That's total, utter, utter, utter, utter, fucking, bollocking bollocks.
There's the false assumption that people go out for a set number of drinks and then go home. That's not how most people drink.* They go to the pub for a fixed length of time. The number of drinks consumed is fluid.
You arrange to meet friends at eight and drink until closing time. You spend your lunch break down the pub. You meet at 1 PM for a few pints before the match. There's a set start and time. The latter usually being last orders. That's how social drinking mostly works. A fixed time, not a fixed number of drinks.
But there's an even bigger problem. People don't drink at the same rate from every size glass. The smaller it is, the quicker they drink. Two halves will be knocked back more quickly than a pint. As will a two thirds.
I'm not a fan of litre measures. They slow me right down. It becomes depressing that the thing takes so fucking long to empty. A half litre is much more manageable.
Do you see where I'm going?
In my youth, 15 to 20 minutes per pint was a comfortable pace. Which I could up, if needed, as last orders loomed. Six or seven pints in a two-hour session on average. I'd want at least five pints of Mild just to get an appetite for fish and chips on the way home..
I never said to anyone "Let's go out for seven pints." It was "Let's meet at half eight in the Adelphi."
In general, the longer the session, the more pints I'd drink. I think this was especially true when drinking in a group.
Your average drinker, in a two-hour session would drink more if the glass were a two-thirds. Because they'd drink them more quickly than pints. And wouldn't have a fixed number of drinks in mind.
Smaller measures would lead to increased consumption. Publicans should welcome them.
* Pensioners and filthy, dole scroungers** are exceptions. And people on shit wages. So I guess that's pretty much everyone in the UK now.
** I spent many happy years on the dole. Filthy scrounger that I was.
Serving beer in a two thirds of a pint measure has been legal in the UK since 2011. I've seen a two thirds glass in a pub once since then, at Alberts Schloss in Manchester, which opened in 2015 (since 2010, it's also been the law that you have to offer draught beer in a half pint glass: https://ale.gd/blog/2017/01/you-must-serve-half-pints/). It's clear that's there's no real demand from drinkers for them, and it would obviously entail expense for pubs if they all had to start stocking them. I think you're right that people would drink the same if not more if they replaced pints entirely with them (not so sure about that if they were replaced with half litres. There was an interesting case in Ireland in the eighties where a publican started offering them to avoid passing on a tax rise to his customers and I think people generally drank the same number as they had pints before, so a bit less beer overall).
ReplyDeleteOnly specialist “craft beer” pubs use them as I have been told.
DeleteOscar
I think it might have been in the novel 1984 but a comment from an old geezer about the new half litre to replace the pint:
Delete"half a litre isn't enough but a litre makes me pee".
Some pubs in Ireland in the 1980’s sold half litres of beer as a more economical measure.
DeleteOscar
""E could 'a drawed me off a pint,' grumbled the old man as he settled down behind a glass. 'A 'alf litre ain't enough. It don't satisfy. And a 'ole litre's too much. It starts my bladder running. Let alone the price.'
DeleteThing is the price wont come down. 2/3 will cost as much as a pint. TBH its a distraction from more important stuff.
ReplyDeleteI've occasionally drunk 2/3 pints - usually in a micropub, and always 'craft' beers of 6% ABV or stronger. I find 2/3 pint is just about right for a strong beer. After all, in Belgium the bottles which I drink in bars are generally 330ml - about half way between a half and two thirds.
ReplyDelete6-6.3 percent is the maximum strength for a pint for me.
DeleteOscar
Smaller glasses means more dirty glasses which means eventually they all get backed up at the dishwashing station and the front of the place runs out of clean glasses for service. Managers can't get their heads around why they're running out and don't want to buy more. So you end up with a bunch of customers calling it a night early.
ReplyDeleteWith Sullivans red I take an hour or an hour and a bit per pint on account of its 5% ABV.
ReplyDeleteOscar
Schooners are the default in Australia. However our beers are traditionally stronger than in the UK with most regular megaswill being of Fullers London Pride strength as we avoided our beer gravities being ravaged by the two world wars.
ReplyDeletePints are however creeping in and Guinness on tap has long been in pints.
Didn’t you have the six o’ clock swill?
DeleteOscar
Anonymous, the six o'clock pub closing that started during WW1 was mainly in New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia but bottle shops weren't included. Other states such as Queensland had early closing but 8 or 9 pm.
DeleteDuring the period beer gravities remained fairly steady at mid 4.0%s up to 5.0% as Australia is pretty self sufficient in brewing malt and a major sugar producer so no need to ration stocks as happened in the UK.
Early closing was phased out in the 1950s and 60s. For some reason half pint glasses were the default nearly everywhere with seven ounce glasses being common in QLD. Schooners didn't appear in QLD until the 1990s and VIC early 2000s.
Interesting book is "Bronzed Brews" by Peter Symons who also explodes myths about Australian beer. For example most beer served over the bar was ale as opposed to lager, right up to early 1980s in some areas.
I know that some breweries typically associated with brewing lagers were brewing ales including brown ales in 1975/1976 reference Michael Jackson World Guide to Beer.
DeleteObviously Coopers continued with ale brewing and Tooheys still make a dark mild ale.
Oscar
What about 1/3rds. The upcomming Nottingham beer festival will have a beer at 23% and only being sold in 1/3rds. TBH 23% is a bit silly really.
ReplyDeleteFor folk I drink with there's a wait after each pint (or half / bottle / whatever) as we chat while the last person to finish their pint does so. Then a new round is ordered. A smaller beer could increase the time chatting & reduce beer intake.
ReplyDeleteHalves at beer festivals fly by though as each is different - I want to finish this one & try the next, then the next.
Panning out from our small world of beer, are any attempts to limit spirits & wine intake - a much bigger problem than beer? I wonder why that is? Practicality? Classism?
People forget beer is typically weaker than wine and spirits and is more filling.
DeleteOscar
In the US our pints are 16 US fluid ounces, which are smaller than UK ounces. A UK pint is 20 US ounces. So essentially you'd be getting our sized beers with half strength and probably still charged the same £5.
ReplyDeleteI've been served a "pint" in a 14 ounce glass, with head since our beers are too fizzy, and still charged $7. I envy UK consumer protection.
Grayson also the tips.
DeleteOscar
Don't get me started lol
DeleteI live in Montana, where breweries are allowed by law to sell only three pints a day to a customer in their taprooms (they can sell unlimited amounts for off premises consumption). Some crafty brewers dodge this by selling four 12 oz. beers in pint glasses that have a thick glass bottom to limit their capacity to 12 oz. That way they can charge you four times at a pint price. Sounds similar to this two-thirds scheme.
ReplyDelete