Different Taste of Beer at Xmas

SeamusHollahan

Hi guys, something i've noticed in recent years but any heineken cans or guinness cans i buy at Christmas (at discounted rates) always tastes a lot different to the same cans say bought during the summer season. In the case of Heineken, it always seems flatter and leaves a bad aftertaste when bought at xmas and Guinness tastes slightly bitter. Is it that they are getting rid of old stock or they don't have the same quality control (i.e rushing out larger volumes). Anyway let me know what yas think? Anyone else have a similar experience?

Cheers
S

BeerNut

SeamusHollahan wrote: »

any heineken cans or guinness cans i buy at Christmas (at discounted rates) always tastes a lot different to the same cans say bought during the summer season.

Are you tasting them side-by-side or is this based on your memory of beer you drank months ago? If the latter, the simplest answer is that they're the same and the effect is entirely psychological.

SeamusHollahan wrote: »

Is it that they are getting rid of old stock or they don't have the same quality control (i.e rushing out larger volumes).

There's a date on every can so this is easy enough to check if it's concerning you.

SeamusHollahan

Its mostly from recent memory but on occasion side by side. I can't see it being psychological as there are actual noticeable differences in quality in terms of how flat the beer pours and leaves little or no head. Again i'm finding this mostly from the heavily discounted slabs of beer over xmas. Should have stated that the dates are all fine, mostly 5-6 months before BB date. Its not a once off either, i've noticed this across bottles and cans at xmas over the years. Anyway would be interested to hear if anyone else has had a similar experience!

BeerNut

SeamusHollahan wrote: »

Should have stated that the dates are all fine, mostly 5-6 months before BB date.

So then it's not "getting rid of old stock". Modern industrial breweries don't approach stock control the way McGinty's petrol station does.

"Jaysis Frank, there's 80,000 hectolitres that's been sittin' in this tank since August. What'll we do with it at all?"
"Aye sure just lash it into cans there and sell it cheap. Sure no one'll notice."

SeamusHollahan

So you in your world old stock cannot be passed off as newer stock by mislabelling it then beerNuts? Jaysis your a patronising lad aren't ya! Mod or not, no need for your snidey remarks, grab a beer and chill out!

BeerNut

SeamusHollahan wrote: »

So you in your world old stock cannot be passed off as newer stock by mislabelling it then

Exactly. Stock sitting around the brewery unsold would represent an unacceptable unnecessary cost to megabreweries like Diageo and Heineken. They have process controls which make sure it doesn't happen.

coylemj

SeamusHollahan wrote: »

So you in your world old stock cannot be passed off as newer stock by mislabelling it then beerNuts? Jaysis your a patronising lad aren't ya! Mod or not, no need for your snidey remarks, grab a beer and chill out!

Breweries and pubs (and all of the retail trade) practice stock rotation which means 'first in, first out' i.e. stock is shipped out of the brewery in the order in which it's produced and then sold in the pubs and off-licences in the same order. Cartons and crates have stock rotation numbers on them so if an supermarket employee goes into the store room for a pallet of Heineken cans, he will be able to identify the oldest stock by the number on the pallet and that's the stuff he will pick for the shelves.

Lovely Bloke

Do you think either the brewers of either Heineken or Guinness, or the shops you buy them in, have issues of stock building up to such an extent that they have to sell off "gone off" beer at Xmas time?

Can you explain the cheap slabs at other times of the year?

Atlantic Dawn

I find the Heineken in crates purchased around Christmas tastes very watered down.

Krusty_Clown

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

I find the Heineken in crates purchased around Christmas tastes very watered down.

That's very unlikely if you're buying the same product from the same establishment. But if you're stocking up on slabs or some other form of xmas specials, they could be imported. Is the alcohol % different? Maybe your tolerance levels are just higher at xmas, because of additional festive consumption? Taste buds could also be more neutralized because of rich foods and spirits? Can't imagine the macro beer companies would water down beer at xmas.

L1011

Simple enough answer here: You're all drinking far more at Christmas time and stuff tastes different.

Stock control reasons mean the older stock theory is wrong - it can't work this way. Altering ingredients will be noticeable to regular drinkers and annoy them.

ABV% is the only probable thing mentioned so far - you see UK stock turning up, which in some cases is weaker but is marked as such.

Diageo stopped bottling Guinness briefly to meet demand for the Christmas slabs a few weeks ago. It's definitely not canning old beer that's been lying around the brewery!

Insect Overlord

Summertime beer is probably more likely kept in the fridge once you get it home, so it seems more refreshing. Buying in big slabs for Christmas, they could end up in a dark corner somewhere with fluctuating temperatures, or get opened straight out of the packaging so they haven't been properly chilled at all.

rubadub

SeamusHollahan wrote: »

I can't see it being psychological as there are actual noticeable differences in quality in terms of how flat the beer pours and leaves little or no head.

This should be both cans in the same fridge going into identical, preferably brand new glasses washed in the same dishwasher at the same time. Poured by the same person etc.

Psychological effects are very well known when it comes to pricing & perciveved taste. Your post does not surprise me at all. I do not believe there would be any significant difference, they pride themselves on being as consistent as possible. I would have been pretty shocked if you had said you found the discounted stuff was far better -since the studies show if people are given 2 drinks or foodstuffs, which are identical, but told one is dear, one cheap then they tend to say the expensive one is best.

There was a program on just last week doing this with cheese. Here is one about beer
https://www.theguardian.com/science/punctuated-equilibrium/2011/mar/16/1

Losty Dublin

I bought a box of 20 bags of Tayto the other day and they taste totally differently to one I got in Spar 3 months ago. The pricks!! And that Curly Wurly in the selection box, it's got less toffee than the one Santa gave me in Clery's in 1973. And don't get me started on the turkeys; they ain't the same!!!!

In short OP, you're imagining it.

Krusty_Clown

SeamusHollahan wrote: »

Its mostly from recent memory but on occasion side by side. I can't see it being psychological as there are actual noticeable differences in quality in terms of how flat the beer pours and leaves little or no head. Again i'm finding this mostly from the heavily discounted slabs of beer over xmas. Should have stated that the dates are all fine, mostly 5-6 months before BB date. Its not a once off either, i've noticed this across bottles and cans at xmas over the years. Anyway would be interested to hear if anyone else has had a similar experience!

Blind taste test. As Beernut suggested, two cans of the same beer (one from an xmas slab, the other an equivalent non-slab beer), both within date, with same ABV, both in the fridge for an equal amount of time and removed at the same time. Pour each can into three small identical glasses, label them so you can't see them (sticky label underneath, pointed down), get a friend to swap them around, taste them and divide them into two piles. Let us know how it goes.