Brazilian Chopp Beer

[brewjack]

So, my girlfriend really wants me to brew her some "chopp" beer. I can't figure out what this is. I've done some googleing and searched the brew-wiki.

From what I've read, it sounds like "chopp" is the brazilian way of saying that it's on tap, served in a 300 ml glass and f###ing cold. But I'm wondering if there is a style of beer that goes along with the way it's served.

I think it's probably just a lager or a pilsner, but I read somewhere that it goes bad in a remarkably short time span (10 days from kegging). Maybe, very little hops?

Anyone heard of this? Any idea?

Thanks

 

[Revvy]

Here's a list of Brazillian beers both in Bottles and those that are available Chopp (or on tap)

Here are some of the bottled beers that I saw, along with a few short comments on my overall impression of the beer:

* Antarctica: light American-style industrial lager, unspectacular, 5.0% abv.
* Antarctica Extra: reminds me of Miller's Icehouse. I gagged.
* Antarctica Extra Cristal: looked anemic and sickly pale in the bottle, so I skipped it...
* Antarctica Malzbier: watered down molasses in a bottle, cloying, sweet and very unbalanced, not enjoyable
* Baden Baden: didn't try it
* Bavaria Pilsen: light American-style industrial lager, unspectacular
* Bavaria Premium: wonder what's "premium" about it...uninteresting too-light beer, reminds me of MGD. Not worth a second look.
* Bohemia Pilsen: Excellent example of a continental-style pilsner (compare to German pilsners like Bitburger or Dutch pilsners like Grolsch). Firm body with a definite noble hop aroma and flavor. A pleasant surprise for anyone who enjoys good quality pale lagers. 5.0% abv.
* Bohemia Escura: Best dark beer in Brazil. A very smooth, eminently drinkable dark lager with a firm malt signature and a near-perfect balance. Compare this to something like Germany's Kostritzer Schwarzbier. 5.0% abv.
* Bohemia Weiss: Nice! A true Bavarian style wheat beer that compares favorably to beers like Franziskaner or Schneider Weisse. Nose accentuates phenols over esters. Noticeable citric wheat signature. Cloudiness testifies to unfiltered purity. 5.6% abv.
* Brahma: light American-style industrial lager, unspectacular
* Brahma Light: no time to waste on light beers...didn't try it
* Brahma Extra: Extra boring maybe, that's about it.
* Brahma Malzbier: reminds me a bit of Mann's Brown Ale --- a rare southern English brown. But Brahma Malzbier is fortified with sugars and has more of a molasses edge to it, along the lines of Heineken Oud Broun. It's almost cloyingly sweet and not what I consider a particularly pleasant beer to drink. 3.7% abv
* Caracu: calls itself a "stout", but very sweet with a definite sugary edge to it and no real roast character, unfiltered with a very full body, 5.3% abv
* Cintra: light American-style industrial lager, unspectacular
* Conti: didn't try it
* Kaiser Pilsen: light American-syle industrial lager, unspectacular, reminds me of Schaefer (the one beer to have when you're having more than one --- of course I had more than one...)
* Kaiser Bock: low density for a bock, but surprisingly smooth with a good complex all-malt flavor (label claims no unmalted cereals nor sugars --- a rarity in Brazil)
* Kaiser Gold: a bigger version of Kaiser Pilsen with a deeper golden color, a little more drier on the palate with more hops, and more alcohol to boot (5.4% abv)
* Kaiser Summer Draft: a smaller version of Kaiser Pilsen with less color and less hops, seemed unbalanced to me (too much sweetness), 4.5% abv
* Kronenbier: didn't try it (a waiter in Curitiba told me it was low/no alcohol --- not sure if that's true, but I wasn't about to find out the hard way)
* Lokal: didn't try it, saw it in Rio only after I'd already cut myself off for the night (gotta have self-restraint in a place where beer is readily available everywhere 24/7 --- God, I love Brazil!)
* Santa Cerva: bland, lighter-than-usual American-style industrial lager, reminds me of Corona and Sol, 4.0% abv, glad I don't have to drink this swill every day
* Nova Schin: light American-style industrial lager, unspectacular, supposedly the oldest brand name in Brazil, but not always easy to find in the south
* Skol: light American-style industrial lager, unspectacular, 4.7% abv.
* Skol Beats: yuck-o! tastes exactly like Bud Ice --- truly horrendous stuff, 5.2% abv, tried it in Sao Paulo where it seems to be very popular, though Lord only knows why...
* Xingu: been years since I've tried this in the big bottles sold in the U.S., but this is a pretty decent dark beer, along the lines of a tropical style stout with its substantial sweet flavor. Widely available in cans/bottles, but don't think there's a chopp.

