Month: July 2026

Your Clear and Crisp Mid-July 2026 Beery News Notes For A Smoky Smoggy Thursday

Wednesday morning news said that Toronto had the worst air quality on the planet. Around here at the other end of the big lake, Tuesday at 11:30 pm was a bit nuts, too. Getting out of the car after picking up the kid from work, it was like I was leaning right over the BBQ as I was smoking ribs. Good enough reason to stay in and watch whatever was on TV yesterday afternoon.  Oh, the Falklands Friendly was on. My linguistic imperialists against my hemisphere mates. Unlike others, I stuck to water and the other NA stuff myself.

You know, Eoghan has done an excellent bit of work with his series on the nations of the World Cup as can be spotted in his city of Brussels. He is coming soon to the conclusion and, on Tuesday, he turned to… Belgium itself! But where to look for the heart of Belgium in Brussels?

It was obvious. Here is a street, a narrow alley that rolls down a steep incline from Gare Centrale before skirting the Grand Place and emptying out behind Boulevard Anspach, charting centuries of Brussels history, architecture and patrimony. A street that might once have been the core of a Brussels nightlife district centred around the Îlot Sacré (the Holy Islet) – frequented by Jacques Brel, Jan Mulder, and the rest of the city’s post-war demi monde – but which has long since been converted into a holding pen, a quarantine zone, for the tourists that visit the city so that the rest of us can get on with our lives unencumbered by their nuisances.

And, keeping with the games, Boak and Bailey looked back to the World Cup of 1966 and found the promise of a financial boom from those games faded fast:

In 2026, it’s quite normal for pubs to have television screens and for people to gather there to watch big football matches together. Last night, even our local craft beer taproom was rearranged to accommodate an enormous screen. Back in 1966, though, the idea of TVs in pubs was fairly new, and pubs with TVs were relatively unusual. As a result, one story at the time was about how the tournament was causing pubs to lose business.

This is something that seems to have repeated now sixty years later in Toronto: “… demand for accommodations in the city is down as more rooms stood empty during the first two weeks of the World Cup than in the same time last year….” The Guardian reports things have gone a bit better for British pubs if card use stats are to be trusted:

Pubs have experienced the biggest boost, thanks in part to football fans taking advantage of extended opening hours, Barclays’ consumer spending report found. England’s group stage victory over Panama emerged as the busiest day of 2026 so far, with takings five times higher than the daily average for the year. On a year-on-year basis, England’s draw with Ghana resulted in the biggest uplift, as card users in pubs spent 244% more than they did on the same day in 2025, possibly because of a relative lack of action that gave fans time to go to the bar. The round of 16 victory over Mexico registered a 201.5% increase, measured over Sunday and Monday to reflect the game kicking off in the small hours.

US sales also have increased but by a much more modest 5.5%. But at least there seems to be actual interest… as opposed to the new beer out of Belarus:

“Minsk Capital,” whose design incorporates Belarusian state symbols, received contradictory reviews from buyers. Some consumers praise the drink, while others, on the contrary, criticize it for “excessive lightness and dilution.” “Light beer water from Trokhsosensky, but without the taste of socks and other drawbacks,” user Dmitry shared his opinion on the website of the “Krasnoye & Beloye” online store.

Speaking of authoritarian regimes, this week’s story in The Times on the health and safety record at BrewDog* surprises me in a couple of ways:

The company complied with the enforcement orders in 2023, but former employees allege that previous instances, where rules were broken, were not reported to the authorities. These allegations are denied. Watt’s lawyer stressed that under the former chief executive’s tenure, BrewDog’s safety records were better than the industry average. With respect to the enforcement notices, the lawyer said that BrewDog worked constructively with the HSE, invested several millions of pounds, implemented required improvements and that both notices were complied with and subsequently closed.

First, if as the story says, Watt was terminated in 2024 it strikes me as odd that his personal lawyer in 2026 is commenting on corporate activities prior to the termination. Does he have access to the records? Second… again… where is Mr. Dickie in all this? Why is his view never sought – let alone his role referenced. He was CEO at the time in question.

UPDATE: Watching CBC late night news at the end of Wednesday, this story out of Nova Scotia caught my eye:

Alcohol producers in Nova Scotia will soon have more options to get their bottles and cans into the hands of consumers after the provincial government said Wednesday it would be loosening restrictions on the industry. Under the changes, wineries, breweries, cideries and distilleries will be allowed to cross-sell as of early August, meaning they can stock their stores with products from another producer. The second change, expected this fall, will allow producers to open retail stores without having a production facility on site.

