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Honestly I wouldn't mind seeing a random assortment of beers based on where the plane was catered.
Kinda like a lottery of sorts. Can you imagine if they did that. There would be people selecting flights based on the aircraft and where it had been catered to have their favourite beer. "I took this flight because it was coming from SYR and they stock this wonderful local brew. But it turns out that the plane actually came from OMA. The beer was horrible! I wrote in and they only said 'sorry' and didn't even throw a few miles my way!" |
Originally Posted by channa
(Post 17045769)
Just looking at a Hemispheres at the moment, and it looks like they've standardized the booze between the two airlines.
SPECIALTY Salvador's Margarita $7 Trader Vic's Mai Tai $9 BEER $6 Bud, Miller Lite, Heineken WINE $7 House Red/White Sparkling (Int'l only) SPIRITS $7 Absolut Vodka Bacardi Rum Bombay Sapphire Canadian Club Whisky Dewar's Scotch Jack Daniels Jim Beam LIQUEURS $7 Baileys Courvosier VSOP OTHER (Int'l) $7 Crown Royal DiSaronno Amaretto* Glenlivet Scotch Grand Marnier Kahlua* *Also avail. domestic F/C, but not Y. I'm pleased with the vodka upgrade and the best of both gin coming over. Looks like they might have done right on this one. Downside is the higher mai tai pricing. Not a scotch or whisky drinker, so I can't comment on what was before or is now. Best part is "Alcoholic beverages are available on most flights. Complimentary in premium cabins. Priced as shown in economy cabin." Why can't they have one decent beer? It's ridiculous that they have Heineken on flights out of Germany (although one can get lucky and they have something other than swill) when there are so many better options.
Originally Posted by andrewwm
(Post 17057851)
The snobbery is strong in this post :rolleyes:
I'll grant that the beer, wine and scotch/whisk(e)y UA serves is generally plonk to an experienced drinker. But most people aren't experienced drinkers. I doubt most UA customers have any real ability to separate out the good from the bad wines UA has, let alone prefer one brand of vodka over another. Most high end alcohols are, as pointed out, Veblen goods and survive primarily on snob appeal. Brands and Grey Goose and Ciroc usually get trashed by critics compared to $10/bottle vodka in taste tests, yet that doesn't stop people from calling it in screwdrivers for a $5 premium. People associate having a better experience with buying a more expensive, high-end brand alcohol (feelings of being "in the know" and "smarter than the average consumer" are often self-reported after buying this type of alcohol), and it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy - people are primed for the experience and then their brain delivers, regardless of the quality of the alcohol. Alcohol companies have certainly figured this out. I think UA's choice of hard alcohol is about right - mainline alcohols at a reasonable price. It doesn't allow people to feel smug in their high-minded attitudes about how superior their alcohol tastes are, but whatever. Anything that hastens the death of this mindset is a plus in my book. As a craft bartender in my part of the world put it "vodka is the boneless, skinless chicken breast of alcohol". It's for people who either want to get drunk fast or were deprived of taste buds. The only real difference between bargain bathtub stuff and nicer stuff is easily fixed with a charcoal filter or additional distillation. I love the ridiculous claims that they've been distilled 5 times, like I'm supposed to be impressed; I have stuff that is distilled 100 times. No flavor beyond the light sweetness of ethanol, which is really all vodka is. |
Originally Posted by Boraxo
(Post 17063967)
Still a mediocre beer selection. :td: Alaska has Alaskan Ale, even Southwest has Corona. And of course non-US carriers like LH have decent local brews.
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Originally Posted by GoAmtrak
(Post 17071401)
Agreed! For a few months last year UA had Leinenkugel, which I'd love to see again. Newcastle would be another great choice. Also, any sort of weisen or witbier like Hoegaarden would really make me happy, but that's too much to ask. :p
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I was pleased to see the margarita choice in the United magazine. Of course, I was on a Skywest flight that didn't board it, but hope springs eternal that I'll get a margarita on a UA-operated flight someday. :)
I usually go for the margaritas on CO because I find the beer and wine selections (at least the coach wines) to be boring or undrinkable. Apparently I don't need a great margarita to be happy. :) And I'm not so into the other hard stuff without real cocktails. I've always wondered why the beer selection is so uninspiring. This isn't 1978. Would it really be that much of a logistical challenge to stock a craft beer (perhaps a rotating craft beer)? Heck, even Sam Adams would be more inspired than, say, Heineken (the best of the current bunch). Wouldn't they sell more beer if the beer appealed to more sophisticated beer drinkers? And I won't even get into the wisdom of spending an extra 50 cents on better wine. |
At least most flights have SOME alcohol. I was on a CO Express flight from RDU to Newark this week which had NO alcohol of any kind. The FA said that those flights had not been getting any alcohol catered to them and it was a problem with some other flights catered in Newark as well. That really sucks.
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Potable beer would be welcome, rather than the current swill (MGD, Heineken, and Corona). It doesn't even need to be fancy, just something that isn't generally found only in frat houses.
I second the earlier recommendation for bourbon, as well. I can handle JB Black from time to time, but even a lower mid-tier bourbon like Woodfords or Makers Mark would suffice. |
Originally Posted by copperred
(Post 17071011)
Why can't they have one decent beer? It's ridiculous that they have Heineken on flights out of Germany (although one can get lucky and they have something other than swill) when there are so many better options.
As a craft bartender in my part of the world put it "vodka is the boneless, skinless chicken breast of alcohol". It's for people who either want to get drunk fast or were deprived of taste buds. The only real difference between bargain bathtub stuff and nicer stuff is easily fixed with a charcoal filter or additional distillation. I love the ridiculous claims that they've been distilled 5 times, like I'm supposed to be impressed; I have stuff that is distilled 100 times. No flavor beyond the light sweetness of ethanol, which is really all vodka is. If you look at the vapor liquid diagram of ethanol and water you will notice that if any such liquid which is distilled properly 5 times would be >>100 proof. 100 time should be the azeotrope at 190 proof.
Originally Posted by Boraxo
(Post 17063967)
Still a mediocre beer selection. :td: Alaska has Alaskan Ale, even Southwest has Corona. And of course non-US carriers like LH have decent local brews.
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Only two (2!) margaritas in Economy on a A319 transcon I was on a few days ago. I got one and when I asked for a second, they had to go to first to get it. They said someone else got the other one.
On the upside, they exist (yes!) and I got them for free because Hemispheres said they should be $7, but they kept ringing up at $9 for the FAs. |
Originally Posted by dlen111
(Post 17045903)
This sucks!! I absolutely HATE Absolute vodka. this destroys my screwdrivers, bloody marys, white russians and vodka sodas. Skky is much better. Finlandia would have been nice. damn damn damn.
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Originally Posted by Michael D
(Post 17076933)
Does beer on a plane needs to be in a can. If so that could really limit the selection. I have a feeling Heineken out of Germany isn't the same as the stuff we get here.
I rarely order a beer on a plane anymore. The last several times I tried for one on UA, it was pretty warm. If they upgrade the beer selection (which would be nice), they need to learn how to ice them down. |
Originally Posted by joshwex90
(Post 17071860)
I'd love Hoegaarden!
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Originally Posted by elitefreak
(Post 17078599)
My beer of choice at Yankee Stadium.
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Originally Posted by dlen111
(Post 17045903)
This sucks!! I absolutely HATE Absolute vodka. this destroys my screwdrivers, bloody marys, white russians and vodka sodas. Skky is much better. Finlandia would have been nice. damn damn damn.
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My favorite beer is in a can and German--Bitburger. The best. Wish they could pick it up while in Germany!
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