Struggling to enjoy beer at the local.

[Anthony Dalton]

Hey all,

Myself and Mrs D go to the local RSL every week, and I have noticed of late I struggle to enjoy the beer on offer there. They have the standard fare, but do have James Squire 150 Lashes and Little Creatures Pacific Ale on tap, which I have enjoyed  immensely in the past (sadly no more). Lately however, because at last I have a decent stock of home brewed beer, I reckon either I have been spoilt with the quality of the Brewart product, or my tastes are gradually changing. Nonetheless the stuff on tap at the Pubs is largely unappealing. Geez! we went out the other night to tea with friends, I sat on a pint of Carlton Draught for over an hour, and just ended up drinking Pepsi Max for the rest of the night until I got home.

Mrs D is overjoyed, because now I am the constant designated driver whenever we venture out.  Just wondering if it's just me or are there others who just reckon the majority of pub beer is not up to scratch, after having used the droid for an extended period.

Cheers!

Anthony

[Captain 3 Droids]

1 hour ago, Anthony Dalton said:

Just wondering if it's just me or are there others who just reckon the majority of pub beer is not up to scratch, after having used the droid for an extended period.

Your spot on, I’m the same and don’t enjoy the pub commercial brews at all. Now some of the craft beer establishment I suspect (and Dustin would support this as he goes to a few) do provide quality products however for me the cost is ridiculous and I enjoy my own brews so much.

[Rob Courtney]

1 hour ago, Anthony Dalton said:

Hey all,

Myself and Mrs D go to the local RSL every week, and I have noticed of late I struggle to enjoy the beer on offer there. They have the standard fare, but do have James Squire 150 Lashes and Little Creatures Pacific Ale on tap, which I have enjoyed  immensely in the past (sadly no more). Lately however, because at last I have a decent stock of home brewed beer, I reckon either I have been spoilt with the quality of the Brewart product, or my tastes are gradually changing. Nonetheless the stuff on tap at the Pubs is largely unappealing. Geez! we went out the other night to tea with friends, I sat on a pint of Carlton Draught for over an hour, and just ended up drinking Pepsi Max for the rest of the night until I got home.

Mrs D is overjoyed, because now I am the constant designated driver whenever we venture out.  Just wondering if it's just me or are there others who just reckon the majority of pub beer is not up to scratch, after having used the droid for an extended period.

Cheers!

Anthony

Not just you. I even find the cocept of paying a tenner for something I find less than appealing annoying. If Mrs C and I go to a restaurant I might start with a spirit or a red and then go straight to the softies for the rest of the night. 

There are exceptions to this, one restaurant I go to has it's own brewery that at lest makes nice beers and there is a microbrewery in the local park that is banging out some amazing beer but that is it.

Most of the time now, if I have a beer from tap, it is just underwhelming, like last Saturday when I had a couple of pints on the basis it was my cricket teams function being held at a major sponsors. Coopers Pale Ale and it was just very disappointing but like you, I managed to sit on both pints for an hour

[Rob Courtney]

8 minutes ago, Captain 3 Droids said:

Your spot on, I’m the same and don’t enjoy the pub commercial brews at all. Now some of the craft beer establishment I suspect (and Dustin would support this as he goes to a few) do provide quality products however for me the cost is ridiculous and I enjoy my own brews so much.

See, for me, that is the issue for pints I would drink like at the Microbrewery, it is 10 or 12 for a pint and granted, at leat it is a quality product and I am enjoying it but there is a voice in the back of my head (granted it may have a Scotish accent) stating that for two of these I can brew 10 litres of very comparable beer

[Anthony Dalton]

Valid points Rob and Captain,

Glad I am not Robinson Crusoe on this issue.

I live in North East Victoria and am surrounded by some ripping micro/craft breweries, Bright, Black Dog, King Valley and Bridge Road Beechworth; but the concept of spending about twelve bucks for a pint cuts to the bone, especially when one can churn out an entire five litre keg of product that is of equivalent or superior quality  for the same price. 

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but I procrastinated for nigh on five years before acquiring the droid. Feel like a fool for waiting so long. One of the best investments I have made.

Cheers!

[Dustin Frothman]

7 hours ago, Anthony Dalton said:

Just wondering if it's just me or are there others who just reckon the majority of pub beer is not up to scratch, after having used the droid for an extended period.

