business

Asahi says cheers to cheap beer

18 Comments

Asahi Breweries Ltd said Friday it expected a sharp rise in sales of low-malt beer as recession-hit consumers drown their sorrows with cheap suds.

Japan taxes beer based on malt content, meaning lower prices at the cash register for low-malt beer or beer-like drinks made of beans, corn or other produce.

Asahi Breweries said it aims to sell over 30% more of its Style Free low-malt beer in 2009 compared with last year and over 40 percent more of its Clear Asahi, which is made with barley and spirits.

While expecting to sell more of such second-grade beer, Asahi forecast the sales of its flagship Asahi Super Dry will fall slightly by 2.2%.

"The company will strengthen the competitiveness of conventional brands, mainly Super Dry, while trying to expand the market by proposing innovative drink products," the company said in a statement.

The company expects its total beer sales to grow by 0.8% this year from 2008.

Asahi also said it will expand its alcohol and non-alcohol businesses overseas, mainly in China and Australia.

Asahi last month announced plan to buy Schweppes Australia, the country's second largest non-alcoholic ready-to-drink beverages business, from British confectionery maker Cadbury.

© Wire reports

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18 Comments
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What have things come to? Everyone drinking fake beer. I have yet to try one that is any good. People drinking that swill by the case just to get an alcohol fix. Is it enjoyable to drink? I will stick to real beer and just drink less before I switch to that crap. It is a sad time when we cant afford to drink real beer. And dont you love when you go to a party and take a pack of real beer for yourself to drink and all the Japanese bring the happoshu but then open the fridge and reach for one of yours! Disgruntled beer lover here, sorry.

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Can somebody tell what it tastes like? Is cheap beer as foul tasting as it sounfds and all that.

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Swill to be sure but; I stand up, I drink, I lay down. All the same really.

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Disgruntled beer lover, the same could be said about most beer produced by large companies.

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happoshu 99% is disgusting to my palette, magnum dry(one of the first ones) was passable & one other they probably dont even make anymore & I dont care now anyways.

Serveral yrs ago I needed cheese to make pizza on a summer evening & hoped on my bike to hit a few nearby conbinis for anything remotely cheese like, unsuccessful at my last stop I grabbed a can of the latest crap stuff that turned out didnt even have any malts in it & when I took a swig outside I gagged on the stuff, took one more half mouthful & then dumped it, when back & bought a MALTS to wash the taste out of my mouth.

SInce that day I swore off the happoshu & the only time I now drink that swill is if I visit friends & they pull the stuff out, I will sip one to be polite & pray for them to break out some wine or shochu or anything.

Unless yr destitute dont drink it, its probably poisonus as well, more so than the reg brews

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Draft One (if still in existence) is horrible.

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i dont even know what real beer tastes like right now.. lol

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If it aint got hops in, it aint beer, it is alcoholic drink and that.

From what people says these cheap beers aint up to much , and taste like muck. Strewth, glad i aint poor in Japan drinking that stuff innit!

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Q. What is Japan's favorite beer in a recession???

A. Whatever is on sale...

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Kirin Classic rocks :)

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Yucki poohs!! Not for me thanks.

You get what you pay for. A very cheap beer is going to have horrid additives and other chemicals added to make the brewing process cheaper.

Do yourselves a favour, buy decent beer, or abstain!

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Do yourselves a favour, buy decent beer, or abstain!

One could also learn to craft beer themselves.

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I used to drink happoshu when I was married to my miserly ex, but switched to real beer once I wasn't accountable to anyone for my expenditure.

There are some good beers here in NZ, and near beer doesn't exist - hoorah!

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Some of the newer ones aren't bad. I'd been drinking Suntory RICH MALT (kind of an ironic name) for a while and thought it was OK. And if you drink two cans every evening like I do, you save a lot of money. But I stopped buying it when I realized I was basically drinking whisky and soda. It just didn't feel right mentally.

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I used to drink happoshu when I was married to my miserly ex,

Sounds like you needed something on the side, Zai. ;)

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I like the Asahi Blue cans, but it has to be really cold, or ese it tastes like something I cannot mention here. And I found a place that sells it for ¥150 That is a good deal.

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benhur - come back when you're major ;) Otherwise, yes, don't drink that crap they call "cheap beer" - even paind I wouldn't drink it - and no, it's not beer. As far as I know, except water and CO2, those drinks contain no other ingredients found in real beer. On the other hand, I always enjoy a can or glass of Suntori Premium, or Kuro...

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