Canning at the Beer Factory
The InBev brewery sits on a 57 acre site next to the M4 motorway in south east Wales, at Magor. It is a triumph of mass production with just a few hundred employees operating a vast plant which churns out millions of bottles, cans and kegs of beer every week. One manager, unromantically but accurately, called the place a beer factory.
With the decline of the pub trade and the growing dominance of supermarkets as purchasers, economic production is paramount. In the old days, the manufacturer set the unit price; now the supermarkets say what they will pay and they squeeze every drop (pardon the pun). Pricing of various multipacks below the ten pound mark is, for example, the reason why there are several similar bottle volumes for Stella Artois (250ml, 275ml etc.). Stella Artois has suffered from supermarket loss-leader downpricing, destroying its once quality image. It is now regarded as the chav's weapon of choice, being nicknamed 'wife beater'.
Beer is fermented to around 7% alcohol by volume on site and liquored (watered) down to various strengths. UK Stella Artois is weaker than the European variety because the British habit is to pour gallons down our throats instead of savouring a single glass.
To be honest, the whole thing is rather depressing with the mass production of lager beer for thoughtless mass consumption.
The plant also produces draughtflow beers, such as the cans of Boddingtons seen entering the pasteurisation unit in this picture. (It must be me but Boddingtons seems to taste more of aluminium can than anything.)
InBev is a US-Brazilian-UK operation. Competition has made such mergers inevitable. The Magor brewery is now gearing up to produce Budweiser but are having difficulties with getting the flavour right as Budweiser has so little to start with compared to European beers. It is referred to as a 'light' beer and it remains to be seen if the European palate takes to it.
Canning at the Beer Factory
The InBev brewery sits on a 57 acre site next to the M4 motorway in south east Wales, at Magor. It is a triumph of mass production with just a few hundred employees operating a vast plant which churns out millions of bottles, cans and kegs of beer every week. One manager, unromantically but accurately, called the place a beer factory.
With the decline of the pub trade and the growing dominance of supermarkets as purchasers, economic production is paramount. In the old days, the manufacturer set the unit price; now the supermarkets say what they will pay and they squeeze every drop (pardon the pun). Pricing of various multipacks below the ten pound mark is, for example, the reason why there are several similar bottle volumes for Stella Artois (250ml, 275ml etc.). Stella Artois has suffered from supermarket loss-leader downpricing, destroying its once quality image. It is now regarded as the chav's weapon of choice, being nicknamed 'wife beater'.
Beer is fermented to around 7% alcohol by volume on site and liquored (watered) down to various strengths. UK Stella Artois is weaker than the European variety because the British habit is to pour gallons down our throats instead of savouring a single glass.
To be honest, the whole thing is rather depressing with the mass production of lager beer for thoughtless mass consumption.
The plant also produces draughtflow beers, such as the cans of Boddingtons seen entering the pasteurisation unit in this picture. (It must be me but Boddingtons seems to taste more of aluminium can than anything.)
InBev is a US-Brazilian-UK operation. Competition has made such mergers inevitable. The Magor brewery is now gearing up to produce Budweiser but are having difficulties with getting the flavour right as Budweiser has so little to start with compared to European beers. It is referred to as a 'light' beer and it remains to be seen if the European palate takes to it.