This is a great set of regulatory amendments that should put a lot of good drinks into the hands of a lot of curious people.  I really like the idea of local wines being sold in brewery taprooms for takeaway as well as vice versa.

Elsewhere, recent reputable talk of the pub in a Lidl grocery store in Northern Ireland inspired Cian Duffy of Every Pub in Dublin to explore the history of drinking in such shops due to the local licensing laws:

You can try cut the definition of a “supermarket pub” lots of ways, but I can assure you that Ireland has had basically all of them; with Dublin covering most bases. Even after deliberately excluding the extremely common (but not in Dublin) pubs-with-shops where the shop is now quite big, and weird cases like a co-op supermarket with an actual but rarely open bar (Inishkeel co-op Glenties); we have lots of examples. These include the direct equivalent of Lidl Dundonald – a supermarket chain opening a pub to run as an off-licence; but also a supermarket chain operating multiple pubs while awaiting redevelopment, a supermarket chain running supermarkets *in* pubs; and some edge cases including Lidl themselves holding planning and a licence in Dublin.

Interesting stuff! Here’s some notes:

Note #1: Laura has been keeping her eye on the Crooked House story.
Note #2: “Dangerously sessionable, as they say in all the best beer bars.”
Note #3: The best no-alcohol beers really should have a bit of alcohol.
Note #4: Clearly a definitive guide…

There were some interesting reactions to one brewery’s initiative on cask ale as discussed in the Morning Advertiser by Nick Payne of Brains:

…people want change. Now, if you sign a deal for four or five years, you’re not changing that keg range. What does cask give you? It enables you to change your beer and, potentially, you can have a different beer on every three days.

Nigel Stadler shared that when I left brewery sales in 2015 “a lot of cask customers were actually fed up with constant rotation of beers” and John Keeling added “Agree. I like staying on the same beer.” I would have thought that one of the great lessons of US craft beer’s years’ long contraction is that chasing the tail of change is not a winning route to building loyalty.

Aslo learning lessons, Alistair has done his “oft, when on my couch I lie” looking back at his recent trip home to the UK and has shared a few conclusions:

The main thought that has pottered and re-pottered around my noggin is just what a fantastic place the British pub is, whether that incarnation is in Inverness or Westminster. Of course every serious beer drinking country has it’s pubs, from Ireland to Czechia, and all stops in between, people love to drink in communal locations rather than just getting battered at home. Perhaps it’s that there isn’t an undercurrent of puritanical shame about going for a pint or two and just hanging out, there doesn’t need to be a purpose or an excuse to go for a drink. Anyway, back to British pubs – and of course this is all just subjective – but being, still, even at nearly 51, a rather introverted person, I find it interesting that going into a British pub is the easiest thing in the world for me. 

Over at his newsletter, Knut has been praising the updated ninth edition of the Good Beer Guide Belgium by Tim Skelton – and shared this bit of a tid, more nug than nugget:

Yvan de Baets, brewmaster at Brasserie de la Senne, outlines the changes in the Belgian beer scene over the years since the last edition of the book. “There are way too many beers,” he says. “Around 40% of the brewers in Belgium are fake, contract-brewers or bierfirma’s….. By taking no entrepreneurial risks themselves, the imposters are further flooding an over-saturated market, hurting the real honest brewer…”

Never the fake, Jeff has been reviewing the latest policy statements from the succinctly named Oregon Health Authority (OHA) on risks associated with alcohol intake and sought to leverage what I might suggest is a difference without a distinction, finding space between these two statements:

“…the more alcohol one consumes, the greater their risk of cancer…“

“…risk may start to increase around one or fewer drinks per day…”

For him, the first from the OHA indicates “gone is any talk of moderation” while the second from the US Surgeon General indicates is “quite a bit different.” Me, with respect, I seem them as being pretty similar statements. The constituency that may inhabit any gap between the two would be those who drink less than a drink a day. Fortunately, that includes me according to my stats. Most people involved with beer at the key personal identifier level, however, aren’t like me. Jeff was clearly saying that the harms of booze are real, don’t get me wrong. But it is not the job of organizations like the OHA to balance health interests against the goals of other community sectors. Does one consider the possible slur by association against the poor pumpkin growers of the early 80s? No.

One last thing. Ron is treking through central Canada looking for the Laurentian Elite of beery experiences.

I’ve only been to Toronto before so I’m totally clueless about the other three cities. If you fancy meeting up and buying me some beer, get in touch. I’,m a sociable fellow and always enjoy meeting new people. Hopefully, it’s not going to be too warm in Canada. Andrew really doesn’t cope with heat well. When we were in Japan a few years back, several times I thought he was going to drop dead. 