No it’s not just you. A lot of Australian domestic pub beer on draught is pretty bland. Your average punter doesn’t want their tastebuds challenged too much.

Here in South Australia we’re very fortunate that our domestic beer is Coopers, arguably Australia’s first “craft” brewery and they’ve been at it for 160 years. 

So if you walk into almost any pub in our state there will usually be a Coopers offering on draught. 

But there’s a caveat here, and as indicated by @Rob Courtney, the same beer if handled poorly can taste very different from venue to venue. Even our BrewArt brewlord Liam will talk of pubs that “look after their beer”, and that can be anything from storage, tap, line and glass hygiene, to the education and skill of the bartender. All of these things will affect the taste of your beer, particularly those like the Coopers’ offerings that are unfiltered and unpasteurised. 

So in short where you choose to drink your beer will affect the taste and your experience.

As to the cost or value proposition compared to brewing your own at home with the Droid; well that depends on what you’re after.

Personally if it’s just a glass of beer then I couldn’t agree more that the Droid partnered with BrewArt/Coopers ingredients and little experience (and patience) will churn out a beer as good as anything you can get on tap in most venues. So I really enjoy my beers on tap at home.

But I don’t always want to drink at home and I enjoy the atmosphere, company, conversation, live music, people watching etc. that goes with having a beer at a venue; be it a pub or craft brewery.

Yes drinking a beer, particularly a well made one is expensive. But you’re paying for more than just the beer, and if you choose where you spend your money, then you can support your local economy too. Which, with the state of the world today, is arguably a good thing to do.

One last consideration is your beer education. I quite enjoy sampling beers and talking to the brewers and bartenders and learning a bit more about the craft. For example, I didn’t really know much about the Extra Special Bitter style until I tried a really nice example produced by a local small batch brewery. Since then I’ve tried a BrewArt ingredients version that turned out great, and I’ll be attempting an all grain version in my kettle tomorrow. So without venturing out and sampling a few different beers I perhaps wouldn’t have stumbled upon an older style brew that I really enjoy.

[Rob Courtney]

3 hours ago, Dustin Frothman said:

 

But there’s a caveat here, and as indicated by @Rob Courtney, the same beer if handled poorly can taste very different from venue to venue. Even our BrewArt brewlord Liam will talk of pubs that “look after their beer”, and that can be anything from storage, tap, line and glass hygiene, to the education and skill of the bartender. All of these things will affect the taste of your beer, particularly those like the Coopers’ offerings that are unfiltered and unpasteurised. 

 

100% on this, those beers last week were just really poor

"How poor" you ask?

I seriously considered getting a pint of Carlton Dry the second pint...and regret not doing so

 

[Captain 3 Droids]

13 hours ago, Dustin Frothman said:

But I don’t always want to drink at home and I enjoy the atmosphere, company, conversation, live music, people watching etc. that goes with having a beer at a venue; be it a pub or craft brewery.

This is important to many and was a big part of social life when I was working. The beers and social aspects after a hard days work at the local were a real release however circumstances change and it’s not such a big thing these days. Most pubs don’t have social clubs any more, and after work drink days in the local are very selective to many. Location plays a big part and the CBD and inner suburbs I don’t think suffer as much as outer areas.

I now only go to a pub for a lunch time meal (about once a month) and will probably have only 1 or 2 craft style beers so I can say “not bad but mine is equal too or  better”.  

Sadly as Rob pointed out the 2 pints are a whole home brew, I can’t help looking at it that way. Funny, never did that when pints were around 4 to $5. 😊

[Dustin Frothman]

1 hour ago, Captain 3 Droids said:

This is important to many and was a big part of social life when I was working. The beers and social aspects after a hard days work at the local were a real release however circumstances change and it’s not such a big thing these days. Most pubs don’t have social clubs any more, and after work drink days in the local are very selective to many. Location plays a big part and the CBD and inner suburbs I don’t think suffer as much as outer areas.

I now only go to a pub for a lunch time meal (about once a month) and will probably have only 1 or 2 craft style beers so I can say “not bad but mine is equal too or  better”.  