Here are some of the draft beers (chopp) that I saw:

* Antarctica Chopp: clone chopp, see above
* Antarctica Chopp Escuro: didn't try it
* Brahma Chopp : clone chopp, see above
* Brahma Chopp Escuro: see above (more cloying than usual), worst chopp escuro in Brazil
* Brahma Chopp Express: didn't try it
* Cintra Chopp: clone chopp, see above
* Kaiser Chopp : clone chopp, see above
* Kaiser Chopp Escuro: clone chopp, see above
* Skol Chopp: clone chopp, see above
* Skol Chopp Escuro: clone chopp, see above
* Tulipa Chopp: see above, slightly drier and better balanced than average, best light chopp I had in Brazil, had it in Rio at Sindicato do Chopp and again at Garota de Ipanema
* Tulipa Chopp Escuro: best chopp escuro I had in Brazil, got it at Sindicato do Chopp in Rio --- drier than other chopps with far better balance, one of the few dark chopps that I could actually drink all day.

From Here,

http://www1.epinions.com/content_4092764292

It looks like the Chopp beers are all in the german light lager/pilsner variety, little different from our BMC.

 

[Revvy]

Oh, if you keep reading the article I linked above, he breaks down the styles.

here's some of it.

The vast ocean of Brazilian beer is pale, light-bodied American-style industrial lager, loosely based on the classic pilsner style. The beer is usually identified as "Pilsen" if it is a bottled or canned version, and as simply "chopp" if on draft (occasionally, as "chopp claro" or "chopp branco").

Think typical American swill brands, and you're on the right track. This is Coors, Corona, Miller, Milwaukee's Best, Budweiser, Sol, Schlitz or whatever else your swill du jour happens to be. Marketers tell you it's "refreshing". Your tongue tells you "who cares?"

Most of the beers sold in Brazil are like this. It's enough to give credibility to the folks who tell you that there is nothing worth drinking in Brazil. If all there were was Brahma, Kaiser, Skol, and Antarctica, I'd have to agree. These beers usually range from around 4.5 to 5.4 percent alcohol.

 

[Revvy]

This article is fascinating.

Most significant in Brazilian brewing practice is the very routine use of huge dollops of cane sugar, corn syrups, and any other kind of industrial grade fermentable that they can get their hands on. As a result, many of the beers in Brazil bear an unmistakable funky sugary flavor and often a harsh, almost unpalatably sticky molasses taste. Brazilian industrial brewers fully deserve their international reputation for shoddy craftsmanship. If you think a Bud Ice tastes like recycled toilet water, wait til you taste the equivalent "beer" brewed in Brazil!

Almost all Brazilian pilsners are solid 1-star beers, occasionally bumping close to the 2-star level. Only one Brazilian-brewed pale lager (Bohemia Pilsner) is actually good.

By the numbers, these will be 12 Plato beers at 5 percent alcohol with hopping levels around 15 BU. They all have colors close to the 2 SRM level, with a couple of the "golden" ones coming closer to 4-5 SRM.

Almost all Brazilian pale lagers are unbalanced, with excessive sweetness, a harsh unnatural cane flavor, and an aroma that's overly sugary with an occasional dash of light green apple acetaldehyde to further exacerbate the unappetizing scent.

On draft, the basic chopp is the same beer (though many Brazilians don't seem to know it, for some reason --- some actually claim that chopp is brewed differently from cerveja --- mind boggling, the ignorance of some drinkers, truly mind boggling).

Anyway, pale lager on tap is chopp. All brands are identical in all aspects. They all taste like a slightly off Coors draft in the U.S. They are uniformly described as "refreshing" by imaginitive marketers. Expect an anemicly pale (1-2 SRM) beer with 4.7 percent alcohol by volume, a slight corn sweetness and no discernible hops character. That's chopp!

 

[XXguy]

Deleted due to ....

 

[brewjack]

Thanks, that's helpful. I got a real kick out of that article. (my girlfriend however, is a little insulted. She wanted me to say... hmm, well ...something nasty.)

That was helpful, now I know I can brew something cheap for her and put it in the freezer, and I've solved that problem. (now I'm in trouble).

