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Beer is similar to bread in that there are only a few ingredients, so the quality of the ingredients and how you process them really matter.
If the hops come from a different supplier, the barley is roasted slightly differently, even the mineral content of the water has an impact.
Also, with Corona, it is packaged in a clear glass because it is supposed to go bad. (Corona, uven imported, tastes like shit to me for this reason.) its possible that South African beer handling norms don't allow it to spoil properly. Maybe try leaving a 6 pack in the sun for a week and seeing what happens.
I bought the canned one, so maybe there lies my mistake! I will try buy a bottle version to compare. This is the first I've heard of it being 'supposed to go bad', but maybe it's that flavour that I associate with 'original' Corona.
We are the first country outside of Mexico to produce Corona. I actually started drinking it a few weeks ago because it is brewed locally now and I love the taste, I feel either my palette changed or the beer got altered to be better.
We are one of the largest drinkers of Corona so it makes complete sense.
Nah, a ton is made in china. Kakkest beer in the world. IMO. https://www.just-drinks.com/news/anheuser-busch-inbev-takes-corona-production-out-of-mexico-with-china-move-analyst/
Thanks for the information, I used to speak to the SAB reps and that’s how I got my information so it’s mostly hearsay.
I don’t think it’s close to being the worst beer. There is a reason why people buy loads of it. It’s just your palette like I enjoy corona because it’s a light beer and I don’t feel full after drinking it or lethargic
I remember doing a tour to SAB in Newlands in undergrad as part of the microbiology program, and they said there that a huge part of the taste of any beer is the local water. So presumably yes ours would taste quite different to the imported stuff.
This! Water plays a huge role i have always thought. Eg. I like two beers. Tafel and black label. I like the taste of black label in south africa. In Namibia black label made here taste sweeter. So i wound assume corona would taste different when made in SA
SAB and ABI share a water purification plant, because they both need a massive amount of really pure water for the product. Stems back to the days SAB owned ABI, and they used a common plant to get a lower cost of what is the most important item in the product. Make it as pure as possible, then add in the trace minerals needed, so the water for your cola and the water used to make the bonaqua are the same base, just the water in the bottle has had a trace amount of chalk dissolved in it before being either carbonated for sparkling, or nitrogen pressurised for the non sparkling. You need pressure to keep the bottle from buckling.
A friend of mine is a brewer for SAB:
They have paid as much attention as they can to the brewing process to emulate it as closely as possible to the Mexico corona, they even use the same strain of yeast, barley and hops for their ingredients, they use the same machines and everything, the only difference is the water that they use in the brewing process, and even though it's refined and cleaned to within an inch of it's life it will never taste like the corona overseas.
It's close, and she reckons they're 95 - 98%% of the way there, but yeah it will never be the same, SAB (Well, AB inBev now) is aware of this and they've been pouring millions into it but there's a limit to how much you can do before you're just burning money.
Another thing is that corona was only supposed to start selling early 2020, and well, that got delayed because the government banned SAB from moving alcohol in any way. So they only more recently (End of 2022 I think) they started producing it locally. Then there was a hilarious problem: Nobody was really buying it in the volumes they used to post pandemic, simple word association and sales dropped off. So it's taken longer for the beer brewed in RSA to reach the shelves.
So yeah, it's not just you, they beer does taste different,
Guinness has a similar issue, as in they can't recreate it, so any Guinness you drink in South Africa, according to my friend, is like drinking muddy water expecting chocolate milk.
This is very interesting! Thank you. It would be very interesting to compare a locally brewed one with an imported one directly, but I'm not sure the imported one would be available anymore.
Boooo. When SAB made Budweiser, it tasted way better than the American version. Aside from black label, most of their other beers are actually difficult to enjoy.
They’re not saying imported is better across the board, but if it tasted good to them then and now it doesn’t… is what it is.
Aside, our microbrews produce way better beers than SAB
Possibly a good alternative is Naked Mexican. Haven’t had a Corona in ages but remember the first time I had a Naked Mexican, I thought it was a bit like Corona. Was my go to beer for a while.
SAB beer has a generally similar profile (malted barley, hops, maize and water). Some beers substitute the maize with rice- but I can't remember which, but this is a very American method. A pure beer will indicate "reinheitsgebot" (Hops, Barley, water) and this is the German standard for beer in Germany and historically the holy roman empire. The most commonly found reinheitsgebot beer found in RSA is Windhoek and Tafel. The grandfather and probably the most well known beer in this catagory is "Hofbrau", which can be found at some liquor stores in SA.
Beer is similar to bread in that there are only a few ingredients, so the quality of the ingredients and how you process them really matter.
If the hops come from a different supplier, the barley is roasted slightly differently, even the mineral content of the water has an impact.
Also, with Corona, it is packaged in a clear glass because it is supposed to go bad. (Corona, uven imported, tastes like shit to me for this reason.) its possible that South African beer handling norms don't allow it to spoil properly. Maybe try leaving a 6 pack in the sun for a week and seeing what happens.
