Friday Drinks...

Well this week I was going to note another local brew from Harringtons, but today a mate and colleague brought round some Stella Artois, a perennial favourite of mine.

One of the oldest beers going round, this is a Belgian classic, and sits somewhere between a Pils and Lager. It accounts for 75% of all production in Belgium itself however is not the most consumed in that country!

Here in NZ, it is pretty much a 'noters' beer whether you like it or not, as it commands a higher price in pubs and clubs than most other international and all local beers.


For me, it is a luxury item, it would have to be selling at less than $2/stubbie which is not often, and other beers normally take precedence before it on price alone such as Tuborg and Carlsberg. In saying that, I am a big fan, funnily only after the first one...the first not quite hitting the spot, but subsequent (and there are a lot of subsequents) going down well. This is the quintessential BBQ beer, but is probably more associated as a dinner beer, and to me is best served in the bottle.

The traditional way to drink Stellar;
it pays to have a cheap shirt in case
of spillage

This is one of those beers that should never be served anything short of bitterly cold, and probably is why I drink so many so quick as it loses it's class as it warms.

For a wedding or a night where you don't intend to drink to excess, this is one of the first choices, or if you're trying to impress a bird at dinner. And to bring that home, quote some facts to show your alcohol dependence;

• While being listed as far back as 1366, it only became Artois in 1717 named after the master brewer of the time
• Stella is Latin for 'star'
• The label itself was only designed as late as 1988
• The heir to the Stella fortune plays in a band called "Lords of Acid"