about 15 years.

Horrid stuff.

Makes me want to vomit just recalling the taste.

I'm not even an IPA (although I do like them) snob.

Just cannot stand Fosters.

Imagine being this much of a fanny about a pint of lager tho
.


Moretti has quite a distinct hoppy taste to it, I’d prefer the crispness of a Fosters on a hot day.
I never drank Fosters for a while but noticed in one bar we go in it was £1 cheaper than the Coors I’d normally get at the time, I’ll drink anything so a pound is a pound.

I’ve not drank Coors much since, San Miguel in Spoons.

Exactly marra. On the fosters can it says “crafted to refresh”, and they can’t lie because Carling would prosecute them
 
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Haven’t drank fosters probably since I was in school but sick of beers dropping their strength now.

It’s like when soft drinks change and they say “new improved flavour” in reality it now tastes shite but cheaper for them to make and they haven’t increased the price at the till for a fortnight.
 
I’m not a fosters lover but love Stella and they seemed to do the same with that, I don’t know what their end game is with reducing the % of the drinks?

Beer is all about brand loyalty and image. They'll keep reducing the strength of brands with loyal support like Fosters and Stella, while nurturing new brands into the market at a higher price for those who move away from the older brands. Repeat the cycle.

Or they keep the price high for exclusivity and image. Peroni is a prime example. Its a decent enough drink, but I've never understood why people are willing to pay so much for it. It's not worth the 60p premium you pay for it over other lager surely? Except that there are people who like to be seen drinking it.
 
I've never been that bothered about what lager I drink. As I don't go out to get pissed I don't worry about the strength either. I don't like drinking beer or lager that's out of a can and only buy bottled. I rarely see bottled fosters so never drink it. But if it was readily available in bottles I'd buy it if it was on offer.
The worst lager I've tasted in my life was that Guinness hop stuff, it was rank. I thought Hofmeister when I first tried it in a Reading pub was the worst, or Sam Smith's Taddy lager. The Guinness lager easily topped them both.
 
The original LCL - before it was marketed as LCL Pils - had an OG of either 1034 or 1036 (I can't remember which). No idea what that equates to in ABV terms.
1036 is a fairly typical lager. Assuming you get good fermentation, you'll get it down to a Final Gravity of 1008, which comes out at 3.7%
 
Just seen on there grolsch is 5% over there also, picked up a bottle in asda last week as I haven’t had it in yrs, noticed it was now around 4% so I put it back on the shelf.
I actually had 2 bottles of grolsch in my brothers watching the match Lastneet, and we areet ice cold tbh.
 
Local club has just kicked out Fosters and John Smiths.
Mixture between a price hike and reduction of strength.
It was going to add about 50p to each pint and with a lower ABV, they decided to ditch it and save on the lines it took up instead.
They have been offered the 5% lagers at a good rate in the past (1664, moretti etc) but found that drinkers found it too strong and people only bought 4 or 5, not 7 or 8 on a big night out. Hence they got ditched as well.
These days a lower strength beer suits me better, so it didn't bother me, but I think they've shot themselves in the foot with the session drinkers.
 

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