I gave him some suggestions (did I?… Irene‘s in Ottawa after that CFL game, Ron!) but do add a comments or two under his post if you can think of anything else he could do. Err… I hope the smoke clears…

That’s it for now. When next we meet, the World Cup will be a memory just like the breathable air of yore. As you think on that, please check out Boak and Bailey posting on Saturday and adding to their fabulously entertaining footnotes week after week at Patreon. And do look out for more of Stan’s new “One Link, One Paragraph” format.  Then hunt out something in someone’s archives! Leave oblique comments on someone’s post from 2009!! Listen to a few of Lew’s podcasts and get your emailed issue of Episodes of my Pub Life by David Jesudason on certain Fridays. And Phil Mellows is at the BritishBeerBreaks. Once a month, Will Hawkes issues his London Beer City newsletter – but it may not be pay per view. Do sign up for Katie’s wonderful self-governing totes autonomous website featuring The Gulp, too.  Ben’s Beer and Badword remains on pause but there is reading at The Glass which is going back to being a blog. Any more? We have Ontario’s own A Quick Beer and All About Beer is still offering a range of podcasts – and there’s also Mike Seay’s The Perfect Pour. Plus follow the venerable Full Pint podcast! And there’s the Craft Beer Channel on Youtube as well as the archives of the Beer Ladies Podcast.

*PS: who cares…

Your Vibrant And Now Excitingly Neutral Beery News Notes For The World Cup’s Round Of Eight

I took a break from the World Cup on Sunday evening to watch Billy Bragg play in a converted church in our fair city. See, England and Mexico were playing at the same time over 4,000 km to the south. Bragg made it one of the themes of the show, he not being able to watch the game that I passed on for him. He received wanted (“…tell me…“) and unwanted (“…don’t tell me…“) updates on the score from the crowd. It was fun. Pubs are stocking up for the next game against Norway – which is being played at a more civilized start time for the home audiences. People are focused on this stuff. After a 5 pm trip on London Underground during England’s prior game against DR Congo, Hannah Evans in The Times Food newsletter asked where you might go in the UK to avoid the tournament and among her recommendations was the Highland Laddie of Leeds:

This old Leeds boozer got a revamp last year and was named the best pub in Britain by the Good Food Guide less than six months later. Ever since it’s been rammed with customers visiting not just for pints but the pub’s fantastic food — bar snacks such as sausage rolls with homemade brown sauce and bone marrow fat on toast downstairs (walk-ins only) and pub classics with a twist upstairs including the legendary Keema Shepherd’s Pie. The good news? They don’t show the football which means you have a 90 minute window during each game to pop in and try the menu for yourself. 

You will recall the Highland Laddie being being visited by Katie earlier this year. Looking further back, Boak and Bailey are blogging like it’s 2008 this week:

Not every post has to be a 1,000+ word full researched epic. Not everything we write needs to tell a story with a beginning, middle and end. There doesn’t always need to be a thesis or argument. So, this week – and we’ll see how it goes – we’re just going to see what catches our attention, and what we find ourselves discussing between ourselves, and quickly write it up.

So far they have contemplated a beer line-up upgrade as well as a former BrewDog location. I was inspired and wrote a review of a NA beer. TL:DR? It didn’t totally suck! Do something speedy and short yourself. Go-waaaaan! My note was nothing like the efforts of The Beer Nut, however, who reviewed eleven beers the other day… which booze! He was celebrating:

Another Monday, another blog post, another round-up of recent Irish pale ale. This one is the blog’s 3000th entry. It’s best not to think about what that means, and move right along with the reviews.

He was not pleased with the selection in the end. Turns out he shares the experience of many North Koreans feel when buying commercially made beer. You know… you think you know something about totalitarian regimes and then, whammo, this sort of news slaps you in the back of the head:

A source in South Hamgyong province said beer demand has climbed in Hamhung as the weather warms. But state-made brands such as Taedonggang beer and Ponghak beer are losing ground to Chinese beer and beer brewed at home. Restaurants and jangmadang, the informal markets central to North Korea’s economy, sell all three types side by side in Hamhung. Homemade beer is the best seller, the source said. Chinese beer comes second, and domestically produced factory beer trails both. Demand for factory beer is relatively weak because of its taste, the source said. North Korean people have long complained that it carries a strong barley smell and tastes heavy and unrefined.

I never pegged totalitarian absolutists like those of NK to allow not only a free market on home brewed beer but allow it to compete with the state run factory breweries. And I always thought the phrase “North Korean people have long complained” was an oxymoron.

Note #1: Setting up a beer engine.
Note #2: The Beer Store needs a lot of empties returned…now!
Note #3: “Village of 600 holds beerfest” reports Biggleswade press.
Note #4: Beer stained rubber chicken lets team down.

