Budweiser Ice Cold Index

norrie rugger

http://www.icecoldindex.ie/

What do you guys think of this?
Would it get you into a pub?

Basically the hotter the day the cheaper the pint.
16 degrees C = €1 off
18 degrees C = €2 off
20 degrees C = 1 free pint

Vouchers arrive once a day based on a temp taken at noon(?)

Can replies please not be about the merits of the beer itself and more around the focus to bring people back to the pub.

I must admit that I would be tempted to cross the threshold of a pub, on a hot day.

KJ

Thats an excellent idea but I wouldnt bother for Budweiser. Heineken, Coors or a Bulmers and I would be tempted.

BeerNut

I'd have thought warm sunny days are the ones where people need the least encouragement to go for a beer.

norrie rugger

BeerNut wrote: »

I'd have thought warm sunny days are the ones where people need the least encouragement to go for a beer.

You get rainy day vouchers too ha.

On a weekend yeah no prob going to a few but on a weekday I would need to be tempted and this would swing it for me TBH

BeerNut

norrie rugger wrote: »

You get rainy day vouchers too ha.

So you then have the temptation to wait and see if one or other of the vouchers arrives, whereas it's possible you would have just gone for a pint.

Out of interest, do you happen to know who is paying the €1/€2 off? Can the pub claim it, or part of it, from Diageo?

noby

I keep reading it as www.icecoldinalex.ie, which puts a competitor to mind.

s_carnage

It doesn't really say which pubs are open to the offer. I would doubt every pub in Ireland would be participating in it. Great idea though as I can see them doing well out of it as long as get a few hot days in this country!!

Martyn1989

BeerNut wrote: »

Out of interest, do you happen to know who is paying the €1/€2 off? Can the pub claim it, or part of it, from Diageo?

The pub claim it all back

tolosenc

Android app doesn't work. Good idea, though. Hope they fix it.

And hey, free beer is free beer.

Martyn1989

Dont think the offer is available yet, I don't know for sure though

JimmyAlfonso

The App looks like it's still in development, no participating pubs listed yet either, can't find any info on their website either. Can't imagine it will be in too many places to be honest as it's a bit messy to run although in saying that the campaign will be useless if they don't reach a critical mass.

Gillington

Hmmm nice idea to get people in and I will probably try it if I'm around Dublin the odd day but can't imagine it really taking off. The old Irish adage of "that seems like too much work"

Blisterman

There must be a catch. I can't see pubs giving out free beer that easily. It must reach above 20 degrees most days of the summer, so you could potentially be getting dozens of free pints.

Parry_Repost

Well the temp is measured at noon, similarly its limited to one a day per smartphone I would presume based on the app getting a code that expires after two minutes. The fact it asks for a pub code prob means once you enter the pub code Budweiser then pay that pub the required amount.

Clever idea really cause lets be honest if you get one free pint you would be tempted to have another. Also those drinkers that float me included would be more likely to go for a bud after starting with bud. Sound marketing really.

BeerNut

Blisterman wrote: »

There must be a catch.

The catch is that Diageo could knock €2 off the price every single pint of Bud right now and still make a handsome profit on it.

Blisterman wrote: »

It must reach above 20 degrees most days of the summer

The thermometer in my back yard disagrees with you there. I'm sure they've done their homework on this.

Parry_Repost wrote: »

Clever idea really cause lets be honest if you get one free pint you would be tempted to have another. Also those drinkers that float me included would be more likely to go for a bud after starting with bud. Sound marketing really.

Exactly. It's all about getting Coors Light drinkers to switch to Bud by undercutting the price, without making it look like that's what they're doing.

norrie rugger

BeerNut wrote: »

The catch is that Diageo could knock €2 off the price every single pint of Bud right now and still make a handsome profit on it.

Proof please?

BeerNut

Tuborg, I'm told on this forum, is being sold for €3 a pint in some pubs. Tuborg is made of pretty much the same stuff as Bud, and pretty much the same stuff as the lagers you can buy for €1-odd per can in the offies. Beer on this sort of scale does not cost very much to produce.

