Heineken Continues Expansion

[sloshed]

Heineken will buy Russian brewer Ivan Taranov in a deal valued at $560 million, the Kommersant business daily said on Tuesday, marking a further expansion into one of the world's fastest growing beer markets.

Russia is the world's fifth-biggest beer market after China, the United States, Germany and Brazil, and the top beer makers are racing to expand in the country.

Moscow-based Taranov, Russia's seventh-biggest brewer, has three breweries spread across Russia and nationwide beer distribution.

Click here for more information.
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I drink to forget my blackouts.

[Judge Rage]

Are those really the most drinky countries. I thought Chech was above Germany, and I hear, per capita, Japanese drink more than Americans which I can believe. Culturallym, it isn`t in bad taste to get falling-down drunk with friends or colleagues. People encourage others to keep drinking, especially after they have had too much. There is no legal limit for BAC, but most people will take trains or taxis if they plan to drink.

Anyone have any hard evidence on the most drinky countries?
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It's Beer-Thirty somewhere.

http://www.mechamechamedia.blogspot.com/

[kidvelvet67]

I think those were simply the largest beer markets per capita, not necessarily the largest alcohol consumption markets. But no matter what the alcohol, Russia will ALWAYS be in the top 5.
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kidvelvet

Life is too short to drink bad beer.

[sloshed]

Per capita the Czechs are at the top of the food chain followed by Ireland. The Russians are in the top 5 in total volume, not per capita.

As for the Japanese, it definitely sounds like drinking is a huge part of their culture, especially among men. The reasons that they don't make the top 5 are probably related to one or more of the following:

1) They are smaller people statistically than the other countries listed. This would obviously mean that they would be unable to consume as much per person as the rest of us.
2) 50% of Asians have a mutation in one of their genes which causes a rapid build up of the acetaldehyde and results in the red cheeks/face, increased pulse and decreased blood pressure. Because of these side effects, many of those with the "allergy" do not drink much or at all.
3) While Japanese women probably drink some, I don't think that on the whole they drink like American/European women do. That is 51% of the population not doing their fair share.

Thus ends todays lesson. Please drink now..

- PBR (for review purposes only) -
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I drink to forget my blackouts.

[Judge Rage]

I need to look it up, but I read somewhere that the Japanese drink more beer per capita than Americans. There are certainly a lot of Americans who prefer wine or hard liqs, where pretty much all Japanese beer drinkers start with beer then move to sake or brandy at the end of the night. I`ll get on it, but thanks for the info....
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It's Beer-Thirty somewhere.

http://www.mechamechamedia.blogspot.com/

[sloshed]

Here are a couple of links..

http://www.nationmaster.com/graph-T/lif_bee_con
This one is wrong because the Czech Republic is the undisputed title holder and they aren't even on the list.

http://www.realbeer.com/news/articles/news-001901.php

http://www.realbeer.com/discussions/showthread.php?s=1f57d2263e05d5f93f6c654c8058643f&postid=94422#post94422

http://www.beerwsc.co.nz/files//world_beer_consumption_1999-2002.ppt
This one is probably pretty accurate. Japan doesn't make the list.

http://www.brewers.or.jp/english/10-consupt2.html
A little bit old.

And I also read that another reason that Japan's consumption is low was due to lack of options until recently. It wasn't that long ago that there were only 6 brewers in Japan.
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I drink to forget my blackouts.

[Judge Rage]

This might be the problem. The Japanese beer companies aren't counting the beer they are shipping to kids.

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nb20050806a1.htm
"
Kidsbeer proves hit suds for minors

SAGA (Kyodo) Kidsbeer, a nonalcoholic brew aimed at children, is catching on with young drinkers and is posting monthly shipments of 75,000 bottles, according to maker Tomomasu Co.

Shipments of Kidsbeer, a nonalcoholic brew aimed at children, are growing rapidly.

The beverage, one of whose ingredients is the Latin American plant guarana, sells for around 380 yen per 330-milliliter bottle. The bottles themselves are colored brown to make the drink look even more like its more potent counterpart, the company said.

The drink started out as Guarana, a cola beverage that used to be sold at the Shitamachi-ya restaurant in Fukuoka, run by 39-year-old Yuichi Asaba.

Asaba renamed the sweet carbonated drink Kidsbeer, a move that made it an instant hit.

Asaba outsourced its production to Tomomasu, a beverage maker based in Ogi, Saga Prefecture.

Tomomasu tinkered with the drink by decreasing its sweetness and increasing its frothiness, the company said. It began shipping the transformed drink in late 2003.

Though the initial shipment was only 200 bottles per month, the beverage was soon adopted by other restaurants and even by department stores, which began offering it as a gift package.

Asaba said kids and other people "can raise a glass with this, even if they cannot drink any liquor."

Satoshi Tomoda, president of the beverage maker, said: "Children copy and mimic adults.

"If you get this drink ready on such occasions as events and celebrations attended by kids, it would make the occasions even more entertaining."

The Kidsbeer label captures a nostalgic mood as it was modeled after classic beer labels.

"Even kids cannot stand life unless they have a drink," reads the product's advertising slogan.

The Japan Times: Aug. 6, 2005"

Again, this is another product I have never heard of, but it doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Thanks for the other links, jason. I have to remember that Japanese advertisements used to advertise Lark cigarettes as the "No.1 Popular Cigarette in America"...but it is interesting seeing how you can play with statistics...
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It's Beer-Thirty somewhere.

http://www.mechamechamedia.blogspot.com/

[sloshed]

Are you drinking kidsbeer today? I sure hope not.. When are you coming back?
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I drink to forget my blackouts.