Pellicle‘s feature this week sees Ewen Friers visit Heaney Brewery in Bellaghy, Northern Ireland where he learned this bit of market reality from head brewer Mal McCay:

“Northern Ireland is the most tied and restrictive market in Europe for selling beer,” Mal says. “The market was designed to keep us out of it, basically.” Away from the relatively cosmopolitan Belfast, the vast majority of rural drinkers haven’t ditched bigger beers like Guinness, Coors, and Carlsberg. Whether a total revolution is realistic or not, it’s sobering to hear Mal talk about the pubs in his locale. “We had 108 kegs go to Italy for Paddy’s Day, but none [ordered] here,” he says. “There’s much more support for our beer out there than there is here. Outside of Belfast, people don’t want to know.”

Again with the economics, Jeff posted a string of thoughts on Costco cancelling their Kirkland Lager contract with Deschutes and shared this tidbit:

The beer was revenue positive, but not much. Believe it or not, most of the grist was Weyermann malt, and Kirkland went for $14 a 12-pack. It buoyed production for Deschutes and gave them a ton of good press. I asked a source inside the brewery just a couple weeks ago if they had a plan to do something with the award-winning lager that was already in the lineup before it became Kirkland. He gave me a Cheshire Cat-smile and said they had certainly blocked out a plan if that happened.

It’s all just wrapper on the can after all.  Speaking of the volume market, Ron shared his thoughts on one of the upside of Wetherspoons tht he was reminded on on a recent trip to London:

…we got stuck in ‘Spoons. As you do. Andrew has a very soft spot for ‘Spoons. Probably because I took him and his brother Alexei into them so often when they were younger.  The UK is still a nightmare if you have kids. You’ve no idea from the outside whether they’re allowed in a pub. That’s why Wetherspoon’s pubs are a godsend. They always let children in. I also knew that I can afford to buy all three of us meals and get a pint for me. And a couple of double whiskies. I needed to calm my nerves when out and about with the kids.

I posted this at BlueSky but, for perpetuity, I will repeat here that I was looking through a few old images that I have save over the years the other day and I came across this image. It’s a legal letter to Molson from 1934 found at Canada’s National Archives in 2013. It confirms that Molson trademarked the term “India Pale Ale” in 1869, seven years before the Bass trademark. My visceral reaction was “….they trademarked frikkin’ “India Pale Ale”!” Turns out Canada’s Trademark Act came into being in 1868 while the UK only introduced one in 1875. Which explains a lot but it is important to note that”….they trademarked frikkin’ “India Pale Ale”!”

Sticking with the Great White North, there was an oddly one-sided coverage of a fairly pointless politicial stunt in the US Congress related to Canadian booze buying policy:

Nearly all of Canada’s liquor boards have prohibited or restricted the importation and distribution of US alcoholic drinks, a move that has impacted US producers and limited access to Canada as an export market. The CANADA Act builds on comments from US trade representative ambassador Jamieson Greer, who stated that resolving the Canadian provinces’ discriminatory treatment of American alcohol producers would likely require an enforcement action. During a recent committee hearing, Greer noted that only two countries had retaliated economically against the US over the past year: the People’s Republic of China and Canada… Doubling down on the unfairness of the situation and her reasons for pursuing the legislation, Tenney said: “Canadian provinces cannot be allowed to hold American wineries, breweries, and distilleries hostage and attempt to ransom them.”

No view from Canada presented. No suggestion that these are matters that are handled in treaty negotiations, not by internal legislation. Plus, not only do Canadians not care but the US President does not usually care what individual members of Congress do or says – even though it’s led by his own party. Here’s the CBC’s story on the situation.

Germany v Budweiser? Apparently AB InBev has a need for some odd product placement where there is a history of disinterest, according to The NYT:

Twice, the Americans tried to crack the German market under different branding. Both attempts fizzled. The first was abandoned after several years of disappointing sales. The second was scuttled amid ongoing legal questions over the Budweiser name. Last fall, AB InBev announced another go, now with a product that, for legal reasons, it had to call “Anheuser-Busch Bud.” A company official said the expansion would bring Bud back to its German “roots” — its founders’ country of origin — in time for its 150th anniversary… the beer is hard to find. It’s rare to see in grocery stores… 

One more World Cup related story before we start thinking about heading to the exit this week.  Apparently, the Ambassador for Canada in Ireland held an event for the game  against Morocco (which lead to our team’s exit) and there was a certain cocktail on offer according to the Irish Times:

I was sorry to see Canada exit the World Cup at the weekend, not least because I watched their game against Morocco at an impromptu garden party hosted by their Irish ambassador, Dennis King. But at least they went out with good grace, unlike certain other North American countries we could mention. Their typical modesty was reflected even on the drinks menu. Hence a special brew concocted for the occasion billed as the “We’re Just Glad to have Made it this Far Cocktail”. According to the recipe, also included, this comprised “2 parts Canadian whiskey, 1 part lemon juice, and ¾ part maple syrup”. Suffice to say that, if the Canadian strikers had had as much of a kick as it did, they’d still be in the tournament.

