So I went into my new local pub on Friday evening.

[Maravilloso Marvo]

I'd already had a couple of pints of Peroni after work in the City and I was waiting to go for dinner with the girlfriend so thought it would be wise to come down a level. So ordered a pint of Foster's. I know, I know, please don't go too hard on me, but I had reason.

Anyway, the point of the post is it cost me £4.04 for said pint of Fosters. Over £4 for a pint of Fosters, in my local pub. What the fcuk is going on here?

[Ashberto]

[Pat Vegas]

[Luis Anaconda]

No offence like, but Fosters. ****ER

[Rich]

[Hillary]

[Ashberto]

[Maravilloso Marvo]

All I could see was Fosters or the likes of Stella. I had to make the decision quickly.

[Ashberto]

and were a fiver a couple of years ago.

Pay rises, however, are out of the question.

[Maravilloso Marvo]

There is no reason to be charging over £4 for a pint of Foster's there.

[Maravilloso Marvo]

But just imagine for one moment I was saying I bought a pint of Foster's for my girlfriend and it was over £4. That is the disgust I want you all to feel.

[Luis Anaconda]

[Luis Anaconda]

[Snin]

you've set the bar low on expectations so you can now only get better

[Luis Anaconda]

and as a pennance you can buy me three proper pints

[Maravilloso Marvo]

[Ears are alight]

[Maravilloso Marvo]

[Luis Anaconda]

[Berni]

despite being tastier, better, having a shorter shelf life and being more difficult to keep and produce than your multinational, all-tastes-the-same, keep-the-proles-happy lager-style fizz.

I can only think this is because they have to spend so much on marketing 'lager' to try and fool the sort of people who drink it into believing there is actually some difference between the various 'brands'.

'Premium lager' :hehe:

[Maravilloso Marvo]

[Maravilloso Marvo]

Old man beers aren't cool.

[Ashberto]

but was always more expensive for everything anyway. The shop next to The Hideaway was one of the last to do six for £5.50. So was Londis (ex Nisa).

Islington are clamping down on licensing around here. They seem to think that seven pubs and about 15 off licences on one half-mile road are too many. :-(

[Luis Anaconda]

[Ashberto]

[Maravilloso Marvo]

[Pat Vegas]

The 3 Johns which has had numerous names over the year is closed, it reopened and closed again.

Lord Wolseley is gone too.

I remember a time where those places were packed on a weekend.

[Ashberto]

it seemed to be made mostly of flavour and alcohol.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-4OsQt2_pjWE/TjiE9nTs-NI/AAAAAAAAAEc/Lcowq7WTwfc/s400/RIMG7600.jpg

[Berni]

And ordering a pint of bitter says 'this is a man to be taken seriously who knows his own mind'. Ordering lager says 'This is a mindless sheep happy to be fleeced by shiny adverts and made-up foreign-sounding names'.

[Luis Anaconda]

i always liked the one across the road. I (vaguely) remember leaviny your flat at god knows what time after we went to the Russian place for New Year's Eve and being able to stock up on food for the inevitable hangover

[Hillary]

[Berni]

[Maravilloso Marvo]

[Berni]

You might as well just go out with a bloke.

[redgunamo]

[Berni]

[Luis Anaconda]

[redgunamo]

[redgunamo]

[PSRB]

[Berni]

[PSRB]

does help that my local has a whole German lager section, so none of this Fosters/Carling rubbish

They have a great selection of bitters of as well but just can't face them in the summer

[Doughboy-TSL]

order a J20.

[Ashberto]

[Berni]

It should be served at cellar temperature - ie cool, but not cold. The colder something is, the less you are able to taste.

[Luis Anaconda]

As someone who never really drank lager before I came here, I must say you get rather used to it

[PSRB]

[Ashberto]

I'm fed up with three-quarter pints of Guinness. :-(

[Berni]

The Reinheitsgebot has seen to that. That is actual lager - ie is kept for a long time - unlike the multinational efforts which are brewed in a couple of days and artificially flavoured and preserved.

[Berni]

actually like Guinness. Such people are scum.

[redgunamo]

beverage; helping to keep mind, body and spirit in tip top condition.

And, do you know, I'm not entirely convinced that they are wrong.

[Trixie Popsicle]