Cheers

 

[Revvy]

Thanks, that's helpful. I got a real kick out of that article. (my girlfriend however, is a little insulted. She wanted me to say... hmm, well ...something nasty.)

That was helpful, now I know I can brew something cheap for her and put it in the freezer, and I've solved that problem. (now I'm in trouble).

Cheers

Yeah, I kinda wondered about that...personally I wouldn't have let her read the article....I here Brazillian women have hot tempers...(I think it comes from enduring those pube waxings, it would make me ornery to have any hair down there covered in melted wax and ripped from the tenderest of tenders.)

SO what Ice cold american swill does she like? Just get her a keg of that an call it a day....

 

[Edcculus]

So the moral of the story is that your girlfriend likes **** beer? Ha, just kidding. Sounds like you need to bring her over to the craft side. I have mine drinking anything from IIPA's to Flander's Reds.

 

[erik2131]

Wow, it's amazing how misinformation can spread on the internet due to lack of knowledge and poor research. Chopp is NOT just a draft beer. It is done in the original beer production style which DOES give it a much fresher taste, better taste. Unfortunately it's not the over-produced, pasteurized crap beer most of you are used to drinking and it can go bad within a matter of a few days in the keg. The pour on the chopp is very specific as well to create the head that keeps a barrier between oxygen and the beer which keeps it from turning bad while you drink it. That's also why Brazilians like it in smaller glasses...it has less chance of going bad on them while they are drinking it. Whoever posted that ePinions review didn't take the time to do any real research other than drinking a lot of beer and that's just one person's opinion based on what they were brought up drinking...crap (and thinking that was they way beer was intended.) So I guess for those of you who are beer "purists" who love to drink over-industrialized, preserved beer to retain greater profits and distribution over taste and original accuracy, keep drining your microbrew and craft brew crap thinking it's the way beer was intended without having true knowledge of the way beer started and scoff at those that like anything else.

Brewjack - if you are still with your girlfriend and you haven't figured out how to make chopp yet, do her a favor and do a little more research and make her some. It's great and she knows what's up.

 

[Yuri_Rage]

Erik, can you please explain your post a bit better without all the negativity? Between the cutting remarks and insults, it appears that you actually do know something about Brazilian beer. No one intentionally insulted the beer or the people of Brazil, so there is no need to start arguing the way you did.

Furthermore, most of us aren't drinking "pasteurized crap," and it sounds like chopp may have a lot in common with the methods often employed in homebrewing and/or real ale. You, too, my friend are guilty of spreading misinformation by clouding fact with opinion and misperception.

 

[Edcculus]

Wow dude, calm down. If you did a little research on our site, you would find we are some of the most open people about new styles, brewing techniques etc. I mean, there are threads on historic Medieval brews, British cask ale, sour beers of Belgium. There is even a thread on making a Hobbit beer and Butterbeer for Christsake! We do not drink mass produced over industrialized crap beer. I think thats a pretty biased unfair thing to say about a HOMEBREWING forum.

One reason why these things were posted, is that nothing really comes up with a simple google search. You get linked to that epinions article, and a bunch of stuff that looks like BMC beer. Also, since Chopp beer is not recognized as a BJCP style, its hard for us to really know what it is. I'm not trying to be uppity either by saying Chopp isn't a real style.

I'm a little confused when you say:

The pour on the chopp is very specific as well to create the head that keeps a barrier between oxygen and the beer which keeps it from turning bad while you drink it.

What beer goes bad while you drink it?

Please, if you have any info on this style, share it. Especially:

How is it brewed?
What ingredients?
How is it packaged/served?
What is the appearance?
How does it taste/smell?


Once again, nobody was trying to make fun of the style. There is just very little info about it on the web.

 

[Edcculus]

Again, not being an ass, but I still can't find a single article on the net that refutes the fact that Chopp isn't just draft beer. Everything I'm reading seems to note that Brazilians (or the marketing) think beer should be ice cold and fresh. One article even insinuated that beer does not benefit from aging (not true). Still, fresh and ice cold are hallmarks of pale lagers world wide.

Also, isn't the brewing behemoth "InBev" a Brazilian owned company?

Wikipedia article on Brazilian beer

 

[Yuri_Rage]

No, InBev is Belgian.

 

[Edcculus]

Oh, youre right. AmBev (Brazillian) was bought by Interbrew (Belgian) to form InBev.