Sadly as Rob pointed out the 2 pints are a whole home brew, I can’t help looking at it that way. Funny, never did that when pints were around 4 to $5. 😊

It’s definitely a “stage of life” thing. It’s also another perk of being childless - you can go to the pub when you feel like it. 🥳

FWIW our local, which is not a great pub for draught beers really, even the Coopers range is limited unless you want a bottle or can, has a great social club with footy tipping, a darts league and events. Whilst we’re not in it we’ve enjoyed a couple of great nights there in amongst the regulars who are a very welcoming bunch.

It also does fantastic food. During March, every day of the week meals were I special for 1/2 price. So whilst the wife and I were both on leave we went down there a few times for lunch and were eating 400g wagyu beef steaks with all the trimmings for $17!

[Thagomizer]

On 08/04/2022 at 10:04 PM, Rob Courtney said:

See, for me, that is the issue for pints I would drink like at the Microbrewery, it is 10 or 12 for a pint and granted, at leat it is a quality product and I am enjoying it but there is a voice in the back of my head (granted it may have a Scotish accent) stating that for two of these I can brew 10 litres of very comparable beer

Same here in the USA.  Earlier this week at a family reunion (in Texas), I was offered a coveted Pennsylvania beer with German origins.  Although it was easily drinkable, I was wishing for one of my own from my Droid.  

When I first got my Droid, I was wondering if I could match commercial beers in quality.  Many of my brews prior to the Droid were lacking, having been fermented at ambient temperatures of 75F (24C) to even 80F (27C).  Ha!  No contest.  Brewing ales and lagers at the proper temperature with automated and optimized scheduling of procedures made all the difference,  Also, quality ingredients and a streamlined procedure sealed the deal.

Whereas there are some good commercially available beers in the USA, their cost is exorbitant.  Unfortunately, many of my fellow Yanks have settled for the more affordable "lite" beers which are essentially tasteless.  My Droid has already paid for itself.

[Anthony Dalton]

Hey All,

Public Holiday here in Victoria today and tomorrow . Went out today with Mrs D, and we settled into a corner of an alfresco area at one of the local establishments, a beautiful Spring day here, about 24 degrees, just spot on for a session.

Anyway this particular bar had on offer a drop I had never heard of nor tried before. It was a Panhead Naysayer, on tap, and it was surprisingly really good. It is a lush cloudy ale with a thick creamy head, I had numerous schooners and enjoyed them immensely. I commented to Mrs D as we somewhat staggered home, that it was the tastiest commercial beer I had encountered in some time. 

Nonetheless once home I poured a pint of the Jolly Roger, took a mouthful, and realised how blessed I am to be brewing my own stuff, Look this Panhead was a cracking drop, but at $11 a schooner, it is not something I am going to embrace regularly. It was fantastic for a spontaneous day out with the wife, but realistically it was on a par with the stuff I now churn out at home.

I suppose it’s sometimes about balance and not economics. Occasionally it’s OK to pay through the nose, if the beer is good and the company is better.

Cheers!

Anthony

[MickyBlueEyes]

Stumbled upon this thread whilst looking for a recipe to match Carlton Draught (for someone's birthday who drinks it, not for me!).

Gotta say I agree and was shocked that I've started to get disappointed with some craft beers off tap. Had a Pacific ale at the Tathra Hotel the other week, and tasted two of their IPAs as well. They were just lacking in flavour compared to some of the droid brews.. Maybe it was my taste buds on the day, but what a great machine these droids are!

[Rob Courtney]

5 hours ago, MickyBlueEyes said:

Stumbled upon this thread whilst looking for a recipe to match Carlton Draught (for someone's birthday who drinks it, not for me!).

Gotta say I agree and was shocked that I've started to get disappointed with some craft beers off tap. Had a Pacific ale at the Tathra Hotel the other week, and tasted two of their IPAs as well. They were just lacking in flavour compared to some of the droid brews.. Maybe it was my taste buds on the day, but what a great machine these droids are!

Yeah, there are different pours from different pubs and I have had some good pours of Pacific ale and some bloody ordinary ones. In saying that though, after spending a stretch in Vietnam where I was drinking some good lagers ( at low low prices in very hot weather), they were nice but as soon as I had a beer when I got home in cold weather, there was a stark difference. Many times now when I go out to dinner, I'll have a glass of red, it's just less disappointing.