Talk:Newcastle Brown Ale

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"As such they will apply to the EU to have the PGI status revoked." Is this known, or a guess? Gateshead is hardly a long way off from Newcastle - it's not like they're moving production to Exter or something. How small is a PGI area?? 82.35.17.203 18:28, 22 Sep 2004 (UTC)

http://business.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=1026&id=456972004

http://www.camra.org.uk/SHWebClass.ASP?WCI=ShowDoc&DocID=9009

Seems ridiculous, I know. Harry R 19:13, 22 Sep 2004 (UTC)

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[edit] Dog?

I've lived in Newcastle all my life and I've never heard or called brown ale 'dog'.

Can someone with more local knowledge than I verify this?

--It gives that history itself on the back label of many bottles. Whether it's all brown ales or just newcastle i'm unsure

I like in tyne and wear too, and I often hear someone ask for "a bottle of dog". Im not sure about all brown ales or just newcastle either though, usually it refers to newcastle, but people dont really bother with any other ales round here ;)

Perhaps you live in Newcastle-under-Lyme so wouldn't hear the it called dog.

I used to call it "Dog", but I've given up as Wetherspoons near the the Central Station only seems to hire students from "darn sarf" who think I'm asking for "Bud"! It definitely has been called Dog for as long back as I can remember, though IainP (talk) 01:15, 27 November 2005 (UTC)
Those students should really read up geordie dialect and learn a bit about Newcastle before they show up and work in a bar of all places, I am from the south east and going to Newcastle University and I've taken the time to drink some Newcastle Brown Ale and read up on local phrases, so I was already aware that Newkie brown is referred to as "Dog" simply from reading the label. Angryafghan 22:43, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

The name "Dog" originates from the phrase "I'm going to take the dog for a walk" which really means, "I'm going to the pub for a drink"886Zeppelin 22:45, 14 April 2007 (UTC)

A couple of other things this drink has been nick-named (certainly in the circles I hang out in) is "wifebeater" and "fightin juice", mostly because it does seem to make us geordies violently drunk. Whether this is worthy of inclusion, I leave to you all.

I drink it, I've heard numerous people say it's a fighting drink, or it makes you violent, but wifebeater is usually currently reserved for Stella Artois, never heard of it for NBA King nothing 23:49, 24 August 2006 (UTC)


I call it Dog, but have given up asking for it that way, bar staff have a hard enough time without people using slang for beer. I only drink it in pubs which don't sell decent bitter, which is quite a few. I'd say you don't have to explain it to half of bar staff, still to high a miss rate. I'd rather get beer quickly than continue the tradition. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 213.48.31.73 (talk) 23:32, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Trademark

This is weird - why even apply for protected status in the first place - surely this one company is the only manufacturer and has a trademark? Or was a trademark not found possible? Could I set up a firm in Newcastle brewing beer and call it "Newcastle Brown Ale" myself? Morwen - Talk 18:23, 21 December 2005 (UTC)

No, you can't as Newcastle Brown Ale is trademarked. What the protected status does is prevent anyone outside Newcastle brewing a beer and using "Newcastle" as part of the name. Similar claims have been applied for, and granted, to many wines, cheeses and other foods Europe-wide. In S&N's case, this may well cause them problems as they're shortly closing down the brewery in Newcastle and moving to the old Fed Brewery in Gateshead. Then, by the protected status they themselves applied for, they will no longer be allowed to call the beer Newcastle Brown!
As examples of things where protected status could be applied for, but unlikely granted: Cornish pasties, Yorkshire pudding, Cheddar cheese (I believe this has been attempted and defeated). Only a week or so ago, a cheese-maker in Yorkshire has had to begin relabelling and rebranding one of their main products as the EU have granted protected status to the French region from which it gets its name.
IainP (talk) 19:12, 21 December 2005 (UTC)
Ah, so I can't make beer called "Newcastle Pale Lager", either. Get it now. Morwen - Talk 20:11, 21 December 2005 (UTC)
You can... but only if you brew it within Newcastle :) There's actually a guy running a small business making Toon Ale (available in both blonde and brunette!). As an aside, much as I love my Brown Ale, this stuff's very nice as well. IainP (talk) 21:48, 21 December 2005 (UTC)
Hmmmm. S&N have said that they hope "common sense will prevail" and they'll get to keep their protected status. (If not, IMHO it would be a good enough reason for Newcastle to annex Gateshead). ProhibitOnions 20:50, 25 March 2006 (UTC)
LOL, if could be worse, they could have moved the brewery to Sunderland! Angryafghan 22:40, 24 August 2006 (UTC)
What a silly comment, annex Gateshead? maybe gateshead should annex Newcastle and them move it to County Durham ? Gazh 13:48, 15 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Unavailable til late 80s?