 

[jordanpace]

i am currently in argentina and they usually refer to chopp as draft beer that is served through a jocky box.

however you can also buy 1 liter bottles of brahma chopp (brazilian beer)

 

[Edcculus]

I really like this line:

So I guess for those of you who are beer "purists" who love to drink over-industrialized, preserved beer to retain greater profits and distribution over taste and original accuracy, keep drining your microbrew and craft brew crap thinking it's the way beer was intended without having true knowledge of the way beer started and scoff at those that like anything else.

 

[Revvy]

Wow, it's amazing how misinformation can spread on the internet due to lack of knowledge and poor research.

So I guess for those of you who are beer "purists" who love to drink over-industrialized, preserved beer to retain greater profits and distribution over taste and original accuracy, keep drining your microbrew and craft brew crap thinking it's the way beer was intended without having true knowledge of the way beer started and scoff at those that like anything else.

Brewjack - if you are still with your girlfriend and you haven't figured out how to make chopp yet, do her a favor and do a little more research and make her some. It's great and she knows what's up.

Wow, someone's got a bit of a 'tude don't they. Great first impression. Shoot down a bunch of folks who are part of this community, who admit not knowing anything about the style but are interested enough from the OP's post to actually 1) do some digging on there own, because it was something they never heard of. 2)Decided to share what little they were able to find on it.

Never once saying they were experts in "chopp" beer, just passing on what they found, knowing very little about it's veracity.

It's also a great way to prove you know ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about the folks on here, and perhaps even very little about homebrewing to pass on YOUR little mis information that we actually " love to drink over-industrialized, preserved beer to retain greater profits and distribution over taste and original accuracy," considering many of us ARE into learning about historical or other styles of beer that we never heard of.

Hell even Sam Caligione came out with a "chicha" style beer, as well as a beer based on the remnants of the urn in King Midas' tomb, workign with a university in doing so. So maybe a few of them an us actually have an appreciation and maybe even some "true knowledge of the way beer started ."

Why the hate on us anyway?

 

[Revvy]

however you can also buy 1 liter bottles of brahma chopp (brazilian beer)

I wonder if THIS is what our rude visitor is talking about whilst he is bashing us?

What can YOU tell us about it?

Thanks

 

[Edcculus]

I think our friend Erik is also showing his lack of knowledge about beer and the brewing process. He said that Chopp beer is a very fresh product. So fresh in fact that it will go bad after a few days in the keg? Now, I've never heard of any beer that won't keep once kegged. Yes, Cask Ales must be consumed quickly after they are tapped, but thats a different story. Even styles that are better fresh, like Hefeweizen, will not "go bad" if you store them for a few months.

 

[Revvy]

I think our friend Erik is also showing his lack of knowledge about beer and the brewing process. He said that Chopp beer is a very fresh product. So fresh in fact that it will go bad after a few days in the keg? Now, I've never heard of any beer that won't keep once kegged. Yes, Cask Ales must be consumed quickly after they are tapped, but thats a different story. Even styles that are better fresh, like Hefeweizen, will not "go bad" if you store them for a few months.

Yeah...the only beers that would "go bad" after a few days (whatever that really means) would be unhopped beers, such as gruits. And there's nothing in anything I read about "Chopp" that indicates it is even remotely like that.

Now having said that, since "chopp" seems to be a rather broadly used word for beer over there, maybe there are "tribal" or indigenous unhopped beers called that, and maybe that is what he is referring to, but that does NOT mean any of us are wrong in mentioning that chopp seems to be a generic term for a tapped beer as well.

Noe of us are claiming to be experts on the word chopp, and perhaps he only know a limited beer know by that name, when there are actually various beers, actually lumped into the same umbrella.

Just like how we often refer to this beverage simply as "beer" even though we know there are hundreds of types of it. Perhaps to a lot of folks chopp is simply "beer" and not a specific one. Wheras he knows a specific beer that he calls "chopp" and is uber protective of that.

Who knows...and really cares...I just couldn't believe the invective being hurled our way for merely cutting and pasting what scant info the internet provided us.

 

[rj0715]

http://cgi.stanford.edu/group/wais/cgi-bin/?p=9745

 

[Yuri_Rage]

Unless chopp is somehow vastly different from beer in a way yet to be disclosed, chopp drinkers suffer from similar marketing misconceptions as BMC drinkers here in the US.

 

[Revvy]

http://cgi.stanford.edu/group/wais/cgi-bin/?p=9745

It sounds like the person writing that doesn't understand the definition of beer. Because they are talking about pasteruization, which all us homebrewers who brew BEER know, our beer isn't pasterurized.