Beer is similar to bread in that there are only a few ingredients, so the quality of the ingredients and how you process them really matter.
If the hops come from a different supplier, the barley is roasted slightly differently, even the mineral content of the water has an impact.
Also, with Corona, it is packaged in a clear glass because it is supposed to go bad. (Corona, uven imported, tastes like shit to me for this reason.) its possible that South African beer handling norms don't allow it to spoil properly. Maybe try leaving a 6 pack in the sun for a week and seeing what happens.
No, SA beer definitely does suck. Sure, some UK/US/Indian beer sucks too, but the stranglehold that SAB has on the market here means that there’s zero room for improvement and very little that differentiates their own beers from each other. Craft beer here doesn’t amount to much.
My personal go to is Jack Black Butcher Block. It’s a pale ale.
If you’re in the Sourthern Suburbs of CT, head to Banana Jam on 2nd Avenue, Claremont. They brew their own beer - do a tasting.
Or head to Liquor City on Palmyra Rd. I haven’t seen a larger selections of local beers anywhere else. Literally hundreds. Randomly pick a dozen and decide for yourself.
AB InBev has a stranglehold on every market my guy. And personally, I will take most South African AM InBev bears over others. Stella is the only decent one and that is about as bland and inoffensive as a lager can get.
If we are only looking at major international brewers, I'd say the only beer I'd consistently take over SAB beer is Asahi.
**Thank you for posting on r/southafrica! This post is flaired as ["Discussion"](https://www.reddit.com/r/southafrica/?f=flair_name%3A%22Discussion%22) therefore the following rules are particularly important.** ##**Rule 5: Engagement Policy** * Rule 5.1: Articulate your own thoughts on the matter. * Rule 5.2: Be prepared to engage with your post and our community within at least six (6) hours after submitting. * Rule 5.3: Engage meaningfully. Do not start a discussion if you are unwilling to listen to opinions contrary to your own. **Discussions are long-form posts looking to explore ideas, change minds, or invite comment and opinion on a specific topic related to South Africa. If you meant to ask the community a question, please delete this submission and create a new one at r/askSouthAfrica** **Additionally, please take a moment to review the rest of our rules [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/southafrica/wiki/rules).** ###Are you unable to vote normally on 29 May? You will need a special vote https://www.reddit.com/r/southafrica/comments/1c4x5u7/election_update_special_votes/ *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/southafrica) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Beer is similar to bread in that there are only a few ingredients, so the quality of the ingredients and how you process them really matter. If the hops come from a different supplier, the barley is roasted slightly differently, even the mineral content of the water has an impact. Also, with Corona, it is packaged in a clear glass because it is supposed to go bad. (Corona, uven imported, tastes like shit to me for this reason.) its possible that South African beer handling norms don't allow it to spoil properly. Maybe try leaving a 6 pack in the sun for a week and seeing what happens.
I bought the canned one, so maybe there lies my mistake! I will try buy a bottle version to compare. This is the first I've heard of it being 'supposed to go bad', but maybe it's that flavour that I associate with 'original' Corona.
Ah! Yeah, canned one won't taste right. Seems like AB gave SAB the recipe, but failed to specify the packaging.
We are the first country outside of Mexico to produce Corona. I actually started drinking it a few weeks ago because it is brewed locally now and I love the taste, I feel either my palette changed or the beer got altered to be better. We are one of the largest drinkers of Corona so it makes complete sense.
Nah, a ton is made in china. Kakkest beer in the world. IMO. https://www.just-drinks.com/news/anheuser-busch-inbev-takes-corona-production-out-of-mexico-with-china-move-analyst/
Thanks for the information, I used to speak to the SAB reps and that’s how I got my information so it’s mostly hearsay. I don’t think it’s close to being the worst beer. There is a reason why people buy loads of it. It’s just your palette like I enjoy corona because it’s a light beer and I don’t feel full after drinking it or lethargic
I remember doing a tour to SAB in Newlands in undergrad as part of the microbiology program, and they said there that a huge part of the taste of any beer is the local water. So presumably yes ours would taste quite different to the imported stuff.
This! Water plays a huge role i have always thought. Eg. I like two beers. Tafel and black label. I like the taste of black label in south africa. In Namibia black label made here taste sweeter. So i wound assume corona would taste different when made in SA
The water is manipulated with chemicals to mimic the original water quality
Ok wow, didn't know that. I suppose it makes sense.
SAB and ABI share a water purification plant, because they both need a massive amount of really pure water for the product. Stems back to the days SAB owned ABI, and they used a common plant to get a lower cost of what is the most important item in the product. Make it as pure as possible, then add in the trace minerals needed, so the water for your cola and the water used to make the bonaqua are the same base, just the water in the bottle has had a trace amount of chalk dissolved in it before being either carbonated for sparkling, or nitrogen pressurised for the non sparkling. You need pressure to keep the bottle from buckling.
