Sources in FL - Diebels Alt, Budvar Budweiser

You might want to contact Knightly Spirits in Orlando. I was in their Hiawassee shop just now. They carry the largest selection of Belgians I've ever seen in a shop--including some of the best shops in Belgium and Holland. They have quite a few Germans, but really concentrate on the most extreme (e.g., cases of Schneider Aventinus Eisbock on hand). I asked the clerk (who had great recommendations about brews) about his suppliers and he divulged them readily. If they don't carry Budvar or Diebels they can probably help with who will. Their contact information along with a great summary of other Orlando shops are at this excellent, excellent website:

In the USA look for their beer bottled under the name Czechvar. Given the propensity of USA residents to sue one another and the ongoing trademark dispute I don't think they would try selling a beer that began with the letter "B" in the USA let alone Budvar or Budweiser.

I am aware of the schloheiser wursch crap that Budvar has been through, thats what the line above is for. I don't care what schloeiser wants, I call it Budvar and will only refer to it that other way when those I am dealing with won't understand. While I am thankful that Budvar has chosen to get into the marketplace by their name change tactic, I don't agree with it or the stupid courts. I don't wish to turn this into a debate on this, I've been hooked on the superiority of Budvar for 20 years. Thank goodness for a chance to summer in Germany.

As far as I am concerned Budvar Budweiser is the only Budweiser on the planet, and schloheiser can just up and die. Why people buy schloheisers bottled yellow water I have no clue, nor do I really care.

It's not the courts' fault. It's not Anheuser-Busch's fault. It's Pivovar Budejovice's fault. They voluntarily entered into the agreement with A-B in the early 20th century - long before A-B was a major American, let alone world, brewing company - to divide up territories where they'd each use their name.

If you want to be pissed off at something so trivial, be pissed off at Budvar.

And, yes, their beer is immeasurably superior to the American Bud.

-Steve

It's a brand name and nothing more. Whether the brewer chooses to call it Czechvar, Budweiser or Budvar in a given market or isn't as important to me as having access to a good beer. What I find interesting is that the Mexicans claimed the brand name Bohemia Beer before the Bohemians did.

I think that Budvar did what would work in a given market. It's just business.

Sounds like fun. I've got good memories of a trip through Austria and enjoying many good local brews.

We are not going to agree on the tactics used to garner this agreement nor any of the other issues related. I have my position and your welcome to your position on it. We don't agree except to disagree.

We will agree that most (this is not all) especially that from schlocheiser is crap.

Aaaah but thats the whole issue/tactic of this, block access to BETTER BEERS. People who go to Europe and find these beers there will start to look for them here, much as I did. Unfortunately I went a long time without. Simply because at that time Diebels was not exported for one, and two Budvar had pulled out due to the schlocheiser crap.

If company x has the best product then having a throw down in the market place to prove it will not bother company x. Company x knows their product is swill compared to Budvar, so they go on these tactics. Oh, and I don't care about IP, trademarks, and the like, its ruining this world, along with the lawyers. Shoot'em all!

If I ran a restaurant I would say that 95% of the beer served would be imported beers of some sort. Mostly Europe a few from Asia, Australia (NOT Fosters!) and other GOOD BEERS from the rest of the world. Any US beer would be some type of microbrew and held to high standards. The mega brews from the US would be banned from the premises. Oh, and Budvar would be whats on the menu and promo material, it can say what ever it wants on the bottle, but I am promoting it as Budvar Budweiser. Budvar has a pix on part of their site that would pretty much be what the front of my restaurant looked like with all the red and white Budvar signs. Go Budvar!

I am not familiar with info on that, and since it involves a spanish speaking nation, I am whole heartily AGAINST IT. Thats all I am going to say on it. Recent work events have left a very bitter distaste related to things spanish.

Dirty business tactics. Compete fair in the market place. Make better beer if theres better out there! Oh that may cost a few $$$$. US Corporate greed is over the top. Profitability is one thing, and we went way beyond that years ago.

