[kj]A question about Prague (Budvar)

[antoni at clara.net]

Spot on Thomas, there is absolutely no comparison between the fantastic
"Budweiser Budvar - Premium Czech Lager" and that awful pisswater Budweiser,
allegedly the "Kings Of Beers" which we get served up in the bars at Chelsea
FC - that's why we all go down the numerous pubs in the vicinity instead -
been drinking Budvar (brewed in Ceske Budejovice) for years - gorgeous stuff
...

----- Original Message ----- 
From: Thomas Kennedy
To: A list about all things Killing Joke (the band!)
Sent: Saturday, May 29, 2004 2:09 AM
Subject: RE: [kj]A question about Prague


<Sorry, too much information I know, but it's a
<sensitive topic with me.

not to mention it's the worst fucking beer in the U.S.....

Tom.



Jiri <unspeakable at sbcglobal.net> wrote:

I second Pat's praise, but to clarify, Budvar didn't
sell its name to the yanks--nor likely would it ever,
even for a massive load of cash--nor did it sell the
name to Anheuser-Busch, which lifted the "Budweiser"
name through good old-fashioned theft, (or is it
sampling?). A-B is based in St. Louis, a river city in
the middle of the U.S. Its founder (and namesake)
Busch was traveling through Bohemia and Bavaria in the
1870s when he found Budvar (or Budweiser as the
Germans call(ed) it)-style beer raved about. Knowing
there were loads of German immigrants in St. Louis at
the time, he decided to try to make a similar beer in
the St. Louis market and call it Budweiser.

When A-B expanded its horizons and eyed global markets
in the first half of the 20th century, suddenly Budvar
and A-B were clashing over the name. Trademark
disputes have ensued in almost every country where one
might want to profit from selling beer. Budvar is
called "Czechvar" in the U.S. (and A-B, with its
shake-down tactics and stranglehold on most
distributors, keeps it out of most locations), and
A-B's brew has to go by "Bud" or "Anheuser-Busch B" or
other comical names in various countries.

Sorry, too much information I know, but it's a
sensitive topic with me.