Reader submission: Heineken 0.0 and the alcohol ban in Thailand
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Heineken non-alcoholic beer has been on sale in Thailand for about three years now. Heineken 0.0 is for sale in almost all supermarkets such as 7-Eleven, Family Mart, Tesco Lotus and Makro, both in bottles and cans.
In most supermarkets, this non-alcoholic beer is kept in the same refrigerator as the alcohol-containing beer and other alcoholic beverages. As a result, it is not possible to buy Heineken 0.0 during the hours when alcohol is not allowed to be sold. Claiming that this should be possible because there is no alcohol in this beer usually makes no sense. The answer remains: Mai daai (can't).
In my area there is (fortunately) a 7-Eleven that has been thought through and the Heineken 0.0 is not among the alcohol-containing drinks, but in the same cooling as where the soft drinks are. Here it is no problem to buy Heineken 0.0 in the hours when alcohol is not allowed to be sold. But this 7-Eleven is an exception.
Was still this morning in the large Makro on Sukhumvit Road in Pattaya, where the Heineken 0.0 is currently hidden behind a large screen for all alcoholic beverages. Despite the fact that the attached paper reads: “all sell of alcoholic beverages are not permitted during to April 30, 2020”, it is impossible to buy alcohol-free beer. The motto is apparently: beer = beer!
In my opinion, it is a missed opportunity that alcohol-free beer is also almost impossible to buy during this period when no alcohol is allowed to be sold. This would have been a nice promotion for the sale of non-alcoholic beer in Thailand. Most Thai (and farang?) don't know this beer. If I asked for Heineken 0.0 in a bar, I usually got either 'normal' Heineken or Cola Zero. I am very happy with the alcohol-free beer because I hardly drink alcohol and it is a great alternative to just water or soda and drinks with a lot of sugar or sugar substitutes.
Submitted by Gerard
As an illustration of how the Thai view this non-alcoholic beer: some time ago there was a proposal at the Thai Council of Ministers to increase the tax on that product because, it was reasoned, drinking this product would lead people to drink alcohol. containing beverages, and that consumption should therefore be discouraged. So instead of seeing it as an alternative to drinking 'regular' beer, it is viewed as a threat….
Whether the proposal made it has eluded me, but anyway the idea behind it is a rather strange one……,,
Edit: I just found the article in question.
https://www.khaosodenglish.com/news/business/2019/04/12/govt-mulls-tax-hike-on-non-alcoholic-beer/
but canabis is a drug, so don't compare normal alcohol beer and 0% alcohol free beer ...
Here we go again.
Alcohol is also a drug. If it were not yet known, alcohol would never be allowed under the rules.
So it is an old drug and the governments are only too happy with it because they can now levy taxes.
Governments are representatives of the voters and this is once again proof that the voter has a double morality.
I don't often agree with you, but yes Johnny, we can't ignore the fact that alcohol is a (hard) drug.
https://www.drugsadvies.nl/drugs/verdovende-drugs/alcohol
Actually, Heineken, whether with or without alcohol, should not be with the beer anyway 😉
Heineken is a 'middle off the road' beer. No distinct taste. Freddy has never had the ambition to make the best beer, but the most sold. Dutch merchant spirit. I don't think that 0.0 from Heineken is drinkable. It is nice that Warsteiner is alcohol-free. Closest to the taste of normal beer. But hey, taste is kind of personal.
Most people can barely distinguish beers (pilsner). Heineken or Jupiler, in a blind test (among Flemish people) it makes no difference. Google these tests. What does show a clear difference is 0,0. I've tried a few, tastes different than a real beer. Just give me a few beers and stop if you feel them instead of knocking back a ditch of alcohol free. Of course not a drop of alcohol if he still has to drive.
I do believe that for some a 0,0 is an alternative. The Thai government could also promote this: don't drink, but if you really want something that looks a bit like beer, grab a 0,0. Or would the people behind Singha and Chang use their network to stop this? Just as the current beer market is practically inaccessible to small fish. The reasons why small Thai beers are made across the border, as an import it is possible, but then they price themselves out of the market due to tariff levies.
Heineken (and also Heineken 0.0) is much too expensive for the average Thai. I actually always drink Chang or Singha but the whole neighborhood drinks Leo here because you have more bottles for the same money. (so you can have fun longer before you get drunk).
In my opinion, positioning Heineken 0.0 in Thailand as an alternative to beer that ordinary Thais drink is pointless. It can be done in the bars and more expensive nightlife areas, for the more affluent, older and responsible Thais.