With any of the "premium" beers you're paying for the brand more than the beer.

Bigcheeze

norrie rugger wrote: »

Proof please?

Take Bud and Bavaria. Both are similar strength, neither have much in the way of hops so would cost about the same to manufacture on a large scale. Diageo probably have to kick a few cents per pint back to Budweiser for the use of the name.

If the makers of Bavaria can sell it for around 1 euro per can and presumably do so at a profit and Bud sells for around 5 euro for a pint in a pub, there's quite a bit of fat to play with.

Tea_Bag

guys can we keep this thread on topic and less about bud bashing? save that for AH.

Anyway,

my app seems to be broken or something, (it keeps saying "loading pubs" in the google maps view) but does anyone know how to find a list of participating pubs in munster limerick area?
the website www.icecoldindex.ie doesnt really say anything.

JohnK

It'd certainly get me in for a pint if theres a discount but saying that Bud would be my usual drink so probably of no real benefit to them

Like everyone else though I'm not seeing any participating pubs anywhere on the map.

I see one catch is that you can only get 1 voucher per day but its also limited to 4 vouchers in any 7 day period so if you get a week of great weather you're still only getting 4 vouchers so if you think theres 4 hotter days coming in the next week you may not want to use a 1 or 2 euro voucher and hold out for the free ones so maybe thats how they plan to keep it in check? (ie, hoping people use the smaller discounts in the ramp up to a hot spell then be locked out while it peaks and the free pints are on offer)

Bigcheeze

Tea_Bag wrote: »

guys can we keep this thread on topic and less about bud bashing? save that for AH.

It's not bud bashing. You can substitute just about any mass produced beer in the examples above.

Technocentral

I want an non novelty marketing app that shows you where you can buy real, proper beer regardless of the weather that day. Btw where better to bash the likes of budweiser than on the beer forum!

norrie rugger

Technocentral wrote: »

Btw where better to bash the likes of budweiser than on the beer forum!

Your own thread??

norrie rugger

BeerNut wrote: »

Tuborg, I'm told on this forum, is being sold for €3 a pint in some pubs. Tuborg is made of pretty much the same stuff as Bud, and pretty much the same stuff as the lagers you can buy for €1-odd per can in the offies. Beer on this sort of scale does not cost very much to produce.

With any of the "premium" beers you're paying for the brand more than the beer.

You said handsome profit. How do you think the shareholders would react to that? How many staff let go?

You are also paying fir the huge team of people that clean every line monthly etc. I do not see Bavaria etc doing that. I imagine that Tuborg can be sold at that price point due to economies of scale, based on the other beers. Also do you know the margins of the publicans? Are they willing to accept less on value beers than others? If so where is your ire directed at them??

Now I ask again what people think of the idea and app and not Bud itself or that nasty profit making company

BeerNut

norrie rugger wrote: »

You said handsome profit. How do you think the shareholders would react to that? How many staff let go?

Depends how handsome a profit they want, I guess.

norrie rugger wrote: »

You are also paying fir the huge team of people that clean every line monthly etc. I do not see Bavaria etc doing that.

Even leaving other companies aside (and I'm sure Gleeson's get their Bavaria lines cleaned), the maintainance is shared with the other Diageo brands. Knocking a few quid of one of the five or so isn't going to make that much of a difference. Bear in mind also that the maintenance contract is tendered out to a third-party. If Diageo want to cut that corner a bit, they can offer it to someone else for less money.

norrie rugger wrote: »

I imagine that Tuborg can be sold at that price point due to economies of scale, based on the other beers.

Eh? It can be sold at that price because it's a value brand and they're not worried about it appearing cheap. They are worried about their "premium" lager brands being devalued, however. It's all about the brand and not about the beer.

norrie rugger wrote: »

Also do you know the margins of the publicans? Are they willing to accept less on value beers than others? If so where is your ire directed at them??