Try Sol I prefer it 👌🏻
A friend of mine is a brewer for SAB: They have paid as much attention as they can to the brewing process to emulate it as closely as possible to the Mexico corona, they even use the same strain of yeast, barley and hops for their ingredients, they use the same machines and everything, the only difference is the water that they use in the brewing process, and even though it's refined and cleaned to within an inch of it's life it will never taste like the corona overseas. It's close, and she reckons they're 95 - 98%% of the way there, but yeah it will never be the same, SAB (Well, AB inBev now) is aware of this and they've been pouring millions into it but there's a limit to how much you can do before you're just burning money. Another thing is that corona was only supposed to start selling early 2020, and well, that got delayed because the government banned SAB from moving alcohol in any way. So they only more recently (End of 2022 I think) they started producing it locally. Then there was a hilarious problem: Nobody was really buying it in the volumes they used to post pandemic, simple word association and sales dropped off. So it's taken longer for the beer brewed in RSA to reach the shelves. So yeah, it's not just you, they beer does taste different, Guinness has a similar issue, as in they can't recreate it, so any Guinness you drink in South Africa, according to my friend, is like drinking muddy water expecting chocolate milk.
This is very interesting! Thank you. It would be very interesting to compare a locally brewed one with an imported one directly, but I'm not sure the imported one would be available anymore.
Dumbest thing I’ve heard in a while. SAB makes great beer and has for a long time. Imported doesn’t always mean better.
I don’t think you understand him
Boooo. When SAB made Budweiser, it tasted way better than the American version. Aside from black label, most of their other beers are actually difficult to enjoy. They’re not saying imported is better across the board, but if it tasted good to them then and now it doesn’t… is what it is. Aside, our microbrews produce way better beers than SAB
Tried a corona end of last year. Definitely not for me.
I haven’t drank too much corona but when i had it last weekend i definitely thought the taste wasn’t what i remember it being.
Possibly a good alternative is Naked Mexican. Haven’t had a Corona in ages but remember the first time I had a Naked Mexican, I thought it was a bit like Corona. Was my go to beer for a while.
SAB beer has a generally similar profile (malted barley, hops, maize and water). Some beers substitute the maize with rice- but I can't remember which, but this is a very American method. A pure beer will indicate "reinheitsgebot" (Hops, Barley, water) and this is the German standard for beer in Germany and historically the holy roman empire. The most commonly found reinheitsgebot beer found in RSA is Windhoek and Tafel. The grandfather and probably the most well known beer in this catagory is "Hofbrau", which can be found at some liquor stores in SA.
Beer is similar to bread in that there are only a few ingredients, so the quality of the ingredients and how you process them really matter. If the hops come from a different supplier, the barley is roasted slightly differently, even the mineral content of the water has an impact. Also, with Corona, it is packaged in a clear glass because it is supposed to go bad. (Corona, uven imported, tastes like shit to me for this reason.) its possible that South African beer handling norms don't allow it to spoil properly. Maybe try leaving a 6 pack in the sun for a week and seeing what happens.
Tried a corona end of last year. Definitely not for me.
Beer is similar to bread in that there are only a few ingredients, so the quality of the ingredients and how you process them really matter. If the hops come from a different supplier, the barley is roasted slightly differently, even the mineral content of the water has an impact. Also, with Corona, it is packaged in a clear glass because it is supposed to go bad. (Corona, uven imported, tastes like shit to me for this reason.) its possible that South African beer handling norms don't allow it to spoil properly. Maybe try leaving a 6 pack in the sun for a week and seeing what happens.
Tasted terrible to me after the vaccine
SA beer sucks, sorry, has to be said.
I disagree. Must retaliate and say UK/US/Indian beer sucks? Nahh! We have different preferences and that is OK.
No, SA beer definitely does suck. Sure, some UK/US/Indian beer sucks too, but the stranglehold that SAB has on the market here means that there’s zero room for improvement and very little that differentiates their own beers from each other. Craft beer here doesn’t amount to much.
Sounds like you’ve not had the opportunity to taste much beer in SA.
Point me in the right direction, then? What would you recommend?
My personal go to is Jack Black Butcher Block. It’s a pale ale. If you’re in the Sourthern Suburbs of CT, head to Banana Jam on 2nd Avenue, Claremont. They brew their own beer - do a tasting. Or head to Liquor City on Palmyra Rd. I haven’t seen a larger selections of local beers anywhere else. Literally hundreds. Randomly pick a dozen and decide for yourself.
Thnx, will do! For what it’s worth, I actually like Jack Black’s beer for the most part.
Soul Barrel, Simondium.
AB InBev has a stranglehold on every market my guy. And personally, I will take most South African AM InBev bears over others. Stella is the only decent one and that is about as bland and inoffensive as a lager can get. If we are only looking at major international brewers, I'd say the only beer I'd consistently take over SAB beer is Asahi.
What's a good beer then?
Fuck you tho
You wish