3 ms·

Not a Brit - but I've been seeing "times get even worse for UK pubs, with yet more closing" stories for years now. And the BBC seems torn between lambasting a

Not a Brit - but I've been seeing "times get even worse for UK pubs, with yet more closing" stories for years now. And the BBC seems torn between lambasting a corporation for screwing the little guys...and admitting that the whole works was a hopeless money-loser, with a mountain of debt.

testfrequency 8mo ago
Brewdog is pretty much a TGI Fridays that’s pretending to be edgy. People very much don’t like their beers, the atmosphere feels fake, and there’s significantly better options in any major UK city. It’s a shame they are closing and I feel for the employees, but nobody local really believes they are a respectable place, touristy really. While UK nightlife/drinking/pubs like every other city in the world is slower since COVID, I still have many friends from around the world who come visit and can’t believe how busy our cities and nightlife are compared to their city back home (NYC, SF, LA, Berlin, Sydney to name a few).
- nailer 8mo ago
  Before Brewdog if you wanted IPAs in 2000s england you paid 8 quid for a single small bottle of imported Racer 5 from Utobeer in Borough Market. They weren’t the entire change but they were a big part of it.
  - testfrequency 8mo ago
    Oh no doubt, credit where credit is due. They served a purpose, but like anything cool in life, expansion and profits ate their soul and there are obviously so many better places to enjoy a pint (or grapefruit) these days :)
    - edoceo 8mo ago
      I'm sure we're in agreement that, at least in UK, there's been better pubs for 200+ years. I don't know why to go to a chain-pub with some mega-factory beer when the old-local serves a fine bitter from the same county. Am I old?
      - rozab 8mo ago
        I'm not sure how old you are, but I understand that that UK beer culture is in a great place now compared to the 80s, partly due to CAMRA.
      - nailer 8mo ago
        Yes it's a bit of a generayional shift. In the 2000s when I moved the UK it was all real ale. If you wanted to drink a pinecone of an IPA the Utobeer option above seemed like the only option. But I'm a millenial. Liking IPAs is a millennial trope and younger people like less intense flavours.
  - michaelt 8mo ago
    Hasn’t the UK had CAMRA supporting small breweries, opposing monoculture, and running beer festivals with hundreds of different beers for like 50 years?
    - nailer 8mo ago
      https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47224401 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47224401
- mihaaly 8mo ago
  > People very much don’t like their beers, the atmosphere feels fake Sorry, but you don't know 'people'. Not all. You could only speak for yourself here. If you read the article you may realize that some 'people' liked it. here and there. It was not government or military contract that brough in all that money but the 'few' pints added up to the sum. You don't have to look down people to feel good, just have some drinks perhaps....
  - testfrequency 8mo ago
    It’s ok if you like brewdog. If you’re from the UK, you’d also know brewdog is not nearly as busy as it once was. Of course people like it because it’s convenient, but so is going to a spoons and paying half as much for the same quality but less cool interior.
tene80i 8mo ago
Pubs have been in decline for years, because people don't go / drink as much, and because of our starting position: this is a country where there are pubs everywhere. But Brewdog is a chain of pubs and a brewery – this is much larger than the standard story of "village supporting three pubs can now only support two". As for the "torn" reporting, there's no contradiction – companies can go bust ethically or unethically. You don't have to screw your retail investors / fans. You just can. And they have.

testfrequency 8mo ago

Brewdog is pretty much a TGI Fridays that’s pretending to be edgy. People very much don’t like their beers, the atmosphere feels fake, and there’s significantly better options in any major UK city. It’s a shame they are closing and I feel for the employees, but nobody local really believes they are a respectable place, touristy really. While UK nightlife/drinking/pubs like every other city in the world is slower since COVID, I still have many friends from around the world who come visit and can’t believe how busy our cities and nightlife are compared to their city back home (NYC, SF, LA, Berlin, Sydney to name a few).

nailer 8mo ago
Before Brewdog if you wanted IPAs in 2000s england you paid 8 quid for a single small bottle of imported Racer 5 from Utobeer in Borough Market. They weren’t the entire change but they were a big part of it.
- testfrequency 8mo ago
  Oh no doubt, credit where credit is due. They served a purpose, but like anything cool in life, expansion and profits ate their soul and there are obviously so many better places to enjoy a pint (or grapefruit) these days :)
  - edoceo 8mo ago
    I'm sure we're in agreement that, at least in UK, there's been better pubs for 200+ years. I don't know why to go to a chain-pub with some mega-factory beer when the old-local serves a fine bitter from the same county. Am I old?
    - rozab 8mo ago
      I'm not sure how old you are, but I understand that that UK beer culture is in a great place now compared to the 80s, partly due to CAMRA.
    - nailer 8mo ago
      Yes it's a bit of a generayional shift. In the 2000s when I moved the UK it was all real ale. If you wanted to drink a pinecone of an IPA the Utobeer option above seemed like the only option. But I'm a millenial. Liking IPAs is a millennial trope and younger people like less intense flavours.
- michaelt 8mo ago
  Hasn’t the UK had CAMRA supporting small breweries, opposing monoculture, and running beer festivals with hundreds of different beers for like 50 years?
  - nailer 8mo ago
    https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47224401 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47224401
mihaaly 8mo ago
> People very much don’t like their beers, the atmosphere feels fake Sorry, but you don't know 'people'. Not all. You could only speak for yourself here. If you read the article you may realize that some 'people' liked it. here and there. It was not government or military contract that brough in all that money but the 'few' pints added up to the sum. You don't have to look down people to feel good, just have some drinks perhaps....
- testfrequency 8mo ago
  It’s ok if you like brewdog. If you’re from the UK, you’d also know brewdog is not nearly as busy as it once was. Of course people like it because it’s convenient, but so is going to a spoons and paying half as much for the same quality but less cool interior.

tene80i 8mo ago

Pubs have been in decline for years, because people don't go / drink as much, and because of our starting position: this is a country where there are pubs everywhere. But Brewdog is a chain of pubs and a brewery – this is much larger than the standard story of "village supporting three pubs can now only support two". As for the "torn" reporting, there's no contradiction – companies can go bust ethically or unethically. You don't have to screw your retail investors / fans. You just can. And they have.