Not relevant to my point. In this promotion (I am told above), the €2 knocked off is absorbed entirely by Diageo. My point is just that Diageo can afford to knock this €2 off every pint, leaving the publicans' business untouched.

norrie rugger wrote: »

Now I ask again what people think of the idea and app and not Bud itself or that nasty profit making company

You did actually ask me above to explain myself, and that's the only reason I'm doing it.

squonk

I installed the Ice Cold App on my iPhone last night. I can't find the Bar Finder though. I thought it might have been locked out functionality until the voucher was unlocked but now I see it isn't.

Also, the guy says on the add that there's a voucher for a free pint included to get you started. I don't have that voucher in the bonus section at all, just a message to look in this space for vouchers over the summer.

Anyone else noticing the same thing?

JohnK

Did you complete the registration? I think its only when you do that that you get the welcome bonus voucher. The registration form is under settings->view my details.

celticbest

The App for this is not available for Windows 7 phones. So I texted the Free Text number &got a reply stating that it's not available on my Handset, I then sent an email yesterday to enquire about when it would be available and I'm still waiting on a reply..........

Jev/N

Blisterman wrote: »

There must be a catch.

There is - it's Budweiser

squonk

JohnK wrote: »

Did you complete the registration? I think its only when you do that that you get the welcome bonus voucher. The registration form is under settings->view my details.

yup, I registered and it's showing that I'm registered but I didn't get any voucher. Strikes me that the app is still a bit dodgy... like the beer!

Mimikyu

This post has been deleted.

sean2011

BeerNut wrote: »

Not relevant to my point. In this promotion (I am told above), the €2 knocked off is absorbed entirely by Diageo. My point is just that Diageo can afford to knock this €2 off every pint, leaving the publicans' business untouched.

Ever worked in a pub or ordered a keg? If so you'll know roughly what they cost. With relatively basic maths you can work out that with 2 euro off the price of every pint times the number of pints the publican would actually get PAID for the keg. So no, this would not still be feasible. The publican's share of the profits are much larger than the brewing company.

BeerNut

Welcome to Boards.ie

I am assuming that the number of pints in the keg, and the amount the publican is paying for them, will remain at the same fixed rate. I bet the publicans involved in this campaign (assuming there are some) are too.

It doesn't matter if the publican's share is greater than the brewery's -- and I'd guarantee you that this figure varies wildly around the country, depending on each publican's overheads -- my point is still that Diageo are producing their beer for buttons and, theoretically, could charge buttons for it in turn.

Not that I'm saying that they should, of course. I mean, it's a free market and they should be charging whatever people are willing to pay. That's just basic business sense.

sean2011

Thank you.

Apologies, my point was not very well-made.
A standard keg is 50 litres, this translates to roughly 90 pints. If a brewing company were to refund a publican 2 euro per pint that would be a total rebate of 180 euro.

Which is more than the publican paid in the first place! I think its safe to say the brewer is not making money on that deal.

I am not a Budweiser drinker normally but this deal would make me consider buying one on a hot & sunny day. Any promo that can get new people to try your product is surely a good idea?

BeerNut

sean2011 wrote: »

Which is more than the publican paid in the first place!

How much is the publican paying in the first place, including duty and VAT?

sean2011

BeerNut wrote: »

How much is the publican paying in the first place, including duty and VAT?

http://www.partykegs.ie/beers.html

You can be sure this crowd is adding a pretty decent premium on top of what they are paying.

Blisterman

Is duty still paid on beer that's given away for free? I had a friend who worked for Wetherspoons in England, and apparently when you take duty out of the equation, they pay less than 20p a pint wholesale.

BeerNut

That's one dodgy looking site. It doesn't really seem to know which side of the border it's operating on and there's no direct ordering system, address or landline. I wouldn't trust them as a source for wholesale pricing.

These guys are €255 for a keg of Bud, these are €235. Plenty of wiggle room for €2 off there

BeerNut

Blisterman wrote: »

Is duty still paid on beer that's given away for free?