They don't talk in that about the actually ingredients in chopp either.

I mean it's an interesting little article, but it doesn't really help define chopp, and since the author seems to have a limited understanding about what beer is...I wonder if they understand even what chop is.

Thanks for posting that.

It just doesn't really go to far in clarifying. I mean it says...

The ingredients are the same found in regular beers, the
difference being the pasteurization process.

THen by that definition, 99.9% of us are technically "Choppbrewers." I mean I have never pasturized ANY of my beers.

 

[rj0715]

from the above link and a little more searching it seems that chopp denotes an unpasteurized(or live yeast) product more on par with our craft beers.

 

[rj0715]

of course I don't read Portuguese very well so it is subject to translation errors

 

[Yuri_Rage]

Makes me want to open a Brazilian themed barbeque/brew pub called "The Chopphouse." Meat skewers, beer brewed on-site, smokin' waitresses...excuse me, I need a moment to myself...

 

[Edcculus]

Makes me want to open a Brazilian themed barbeque/brew pub called "The Chopphouse." Meat skewers, beer brewed on-site, smokin' waitresses...excuse me, I need a moment to myself...

hahahah that made me almost spit my unpasteurized homebrew (chopp???) all over my screen.

It seems like the writer of the article knows as little about beer as our friend Erik. I still want to know what the hell kind of beer will oxidize 10 days after production!!! Unless they are pumping oxygen into the kegs, this just isnt possible. Even the least experienced 1st time MR Beer brewers here aren't complaining of beers that taste like wet cardboard.

I hope a case can be made for some strange indigenous style of beer called Chopp. The evidence keeps stacking up that its no more than mass produced pale lager though. Also note the article says Chopp is derived from German. By the time Germans were immigrating to South America, (mid-late 1940's/ post WWII ?) pale lagers were all the craze.

 

[Beezer94]

If you use google translator it turns english "draft beer" to "chope" in portuguese. I guess 'Chope' and 'Chopp' can be used interchangibly.

http://www.justbrazil.org/brazil/eat&drink/drinks.asp

Beer in Brazil has a respectable history thanks to German immigrants. Draft lager beer is called chope or chopp ('SHOH-pee'). Most Brazilian beer brands tend to be less thick and bitter than actual German, Danish or English beer. The most popular domestic brands are Brahma, Antarctica and Skol. Traditional brands include Bohemia, Caracu and Itaipava. Brazilians like their beer almost ice-cold when served. To keep the beer cold, it is often served in an insulated container and is drunk from small glasses. Served like this, the waiter may keep topping up the glasses and replacing the beer until you ask him to stop.

http://www.natal-brazil.com/food-and-drink/Brazilian-beer-by-an-American.html

Still no clue other than there may be a culture that is more anal about "ice cold beer" than in the US. (not trying to insult anyone!!!!!)

 

[Edcculus]

My guess about the "ice cold" specifications of chopp is the hot climate. You need a light crisp cold refreshing brew for those temperatures. Still more evidence pointing to pale lager....

 

[Beezer94]

So basically I spent an hour searching for more stuff and determined that 'Chopp' is served by a "Chopeira" which is...

translated from a Brazilian page (by google not me)

he CHOPEIRAS work through pressure. They have a small pump on the outside that serves to increase the pressure inside the Chopeira by the compression of the content. Thus, when the beer is released from inside the container, he goes to a very high pressure to form the famous and appreciated collar. And, through the mechanisms of cooling (which usually consist of a coil that should be covered with ice), the beer is kept reliably cool.

http://www.wiki2buy.com.br/images/6/65/Chopeira.jpg
http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ficheiro:Lata_de_Brahma.jpg

And I think if people have these at home they are adding the insane amount of foam by using a compressor to push air in. If thats the case, its like a keg at party with the hand pump, where you wouldn't want to drink it two weeks after it was tapped.

Also the extreme foam head (or 'collar') is to insulate the beer so it stays colder. Apparently people serve small amounts at a time to ensure its super cold the whole 3 seconds it takes to drink. And i'm done with my chopp, chope, chopeira research

 

[jordanpace]

by the way, brazilian brahma chopp is no differente than a normal pils.

compared to bud, stella, heineken, etc...

 

[marcelo]

Ok OK, I'm a brazilian, and will try to explain some things.
chopp is a fresh beer served in tap with high pressure, by co2 or pump, the chopp barrel have a life time of 21 days from factory to glass.
All brazilian beer and chop are served -4.5C becouse its hot here and the big beer fact. give they refrigerators set in this tem. to people dont taste the beer and drink what they have to sell.

