montmil: << I stick with light beer... >>
Monte! A Texan drinking light beer??? Especially when Shiner Bock is available!
OT, but somewhat related: Though a bit dated, Philip Van Munching's 1997 book
Beer Blast — The Inside Story of the Brewing Industry's Bizarre Battles for Your Money (long out of print, but likely available used (maybe at a high price, but sometimes available at a bargain, so check repeatedly) on Amazon[dot]com, is informative, gossipy, and very funny. (Van Munching, grandson of Theodore Van Munching (the original USA importer and national distributor of Heineken) and himself a former executive of Van Munching & Co., tells insider dirt about both the history of the beer industry in the US and his family's former brand.)
The elder Van Munching is quoted with some very strong opinions about specific brands. Examples:
He once referred publicly to Corona as "Mexican soda pop"; and (paraphrased with trepidation, but in a style used by US newspapers recently —
Regarding Coors: "What does Coors beer have in common with sex in a canoe?"
[Out of respect for the high standards of this forum, I'll provide the answer in a PM to anyone requesting it. Please be patient for a response.]
[Regarding the wide swings in prices of used copies of the book: After reading good reviews of
Beer Blast, I found a new copy on the bargain table of a US bookstore chain and bought it for $5. I loaned it to someone, but I never got it back. Went looking for a used copy recently and learned that used copy prices
began at $80 US and ranged upward. I found a used book-on-tape copy for $5 (read by the author) and bought it, but it is significantly abridged. Sometime later, I checked again and discovered that used copies in good condition were available for as little as $11.95, and bought it. Sorry, guys — having been burned once, I decline to loan my copy.]