Whats really said is that 100% of US beer making can trace its roots to some of the best beer making in the world, yet the product has been reduced to yellow water in a can/bottle/keg. Why? All in the pursuit of $$$ over quality and $$.

Yeah, I am desperate to go back now that the Berlin Wall has fallen and go back to the Brandenburg Gate and some other places and take comparisons photos. It was truly unique to walk around East Berlin at the time.

In your world, then, it would be fine for anybody to copy the name and label of any beer, putting anything at all into the bottle. As a consumer, I would find that more than a little bit awkward. I suspect you would, too.

Not real pertinent to the discussion at hand (and I agree with SJ's take on this) but Anheuser-Busch WAS a major US brewer by the turn of the last century- they were #2 (behind Pabst, but ahead of Schlitz, Ehret [in the 1870's, when A-B didn't even make the top 20, Ehret was the largest US brewery] and Ballantine) by the 1890's and, in 1901, were the second to break the 1 million barrel mark.

IIRC, they quickly went to #1 after Prohibition and stayed there (except for a couple of years in the early 50's, when Schlitz passed them, in part due to strikes at A-B). To put things into perspective, tho'- in the 1930's they had about 2% of the market.

Now, whether either brewer at the time thought or would even foresee (despite A-B's grandiose claims on it's label) that they'd want to market "their" Budweiser brand in the other's home area, is the question.

Also, note that on Budvar's website, they're celebrating their 111th Anniversary-

Thus, they were founded in 1895, when A-B's "Budweiser" was already 20 years old .

Me, I'm boycotting Old Milwaukee, ever since I found out it was brewed in North Carolina AND is only a few months "old", on top of that! (Well, that and they way it tastes...).

No, it is a dispute over who has the right to use a brand name in a given market.

It is a Mexican beer, not Spanish. Two completely different countries.

What "tactics"? At the time, both were small, primarily regional breweries.

I'm no fan of A-B, but your hatred of them is approaching pathological. No one, including A-B, is pure evil. The fact remains, A-B brewed a beer called "Budweiser" long before Pivovar Budejovice did, and they mutually entered an agreement on who could call their beer that in various parts of the globe. Not to mention, "Budweiser" is simply German for "beer from Budweis," and like Pilsner, origianally had no meaning beyond that.

Now, one can criticize A-B for their recent efforts to try to circumvent their own agreement in Europe, but that has f*ck-all to do with the original "tactics" employed in reaching the original agreement int he first place.

I'm assuming you're going for "shlock"-heiser? If so, you may want to change your spelling, because in German, that's not remotely what you're spelling.

-Steve

Nobody is blocking access to better beers. Pivovar Budejovice's product is sold in the U.S. Quite widely. It's called by a different name because of an agreement they themselves assented to decades ago. I don't know a beer conniseur who doesn't know that Czechvar = Budvar, and it's quite widely avaialble.

As are a great number of other better beers.

Budvar didn't "pull out." They never sold in the States until recently. You may recall that Czechosolvokia went through this period called "Communism," where pretty much none of its products were exported to North America. And it took a number of years following the Communist era for the brewery to feel like it had the financial wherewithall and market demand to support trans-Atlantic export.

There was no conspiracy. Unless you consider basic economics a conspiracy.

BTW, I'd hardly hold up Diebels as an example of "better" beers being "withheld" from the American market. It's unremarkable, especially amongst Altbiere. I wouls say it's telling that it's easier to get Uerige in much of the States than Diebels.

Bullshit. I could go on and on about numerous examples that are totally contrary to that. The fact is, most of the market actually likes the product A-B turns out.

In that case, why are you getting so worked up about the name "Budweiser?" Because, without intellectual property, trademarks and the laywers who defend them, anyone could use the name, totally robbing it of any significance. Much like what happened to "pilsner," which no one bothered to protect.

Prepare to get sued. And lose. You wouldn't have a legal leg to stand on.

Psst. Mexico and Spain aren't actually the same country.

-Steve