The article says that the "beer was largely unavailable in South East England ... until ... the late 1980s". I lived in southeast England in the 70s and am certain that I regularly drank "Newkie Brown". Maybe it was only widely available in student haunts but I'm pretty sure most pubs stocked it, even if it wasn't heavily marketed. Bluewave 11:44, 24 July 2006 (UTC)

It also says the beer has only been available on draught since 2003, does this only relate to the south because it isn't clear? Angryafghan 22:45, 24 August 2006 (UTC)
I remember seldom being able to find Newcastle Brown in the South East in the late '80s; often asking for a pint of brown would result in being served a couple of bottles of Manns, which is sort of okay but hardly the same. One thing I do remember was getting some bottles of Newcastle Amber Ale from the local offy after finding it'd run out of Brown. It was quite nice but I've never heard of it since, let alone seen it.
-- Chris (blather • contribs) 22:12, 27 August 2006 (UTC)

As an expatriate Geordie I lived in Cardiff, Wales in the Early 1970s and Newcastle Brown, in pint bottles, was available in many clubs and off licences, but not generally served in pubs. At that time very little bottled beer was served over the bar anyway except for Guinness, Mann's Brown and the odd Carlsberg or Tuborg lager.

[edit] Not in kegs in the US until 2003?

I am sure this is wrong as I had it many times in pubs on the east coast in the early '90s and even bought a keg myself once. Toddstreat1 19:37, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Popularity in Australia - Not very popular at all!

Queensland, Australia: Newcastle Brown Ale is not 'the leading draught beer in Australia'. What nonsense, as we say in Australia. It is often, but not always, available on tap at the handful of English-themed and Irish-themed pubs in capital cities, and is available in larger bottle shops as a six-pack of small bottles. For example, in Brisbane (which coincidentally has almost the same population as the Tyne-Wear region centred on Newcastle Upon Tyne), there are 3 'English' pubs and about a dozen 'Irish' pubs, not all of which stock the 'Broon'. Probably the majority of Australian drinkers have never heard of the brew. I took a six pack to my son's 21st birthday recently and nobody at the party had seen it before. I should state here that I was brought up in Newcastle (Walbottle) and cut my teeth on the brew! To state that the beer is popular in Australia is ridiculous.

I was also disappointed to see that the strength has been reduced to an also-ran of 4.7 ABV. In the 1950s I remember it being nicknamed, on account of its strength, as "journey into space" after the radio Sci Fi series! MichaelGG (Brisbane)

[edit] The Proper Way to Consume Newcastle

I was talking to a guy from Newcastle and he was drinking Newcastle from a 20 oz. bottle. But he was pouring it into a half pint glass to drink it, rather than a full size pint glass. He said that this is the proper way to drink Newcastle. Has anyone else heard of this? Should this etiquette point be added to the article? --Mongrel 01:23, 19 February 2007 (UTC)

Added a note about this. Nettar515 19:41, 6 March 2007 (UTC)


Yeah, that's standard, experienced bar staff, certainly on Tyneside know this. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 213.48.31.73 (talk) 23:42, 17 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Newcastle: US's most imported beer?