 

[brewjack]

wow, it's funny to look at this thread again. I stopped paying attention to it after about four posts, I didn't realize it turned into four pages.

I just got back from Brazil a little while ago, and to be honest it seems Chopp is a pretty vague term. Basically you guys had it right, it means draft. But just like here sometimes bottles will be labbled as draft despite the apparent contradiction. Most of the Chopp is just plain industrial lager, one interesting exception is Brahma, which most Brazilians I met seem to think is the best Chopp around. Brahma also is a pretty flavorless lager but it's served with a giant nitrogen head on it that takes about half of the 8oz it's served in.

Nothing that special but I happen to like that type of head and it did seem to improve the beer. Brahma also makes a black chopp that looks kinda like a stout but it also had very little flavor.

As far as I can tell Chopp is pastuerized and filtered the way most other mass produced beers are, but I'm not 100% on that.

Well I hope this helps (if anyone is still interested).

 

[Revvy]

Well, welcome back.

This thread brings back memories...I still can't figure out Eric's deal...it appears that was his only post and he dissapeared after his tirade.

This black chop, I'm wondering if it bears any resemblance to "tropical stouts" like lion? They are a little thinner in body and are often brewed with lager yeast.

 

[Indyking]

Cool, I have not noticed this thread until now. Well, I'm actually from Brazil, so well aware of chopp (2 Ps in the end) and what it means. I did not read all 4 pages, so this may have been covered, so forgive me if that is the case. Also, I hope you guys were not mistreated by some rude Brazilian, which I like to be believe as exceptions.

Chopp is unpasteurized tap versions of their commercial lager counterparts. That basically covers it all.

Brazilian commercial lagers are no different from American ones, that is, most are unimpressive, light bodied, clear, with little character.

Revvy, I never tasted a tropical stout like Lion, but a dark chopp is not nearly as good as any traditional stout in my opinion.

There is though a very nice dark beer in Brazil, called Xingu. Not quite a stout in style but excellent beer.

http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/434/1314/?ba=SamN

 

[HSB]

Could eric really be brewjack's girl going on a tirade due to lack of chopp and associated chopp
brewing? I wonder....

 

[Revvy]

Could eric really be brewjack's girl going on a tirade due to lack of chopp and associated chopp
brewing? I wonder....

Conspiracy theory at it's best.

 

[madbaldman]

When I was in Rio some years back, the beer (Brahma) tasted like most western pils type beers you find all over the world. If you're ever there though, stick with beer. Once I got into the local rums and sugar cane brandy. Sure enough, I woke up with the ONLY plug ugly woman in all Copacabana.

 

[Indyking]

When I was in Rio some years back, the beer (Brahma) tasted like most western pils type beers you find all over the world

.

That's exactly right, except Brazilian lagers tend to be a bit more sweet.

If you're ever there though, stick with beer. Once I got into the local rums and sugar cane brandy. Sure enough, I woke up with the ONLY plug ugly woman in all Copacabana.

Well, your "sugar cane brandy" is what we call "cachaça". I'm not a big fan of cachaça, but you must have had the cheap ones that gives you a heck of a buzz and a painful hangover... there are, however, some very fine craft cachaça in Brazil that is aged for years on fine woods just like the finest Scotch... and the price is similar too...

Fact is, Brazil actually owns, along with Belgium, the largest global brewery in the world, Anheuser-Busch InBev. So, Budweiser is actually a Brazilian-Belgian beer since 2008, not American if you consider ownership, but of course, things are different when talking about the origin of the brand.

Commercial lagers in Brazil have a marketing strategy of producing refreshing beers, which people living there find it appealing given the tropical climate that predominates across the country. Truth is, the commercial lagers over there are refreshing because they're lightly bodied (watery) and generally served very cold (ice cold).

 

[madbaldman]

.


Well, your "sugar cane brandy" is what we call "cachaça". I'm not a big fan of cachaça, but you must have had the cheap ones that gives you a heck of a buzz and a painful hangover... there are, however, some very fine craft cachaça in Brazil that is aged for years on fine woods just like the finest Scotch... and the price is similar too...

Yes, that was it! My muddled memory had it pronounced "ca-sha-sha" but my friend from Brazil didn't know what I was talking about. One night though she produced a bottle of something she called pinga, which tasted like a highly refined version of the cachaca I drank in that kick-ass country.