My husband and beer snob/critic/drinker believes, like many of his kind that some things are sacred. You don’t mess with a good beer.
Unfortunately, this is at odds with the Australian Brewer’s Excise Tax which taxes a brewery based on the alcohol content of its beer. Generally speaking, the higher the alcohol content in a beverage, the higher the excise tax. No doubt, this serves as both a revenue raiser and a behavior modification (we, in the USA, aren’t the only ones who do this with our tax policy).
As a result, Fosters will be altering the recipe for its Victoria Bitter, a move that will reportedly save them up to $20 million in Australian dollars ($17.2 million US dollars) in taxes. Despite the huge savings, the alcohol content of the beer will only drop .1% – to 4.8% from 4.9%. The brewery insists that you won’t be able to tell the difference.
The new brew is out in August – with a new price tag to boot. Fosters is also raising the price of its product, reportedly to keep in line with inflation.
And in case you’re wondering how VB compares to beers on the market, here are some popular beers and their alcohol content:
Amstel Light – 3.85%
Anchor Steam – 5.0%
Ayinger Brau Weisse – 5.1%
Bass Ale – 4.9%
Beck’s – 5.1%
Budweiser – 4.7%
Corona – 4.8%
Fosters Lager – 5.2%
Guinness Draft – 4.1%
Heineken – 5.2%
Miller Lite – 4.2%
Newcastle Brown Ale – 4.5%
Pabst – 4.9%
Pilsner Urquell – 4.4%
Samuel Adams Boston Lager – 4.75%
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale – 5.3%
Stella Artois – 5.2%
Tsingtao – 4.8%
* And kudos to those of you (probably parents, hint, hint) who can properly place that quote.