"In recent years its popularity has surged in the US, and is now the most imported foreign beer"

I don't have the numbers, I will admit, but this seems to be a ludicris statement to me. Off the top of my head, I would guess that Heineken, Guinness, Stella Artois, Foster's, St. Pauli girl, and probably a host of others out import Newcastle. Maybe I'm wrong, but based purely on living in the United States and visiting the beer section from time to time, this is my impression. In any case, I think that something more then a blurb from a Newcastle upon Tyne propaganda article is needed as a reference. 67.188.125.147 07:55, 30 March 2007 (UTC)

I forgot Corona. It's only becuase I don't consider it beer though. in any case, the Grupo_Modelo#Corona page says it is the most imported beer to the US(referenced by a reliable source). I am removing the statement.
Perhaps a terminology difference. In British English, Heineken, Stella, Fosters etc are not called beers they are called lagers. The term beer is usually reserved for ale type beverages. I think the claim was for imported bottled beer (or ale) rather than all beers per se. So perhaps an edit rather than a deletion was more in order. DrFrench 10:14, 30 March 2007 (UTC)
Produce a link that says it is the most imported "ale" then. The reference that stated newcastle was the #1 import calls it beer. Wikipedia has a defintion for beer, and that defintion does not exlude lager(it mentions it as a style). Even if the lager-ale point where conceded, I highly doubt Newcastle out imports, say, Guinness(according the ale page, a dark ale).67.188.125.147 19:10, 30 March 2007 (UTC)
There's no need to be quite so confrontational. I was merely suggesting a cultural explantion for the difference. I would have thought it would be a good idea to do a bit of hunting around to prove/disprove an assertion before simply deleting it. DrFrench 20:00, 30 March 2007 (UTC)
I deleted the assertion becuase I did disprove it. Newcastle is not the most imported beer to the US. I am sure you are correct that the English refer only to "ale" as "beer". Unfortunalty, that is not the defintion that wikipedia uses. Heineken, under wikipedia's defintion, is beer. so is Corona. The article referenced Newcastle as the #1 imported beer in the US. that is wrong, and I proved it. I am not under any obligation to go hunting around the internet to prove/disprove that newcastle is the US's most imported ale, becuase that is not what the sentance I deleted(nor the reference it quoted) said. If you would like this article to say that Newcastle is the US's most imported ale, then it's up to you to find a reliable reference to back it up. good luck on that one. 69.232.195.221 22:09, 30 March 2007 (UTC)
Well I didn't say you were under an 'obligation', merely that it was a 'good idea'. You know... something that actually helps improve Wikipedia. But hey, whatever floats your boat. DrFrench 22:49, 30 March 2007 (UTC)
Actually, it wasn't really a "propoganda site", true, it is a local news site, but it's fairly realable. I've seen the same article in the Newcastle Chronicle newspaper (from the same people). A short while ago I also saw the same cliam made in the Guardian newspaper, a leading national newspaper. I admit I was suprised when I first heard this news, being so high. Perhaps we should include a statement that it is one of the fastest growing import beers in the US. See S+N's website: -

http://www.scottish-newcastle.com/snplc/brands/interactivemap/map_text/#brands

Would this not be a compromise? hedpeguyuk 19:03, 19 May 2007 (UTC)

http://www.celebritybrands.net/?p=117 - Perhaps not the greatest citation, but this makes the claim that Brown Ale is the no 1 most imported ALE in the US. hedpeguyuk 19:19, 19 May 2007 (UTC)

And this, more reputable site, showing it is the best performing beer brand (either imported or native) in the US last year, giving further weight to the argument that it is the no1 supermarket imported beer at the very least.

http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20070404005894&newsLang=en hedpeguyuk 19:31, 19 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] clear bottle

should some mention be made of the clear bottle and its detrimental effect? the article on corona prominently discusses the issue of "skunking" when a clear bottle is exposed to sunlight. having had my share of skunked newcastles, i now make sure to either buy the fully cardboard-packed 12-bottle case or grab 6-packs directly out of its original four 6-pack cardboard shipping crate

Modern clear beer bottles have added materials in the glass to prevent just this effect. Newcastle used to come in a brown bottle. TinyMark (talk) 23:53, 17 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Citation tag

The information here is patently untrue. Newcastle was readily available in off-licences and supermarkets, in bottles, in the Midlands in the mid-seventies (when I left school). TinyMark (talk) 23:53, 17 November 2007 (UTC)