Yes: duty is due once the beer is finished. If a batch goes wrong and you want to dispose of it, you must have a Revenue officer physically present in the room while you do it.

sean2011

I don't know about the duty, but typicallyit is the brewery that pays the duty, not the publican. The publican pays the VAT but not the duty, I believe.

I could probably find a keg sales site for 250euro if I looked hard enough but that just means that the middleman is taking a larger cut. In the case we are speaking about the publican is the middleman so it is more relevant to talk about what price he pays.

It's especially generous to get money off of Budweiser- as it's one of the most process-intensive beers to make. Or am I the only one who reads the package!

BeerNut

sean2011 wrote: »

it's one of the most process-intensive beers to make. Or am I the only one who reads the package!

I think you might be the only one who believes the package

In other news, Guinness isn't alive inside, thanks to Monsieur Pasteur.

sean2011

Well in this case the package is accurate!

Don't tell me that's not true either- how disappointing! Well, at least it's still a great source of Iron...

Martyn1989

Where I work are participating, I havnt been in since Monday evening, but I don't think the offer has begun yet, as I understand it the pub is reimbursed in full.
Surely Diageo have no problem losing money for such a big marketing push like this, its not about getting people into pubs, but more to improve brand image and give it a major push and all that stuff.
I can see it being a massive pain tbh.
Im in tomorrow, Ill find out exactly what the story with it is

BeerNut

sean2011 wrote: »

Well in this case the package is accurate

It's really not.

sean2011

BeerNut wrote: »

It's really not.

Do elaborate...

Blisterman

I always wonder about these money off offers.

The end result is that when they finish, you end up just thinking it's overpriced, cause you're used to getting it cheap.

BeerNut

sean2011 wrote: »

Do elaborate...

Correct me if I'm wrong here, but the line in question is "We know of no other beer produced by any other brewer which costs so much to brew and age."

Budweiser uses rice as a fermentable. Rice is a lot cheaper than malt, so any all-malt beer will have a dearer grain bill. Diageo have access to Irish malt over which, as its biggest buyer, they have a lot of price control. Most Irish breweries use imported malt, which costs more.

Budweiser is very lightly hopped, it may even use canned hop extract rather than the real thing, as other Diageo beers do. Either way, the cost per pint on hops is very small. Put it next to any hop-driven beer and you're looking at degrees of magnitude.

And then there's the sheer economy of scale: the amount of energy and water to create Bud is much less than any beer made in smaller batches.

As for aging, I'm told by someone who used to work at Francis's Abbey that Bud gets turned around in about a week. At the opposite end of the scale, Budvar in the Czech Republic sits in the lagering tanks for three months. Most breweries take a couple of weeks to turn a batch around, paying for the power in the cooling system all the while. Budweiser is barely aged at all, on a pile of beech sawdust, on the cheap.

The statement has to have been written by someone who isn't aware that any other company makes beer.

norrie rugger

BeerNut wrote: »

Yes: duty is due once the beer is finished. If a batch goes wrong and you want to dispose of it, you must have a Revenue officer physically present in the room while you do it.

Duty is due when the finished product is ready for sale. Kegged or bottled.
Beer ready for export is not

spartacus 109

anybody downloaded it on a blackberry yet? I cant seem to find the app on blackberry app world!

pa990

spartacus 109 wrote: »

anybody downloaded it on a blackberry yet? I cant seem to find the app on blackberry app world!

dunno about the b/berry , but its crap on android.. no pubs ever show on the map

i call Shenanigans

Niall_G

Technically, duty is due when the beer is released from a bonded warehouse for domestic consumption. Exceptions are exports and transfers between bonded warehouses under duty suspension.

In general, this means once it physically leaves the brewery/bonded warehouse,duty is due. Of course it may not be actually paid for a number of weeks because of the deferred payment (bond) scheme.

norrie rugger wrote: »

Duty is due when the finished product is ready for sale. Kegged or bottled.
Beer ready for export is not