Does that sound good? Hmm… I wonder if it was official government policy available at other embassies or just the Spud Islander’s idea.

Finally, as part of last week’s low hanging tales related to the semiquincentennial of the Declaration of Independence, there was chat about the supposed small beer recipe that George Washington, a militia colonel at the age of just 25, wrote down in 1757. Turns out to likely be the fairly common frontier militia beer similar to Jeffery Amherst’s spruce beer of 1759 that was also based on that ratio of three gallons of molasses to thirty of hot water. I do find one part of the accepted transciption from Washington’s handwriting very odd. At the start it states:

Take a large Sifter full of Bran Hops to your taste – Boil these 3 hours… 

What the heck are “bran hops“? A random blend of bran and hops in a random quantity? At least Amherst measured out the 7 pounds of spruce that had to be boiled until the bark came off. And bran adds nothing. It really adds nothing after three hours of boiling. Plus it’s not like they are separating out the bran from the flour for the bread that frontier militia soldier grunts ate over 100 years before the commercial separation of bran by rollers is invented. Plus bran would just fall though the holes of a “sifter“, a perforated spoon. It all makes no sense. Sensible speculation suggests what was meant was whole dried brown hop cones – older hops. Hops that look like bran maybe. Washington himself was a porter drinker but he’d probably laugh at all the bran brewers of today.*  Hmm… I wonder of he provided something like the crap militia beer for those he enslaved.

That’s it for now. As we winnow out more teams leading to the final game, please take time to check out Boak and Bailey posting on Saturday and adding to their fabulously entertaining footnotes week after week at Patreon. And do look out for more of Stan’s new “One Link, One Paragraph” format.  Then hunt out something in someone’s archives! Leave oblique comments on someone’s post from 2009!! Listen to a few of Lew’s podcasts and get your emailed issue of Episodes of my Pub Life by David Jesudason on certain Fridays. And Phil Mellows is at the BritishBeerBreaks. Once a month, Will Hawkes issues his London Beer City newsletter and do sign up for Katie’s wonderful self-governing totes autonomous website featuring The Gulp, too.  Ben’s Beer and Badword remains on pause but there is reading at The Glass which is going back to being a blog. Any more? We have Ontario’s own A Quick Beer and All About Beer is still offering a range of podcasts – and there’s also Mike Seay’s The Perfect Pour. Plus follow the venerable Full Pint podcast! And there’s the Craft Beer Channel on Youtube as well as the archives of the Beer Ladies Podcast.

*One bit of historical correlation doesn’t mean causation context thanks to Lord Wiki, citing the 2005 text General George Washington by Edward Lengel: “Later in the year, Washington again suffered a serious bout of dysentery; he was bedridden for much of the winter of 1757–58, and even suggested to the Virginia Burgesses that he be replaced since he could not properly do his duty as colonel of the regiment.”

Quick Note: Dortmunder Original Lager, DAB, Germany

Light honey, cream and crusty French bread swirl between the cheeks. Plus a slightly minty hop. This is only $2.85 CND a can at the LCBO and grocery stores around our fair province. That’s a great cheap beer for a hot afternoon in the garden. There’s not much else to say about it. Pairs well with watching robins strip your Juneberry bush of all its fruit. I mean, I could complain but it’s not like there’s a regulatory board that administers this sort of thing. That head sure died fast. And it’s a bit sickly when it starts to warm up. The mint morphing into something metallic. The cream starts to lean a bit towards Edam cheese. You have about a ten minute window of opportunity. Still, great value.

The BAers rate it a titch lower than the last reviewed Atlética which makes no sense. They musta waited too long.

Quick Note: Atlética, Athletic Brewing, Connecticut

Once upon a time, I wrote quick notes about beers I had tried. Like this one for Shepard Neame Goldings, I beer I haven’t thought about for one minute in the subsequent twenty years. So it was pleased I was to read that Boak and Bailey decided to turn back the clock this week and blog like it was 2008 again. I am nothing if not a follower.