There are also other (potential) players, Singha also considered 0,0. That can be cheaper than a Heineken that has to deal with import tariffs, among other things. Let's boil down to the monopoly story again. The Thai beer market is not as healthy as it could (or should?). It also seems obvious to me that outside of the monopoly at 0,0 it will not reach a large market, in the Netherlands you do not do most drinkers any favors either. You can reach more with campaigns such as De BOB, enjoy but drink in moderation and the like. In addition to a tough approach to drunk drivers with a good chance of being caught (more traps).
There the 'don't let Thailand become the Netherlands!!' readers may disagree, but I would prefer to see fewer victims of alcohol consumption while maintaining access to beer, etc. Then the responsible user can still enjoy his or her hard drug. Or take a 0,0.
It would be very strange if Heineken wouldn't have their 0.0 brewed in Thailand like it happens with their other bend and therefore there is a price advantage.
In Hua Hin at the Makro, Heineken 0.0 is simply for sale, cans and boxes with bottles are listed with the non-alcoholic drinks. Coincidentally bought two six packs of cans yesterday, pretty good to drink.
I only discovered Heineken 00 at 7.11.
Also with the other beers.
There is a sticker that you can buy it 24/24.
Have already drunk a few with my food and it's not too bad. Now the sale of alcohol is prohibited and the cooling was also closed for H 00.
I took 6 bottles and the girls said..that is not possible.They went upstairs to ask if it was allowed..yes it was fine.
The ladies can see it at their cash register. Forbidden drinks will cause a block when the article is scanned.
I was in Surat Thani train restauration last February and ordered food. The lady asked, "Would you like a beer with it?"
Now I know that beer is banned in Thai trains and surprised early. "Do you really have beer?"
She came back with a can of Heineken 0.0 and opened it. The waitress was convinced that this was real beer. Then drink it, but rather a real Singha or Chang, although a San Miguel also tastes pretty good. A light beer with 5%.
Every now and then a (few) beers are fine.
So went.
Since an eye operation a few years ago, my body can no longer tolerate alcohol, but I do like a beer.
The appearance of Heineken 0.0 was a delight for me.
Beer without alcohol, ideal.
Tasty?
Well, Leo and Chang aren't ideal either.
Around 2000 I had a commercial office near Bangkok. I read about starting alcohol checks in traffic and thought to myself, now is the time to introduce alcohol free beer in Thailand. I found Holsten beer from Germany who had no agency in this Far East environment. They sent flyers and 2 trays of 24 half liter cans o,o % Alcohol Beer to me. The imprint was in Arabic and English. It took me 2 days at the Cargo department of Don Muang because I didn't accept that I had to import it with 33% import tax like alcoholic beer. They also reasoned 'Beer is Beer. But there is no Alcohol in it so it is a 'Beverage' and there is only 3% import tax on it. I don't care about the 24 liters of beer, but if I were to receive orders from container loads, it would make a big difference. I had a nice cool box with ice where I could offer a tray of 6 cans before each visit and let them taste it immediately. I had a nice secretary with me and a good sales story. My goal was to get 'traial orders', a mix container full but….why does a Thai drink beer? to get drunk. Then you are not going to drink alcohol-free beer! That's how simple they thought and I couldn't sell it. I didn't like it myself but I'm not a drinker. I was then the first to introduce it and perhaps set the trend for non-alcoholic beer as Beverage import.
Red Bull (Krating Daeng) was not an immediate success story in Europe either, and now you see.
The idea was good, but in the beer market the wealthy will win. Buckler was beaten up by a canal belt prankster, but eventually the product will come.
Ripening souls is the credo and that takes some time and it's a pity that it didn't work out.
Two notes:
1. In this day and age you can no longer sell a product that you don't like or don't like or like, but that you only sell for the money;
2. The Thais are not real beer drinkers at all, but drink much more spirits on average. Thailand comes in 44th place.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_beer_consumption_per_capita
I am a very moderate alcohol drinker and find Heineken 0.0 a godsend and also quite tasty.
Yes Heineken 0.0 is an excellent alternative for someone who has to drive
My experience is that the staff at the stores can't help it that you can't buy something.
The article is scanned and the computer says that it cannot be delivered. It also has nothing to do with what shelf it is in.
To illustrate, I wanted to buy a bottle of sushi vinegar at Makro around 15:00 PM, not realizing that it contains alcohol. The cashier had no idea either, but the computer forbade the sale.