The CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report claims that teens prefer bourbon, rum, scotch, whiskey, and vodka to beer. Why should you care? Regulators and policy makers use the statistics to develop beverage-specific measures to combat underage drinking, “including increasing alcohol excise taxes and increasing restrictions on the distribution and sale of alcoholic beverages.” The CDC studied high schoolers in Nebraska, Arkansas, New Mexico, and Wyoming, and found the following:
beer
By 7.7.07
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Most consumers can’t taste any difference between beers. Consumers can, however, easily identify their favorite beer’s slogan.
Scrap Metal Prices Up… Along With Beer Keg Thefts
By 7.3.07
Beer makers are saying that when scrap metal prices go up, so do thefts of beer kegs. No big deal, you think? The Beer Institute (yes, this is real.) says kegs stolen and sold for scrap cost them up to $50 million dollars a year. “It really got people’s attention because that’s a significant flow of our kegs that we’ll never see again,” [a spokesperson] said. “We know some of it’s very innocent but some of it’s not.”
Sierra Nevada's Cool, Refreshing Customer Service
By 6.17.07
Marty recently bought three cases of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale for his wedding, only to have his fiance discover that the beer had been bottled almost two years ago. Marty would never serve his wedding guests skunky beer. We would have returned the beer to the store, Total Wine & More in Alexandria, VA, but Marty decided to call Sierra Nevada. Their response, after the jump…
Would You Like To See The Coffee List, Sir?
By 5.19.07
Coca-Cola and Sara Lee are developing tools to pair beverages with food in the hopes that soda, beer, and coffee may be the new wine.
The tool helps sales people figure out for restaurateurs that cheesecake, with its high fat content, calls for a dark roast, heavy bodied coffee with a high acidity level, she said. A fudge brownie, however, calls for a lower acidity level. And pound cake goes down better with a light roast coffee with high acidity.
Sara Lee’s pairing tool was unveiled two weeks ago, and Coca-Cola expects to implement a similar program next year. Ron DeSantis of the Culinary Institute of America thinks such tools will become prevalent as “U.S. palates become more sophisticated.” We never realized ordering water at a restaurant was the mark of an unsophisticated boor. Pairing tools will undoubtedly present restauranteurs with an opportunity to upsell certain beverages. Would you trust their recommendations? Tell us in the comments. — CAREY GREENBERG-BERGER
Beer Money In Congress
By 5.11.07
Beer manufacturers are lobbying congress in order to secure a “beer tax rollback” which would “cut the federal beer tax in half to its 1951 level,” according to the CSPI. Alcohol producers donated around $10 million to federal candidates in the last election cycle, and 70% of that was “beer money.”
Errol Morris' Miller High Life Commercials Are Awesome
By 4.25.07
We like these Miller High Life ads by Errol Morris.
Dear Passenger: We're Sorry You Had to Piss in the Barf Bag
By 3.21.07
SkyWest Airlines has apologized to passenger James Whipple, who used a barf bag to relieve himself in-flight.
Will More Fuel Efficient Cars Lead To Cheaper Beer?
By 2.22.07
We’re assuming he means that ethanol production is to blame for the spike in grain prices. (Corn is at a 10-year high today.)
The U.S. Census: Beds Are Like, Totally Dangerous or Something
By 12.15.06
The New York Times has an article today about the U.S. Census 2007 Statistical Abstract of the United States. Big news: We drink a lot of bottle water. More than beer, if you can believe that. The most dangerous consumer item is a bicycle, the second is a bed. Yes, “Bicycles are involved in more accidents than any other consumer product, but beds rank a close second.”
Girlfriend Decides To Not Shop At Humiliating Liquor Store
By 10.6.06
Keith’s girlfriend took inspiration from our lord and savior, Jesus Christ. She will turn the other cheek, pass on a confrontation with the store manager, and simply take her business elsewhere.
We Call Up Liquour Store That Allegedly Humiliated Readers Girlfriend
By 10.5.06
We called up Shannon to find out about The Wine Press policy against humiliating customers. She was very feisty. We told Keith to have his girlfriend call the manager. Actually the most part is the aspersions Shannon casts against blogs.
How To Deal With Liquor Store Humiliating My Girlfriend?
By 10.5.06
Keith’s claims his girlfriend was subjected to completely unwarranted degradation at a MA liquor store last night by a clerk who asserted that Guinness Extra Stout did not exist, and she was an idiot for trying to buy it.
Coors Light, Taste The Ironies
By 7.14.06
Pete Coors, vice chairman of Coors Brewing Company, obviously never watched Scarface. Otherwise, he would be acutely aware of the dangers of getting high on your own supply, and might have avoided getting arrested for DUI. In May, Coors rolled through a stop sign in his Jaguar and was spotted by a trooper. A breathalyzer test registered a blood alcohol level of .88. .088.
How Much Head Is Too Much Head?
By 7.14.06
Living in Ireland, I think it’s safe to say that I am the Consumerist’s resident alcoholic and therefore beer expert. Ben, on the other hand, is the resident expert on telling homeless people to ‘Get a job!’, squirting small children in the face with the Oozinator and stealing AOL Customer Retention Manuals from dumpsters.
Have A Frosty Glass Of Estrogen!
By 6.2.06
This is the sort of news that makes men’s blood go cold: now that menopausal souse clutching at your thigh isn’t just drunk, she’s high on baby-making estrogen!
Behold! The World of Tomorrow!
By 5.30.06
LCD Money, perfect for reprogramming into larger denominations! The spiritual successor to the hoverboards from Back to the Future 2! DVD Players that fold like origami! This list of futuristic gizmos certainly brings out the uncynical consumer in us for a change.