“Made in the USA” says the can but the given corporate address is by Athletic Brewing Canada of Vancouver, BC. Atlética passed the guzzle test. A beer right out of the fridge should go down prickly when chugged and chill your belly.  It did that nicely. Very nicely. It gives off the pleasant aroma of a apricot-lemony sweet iced tea. Taste? Martime Canadian husky brown bready and grassy lemon with a bit of a worty middle with a hint of elementary school glue cut with a black tea and bitter weedy green hopping as well as more of that lingering lemon.

I bought a six-pack of this on sale at a lower budget grocery story for $10 CND. Or $7 USD or $1.17 USD a can. Judged as a craft beer as the label states, this would be a disappointment. A bit of the new microbrewery 2005ish vibe. A bit of the replicant. There is a under cooked pie crust aspect to that mid-point. But it works around that with balancing notes pretty well – as long as you drink it cold.

BAers rank it in the mid-70% range. I’d buy it again… in summer… if I saw the same sale.

Your Frankly A Bit Too Humid Post-Canada Day 2026 Doldrums Edition Of The Beery News Notes

Happy day after Canada Day! I’ve been hiding in the basement near the air conditioner outlet myself. Because Wednesday days off are the worst of the days off in the schedule, aren’t they. But it’s still a day off for so many so we should not begrudge the lack of mail delivery and all that does along with that. We should, in fact, celebrate the fact that our country was built on ale. It’s always worth raising the flag in honour of that. I stole this photo off the internets over twenty one years ago so I have no idea who the heck they are* but the bowties and that Budweiser is too sweet not to repeat.

What else is going on? First up, there was a good response to the latest edition of The Session hosted by Boak and Bailey on the topic of Martyn Cornell’s last book Porter and Stout, all leading to this encouraging summation of the discussion:

Martyn Cornell was not often wrong and enjoyed a scholarly argument. At the same time, our impression is that the truth was more important to him than his ego. With that in mind, we think he might be pleased to see people spotting gaps, arguing points and generally building upon a work that, as Phil Cook points out in his Session post, could never really hope to be a ‘complete history’. Writers like Liam K should take heart: this is not a full stop; there is still research to be done; and Martyn’s book presents many new avenues for investigation. We shouldn’t look at tomes like this and think there’s nothing left to write but, instead, let them inspire us.

I would add to my post that it was nice seeing Martyn identify that once upon a time this very part of the world had its own version of Porter.

And, yes, it is still the time of the World Cup. Canada is through to the round of 16 after a match with the 54th ranked team that was being reported as being very dull and disorganized until a fabulous goal made the team national heroes forever… apparently. Joining the ranks of the performative perhaps. Me, I’d save that label for something past the first came of a five round playoff myself – and I live in hope – but, suffice it to say, the World Cup has fostered some interesting thinking, such as in Boston as Lara Wildenberg for The Times discovered:

Much to the offence of the English, The Dubliner, which had been the epicentre of Scotland’s party in Boston, closed for the day of England v Ghana to recover after nearly a fortnight of the Tartan Army. At least one other bar closed straight after the match “to give staff some rest”. American women, however, have already expressed their grief at having to part with the Tartan Army. Talking to the women in the Boston area, I met one who started a relationship with a Scottish fan, becoming inseparable and sobbing when he left for Miami. They are hoping to continue long distance.

A less attractive sort of experience was described by Jen Blair who published an interesting piece on the approach of males at the table in beer judging this week:

I’ve judged with this specific judge before and enjoyed it. We were both first-year judges at GABF when we met. I was happy to see him at my judging table because I remembered him being warm, funny, knowledgeable, and thoughtful. He still is! Which is why I feel pretty comfortable inferring that, if you asked him, he would loudly and proudly say that he supports women and denounces sexism. You can imagine how shocked he would be to hear that he’s failing at a very basic level. Back at my judging table, while the judge was technically correct in agreeing with me, if I asked him why I thought the beer in question should not advance to the next round, he would not be able to answer truthfully. Why? He never listened to my answer. Actually, I never answered. I was interrupted before I could, and neither of the men with whom I was judging noticed.

Perhaps relatedly, I’ve always liked the formerly regular Sam Smith’s Christmas special box set offered at the LCBO most years years ago so I really can’t personally add anything to the better informed folk who found him a miserable brewery and pub chain owner. But… he has left us as reported in the York Press:

The owner and chairman of the Tadcaster-based Sam Smith’s Brewery was well-known for his ‘traditional’ policies as well as his private nature. Smartphones, children, dogs and swearing were all banned from his pubs across the country, policies which attracted much controversy but also much support. However, this was widely blamed for causing around half of the brewery’s 300-pub estate remaining empty. The role of the 81-year-old at the brewery has also been the subject of much speculation, with reports he has been seriously unwell for some time.

So… something of an anti-capitalist in his own way! The Tand has shared his thoughts on the man’s passing:

New to me yesterday was that he was an old Etonian, which I suppose explains a lot – or doesn’t depending on your point of view. While it has been seen before in smaller measures, there was a fair old outpouring of support from him from some former colleagues and pub managers, mostly along the lines of “If  you obeyed the rules, you got on fine with him”. The consensus, such as I could make out is that those who fell foul of him didn’t think highly of him at all, while those who hadn’t did. 

And Matt L adds an unexpected angle:

….Sam Smith’s owns the Fitzroy Tavern in Soho and for many years from the early 1990s it was the main meeting place of the capital’s Doctor Who fans.  And there in their dozens they would drink cheap lager and plot and plan for the day they would take over the show and make it in their image.  And, yes, the last three showrunners of Doctor Who – Russell T. Davies. Steven Moffat and Chris Chibnall – were regulars at the Tav.  And sometimes, there may even have been a woman there, but sources vary as always.

Elsewhere, there are other correlations between brewing and… other sorts of bad stuff as illustrated in Mexico:

The problem, Gomez says, originated about a decade ago when Grupo Modelo, a Belgian-owned brewing company, installed a sprawling $328-million complex of hangar-like buildings on the outskirts of town. The third-largest brewery in Mexico, it uses over four times as much water as the entire population of Hunucmá. Soon after it was completed, residents began struggling to draw water from their pumps, and what water did trickle out contained evidence of salinization and agrochemicals, some of which have been linked to cancer.

So it’s not just A.I. data centres that are sucking the lands dry. Are we on the cusp of a larger eco-movement? And does the continuing slump make Mother Earth happy if, you know, we were to believe the big numbers from BMI this week:

Stack population growth on top of beer’s 5% volume decline in 2025 and average beer consumption per 21+ adult fell by a tuffer 5.6% in just one yr. The avg US legal-age adult consumed just below 22 gals of beer last yr, or about 4.5 cans per wk. Back in 2020, it was more like 5.3 beers per wk (tho a solid chunk of that was hard seltzer that yr). And 5 yrs before that, avg consumer per person per yr was up over 27 gals or 5 oz shy of a six pk per wk. So beer’s dismal 2025 capped a 16% drop in avg consumption over 5 yrs and over 20% decline in the last decade.

It will be interesting to see what BMI’s numbers** will look like deeper into the World Cup period – and see if they bear any resemblance to claims seemingly to the contrary. As an aside, it’s always interesting, too, to see “not beer” being categorized as “beer” to prop up actual beer. Do we expect beer trade consulto-experto-amateur MDs to issue responses claiming again that the numbers are rigged? Of course we do.

Speaking of “less than beer”, the continuing trend to make sure beer is less than beer continues as Jeff reports from the front lines of craft’s battle to emulate 1970s macro beers:

We certainly have abundant evidence that Americans love low(ish)-alcohol beer: most of the beer America drinks is light beer. There’s a fair amount of evidence that calories are a big part of drinkers’ motivation. Getting a beer down below ten calories an ounce really helps move product. Breweries post calories as prominently as they do alcohol content right on the package. So again, on paper, all of this suggests a potential new market in 3% beers. And yet, it just doesn’t quite make sense to me. I’ve been pondering this for some days now, trying to figure out where the disconnect lies. It has to do with price. Are Americans really going to pay $12-14 a six-pack to buy a 3% beer so they can drink three or four beers when they could buy a 5% beer at the same price point, drink two or three and save money.

Sounds like the consequence free marketing futurists (a separate but related class compared to consulto-experto-amateur MDs mentioned above) the have been let out again. But, as Jeff said, why pay more for less? Seems like a downward spiral. Do all these brand extensions and small shift variants bolster or weaken the trade? Is it possible that poor decision making has contributed to a consumer confusion that has turned into disinterest?

Perhaps relatedly, this is your annual reminder that if you ever hear a member of the consulto-class suggest exported beer has a great future in China as they periodically do, it might be wise to see how the wine trade has done. Consumption is at 70% of the 1995 rate of intake.  A weak long term economic forecast could well be the main drivers but nationalism and a shrinking population is at play as well. The good news is that prices have dropped for everyone else. Here’s some notes:

Note #1: Lars explains Satan’s key role in brewing.
Note #2: “…Parisians… restricted from drinking alcohol in public…”
Note #3: Craft beer slump worries craft coffee.
Note #4: Is “drink whatever you like” bad for wine?
Note #5: Gary has expanded upon his cheese spread discussion.

OK, where were we? Cheese spread? Check. Humph dead? Check. Oh, did you know that there are wine danger zones?

Wine’s danger zones include long-haul flights, gallery openings, ethnic restaurants and other miscellaneous cultural events. All situations that could be improved by a glass of the good stuff – and all situations where it will most likely remain a distant dream. The seasoned wine professional knows when they are beat and will swiftly order a beer. But if the pleasures of the grain aren’t for you, is there a way to make things more bearable?

Are there beer danger zones? Around these parts, there’s always rye and ginger when all else fails. And from the law files, we hear of trouble in Thailand for the ownership of Singha:

A multi-billion-dollar beer dynasty is being torn apart by explosive allegations of assault and a century-old law that is designed to protect parents from neglectful children. The Bhirombhakdi family founded the Singha beer company and has an estimated wealth of $US1.75 billion ($2.5 billion).  Forbes lists the family as Thailand’s 15th richest.  But allegations of sexual assault have prompted a mother to sue her own son in a rare case involving Thailand’s “ungrateful child” law.

Glad we don’t have a law under that name! Apparently it came into force in 1908 and reflects long-standing cultural values of Thailand that place strong emphasis on filial duty.

OK, enough. Some happier stories about pubs to round out the week. First, Imran Rahman-Jones has shared his experience getting view of Scotland’s play in a packed pub:

The Finch is buzzing nicely this evening. It’s warm, I can hear Friday after-work chatter from the garden as I enter, and there’s just space for one or two more tables before it’s standing room only. The sun is setting and the candles on each table are already lit, gently flickering and ready to welcome the night. There’s a sense of anticipation – not just for the start of the weekend, but because Scotland are playing in the World Cup. We manage to squeeze into a tiny table inside what must have been a storage cupboard at some point – The Finch is full of reminders of previous pubs in this building – but soon move for a better view of a screen. 

And for Pellicle, we’ve been given a portrait by Fred Garratt-Stanley of a small English village enjoying a good beer revival:

There’s a train station, a post office, a tea room, and a stately home. The latter hosts Glynde’s primary claim to fame: the annual Glyndebourne opera festival, held since 1934, which sees scores of out-of-towners wearing black tie descend on the village every summer.  Apart from that high-cultural aberration, this is twee English country living personified. On paper, Glynde really shouldn’t have one of the most exciting small rural beer scenes in the country. But it does.

And, finally, Katie on holiday in Spain has found her beer:

In all of our 330ml can adventures so far on this journey, the best by far has been Voll-Damm by Estrella Damm. We’ve been trying to buy local fridge-stockers where we can, but when you’re in Catalunya, that’s actually Estrella. So don’t berate me, this is me being accurate. You may be forgiven for thinking I’m on the payroll over at Damm. It’s true that they sent me to Primavera last year, and showed me around their brewery—just as Guinness did some years ago. I’m not too bothered about any perceived association with them because until I hear otherwise (and I do ask) Damm seem like a big beer company that actually looks after their people. And crucially: I like Estrella. It’s one of my favourite “everyday” beers, and it’s why I’ve chosen to promote them a couple of times. I don’t do that with brands I don’t rate. Whether you believe me or not, Voll-Damm is a delicious beer.

I’m convinced. If you are one of those who rummage in my recycling blue box by the curb in the middle of the night, you will find cans with DAB. A well placed tasty beer on a hot summer afternoon. What’s your version of the guilty pleasure big beer brew?

As you think on that over the week to come, please take time to check out Boak and Bailey posting on Saturday and adding to their fabulously entertaining footnotes week after week at Patreon. And do look out for more of Stan’s new “One Link, One Paragraph” format.  Then hunt out something in someone’s archives! Leave oblique comments on someone’s post from 2009!! Listen to a few of Lew’s podcasts and get your emailed issue of Episodes of my Pub Life by David Jesudason on certain Fridays. And Phil Mellows is at the BritishBeerBreaks. Once a month, Will Hawkes issues his London Beer City newsletter and do sign up for Katie’s wonderful self-governing totes autonomous website featuring The Gulp, too.  Ben’s Beer and Badword remains on pause but there is reading at The Glass which is going back to being a blog. Any more? We have Ontario’s own A Quick Beer and All About Beer is still offering a range of podcasts – and there’s also Mike Seay’s The Perfect Pour. Plus follow the venerable Full Pint podcast! And there’s the Craft Beer Channel on Youtube as well as the archives of the Beer Ladies Podcast.

*I do know they are Neil and Larry… but which is which. And the image is from a 2005 post on the old alt blog Gen x at 40 where I had a bunch of other k0o-Kee Canada Day photos. Thank God for the Wayback Machine.
**And other data sources.