Ireland and choice

crazy cabbage

Watch this video

I am happier with very little choice

VEN

Chauncey wrote: »

It was many, many, many years before I found a place to buy beef, chicken, lamb, fish, fruit, vegetables and so on.

must have been awful living in a place like that, sorry to hear this.

Scanlas The 2nd

I've said it many times, Irish people on average are very insecure, it's why they drink so much, complain so much, are overly polite and it's why the Irish are afraid of change. Confident people Infind are less afraid of change, insecure people need a blanket of routine to make them feel comfortable.

Jimoslimos

Ikky Poo2 wrote: »

We did take to Sushi very well, though, but I expect that was a case of going ablong with the in-crowd and is as much a failure to try some initiiative as much as anything else.

The popularity of sushi in Ireland might be more due to our carb addiction (spuds, bread, etc) here rather than any desire to eat fish.
Sushi, of course doesn't necessarily contain fish. The name itself means pickled or vinegared rice.

There's a certain level of snobbery when it comes to food, dismissing anything Irish as dull, unimaginative and bland. Sure I'd love to be able to buy fresh lemongrass, galangal, etc in my local corner shop but realistically I understand the high cost of importation (both economically and environmentally). I'd much rather people would try improve the quality and range of foods we grow and produce here.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

Don't want choice..? For ****s sake, show some balls! I mean, yes, I like the idea of 6 million kinds of speakers and if I ever wind up in a life-threatneing condition, I want to make the choice as to life or death. That's not the doctor's job, it's not his life. And of morons didn't threaten to sue him if he made the wrong decision, he'd probably happily take a crack at it.

Seriously. It's like saying "there are 50 countries in Europe, but I want someone to FORCE me to go to the canary islands."

Jesus. No wonder Ireland has no creativity.

Jimoslimos wrote: »

The popularity of sushi in Ireland might be more due to our carb addiction (spuds, bread, etc) here rather than any desire to eat fish.
Sushi, of course doesn't necessarily contain fish. The name itself means pickled or vinegared rice.

There's a certain level of snobbery when it comes to food, dismissing anything Irish as dull, unimaginative and bland. Sure I'd love to be able to buy fresh lemongrass, galangal, etc in my local corner shop but realistically I understand the high cost of importation (both economically and environmentally). I'd much rather people would try improve the quality and range of foods we grow and produce here.

Pretty sure you can get the stuff on Moore St in Dublin or any specialist Chinese shop. That said, you have a point - but you're still endorsing choice and making choice available to people: the problem is, are the strong enough to make a choice.

Reminds of just about every conversation I had with a girl when I lived in Ireland.

Me - "Where do you want to go?"
Her - "You choose..."
Me - "But where would YOU like to go?"
Her - "Wherever you want to go...."

AAARGH - I dump people because of this kind of spinelessness.

Medusa22

I've tasted camembert, edam etc but cheddar will always be my favourite cheese. I've been to Germany and it is extremely difficult to get cider in certain places, sort out this difficulty! Also, I want rashers and salted butter.

LH Pathe

'Ireland' and 'choice' appear awkward beside each other, goin by most folk you'd think it was communist Russia circa 1992. Who'd have though in a democracy people would pidgeonhole and shackle emselves moreso than under a dictatorship

crazy cabbage

yes some choice is brillent but fact of the matter is that 20% of the worlds population uses up 80% of the worlds resources. 90% of the worlds wealth is in the hands of 5-10% of the people.

everyone here is in that top 20% that hold 80%. The fact that some here want even more choice yet again means taking more off people that already have almost nothing.

saywhatyousee

This thread is a load of crap there is plenty of choice in Irish shops. Irish supermarkets are way better stocked than those on the continent.

The reason why Irish people do not eat fish is that it is seen as peasant food

saywhatyousee

LH Pathe wrote: »

'Ireland' and 'choice' appear awkward beside each other, goin by most folk you'd think it was communist Russia circa 1992. Who'd have though in a democracy people would pidgeonhole and shackle emselves moreso than under a dictatorship

How so?

sock puppet

saywhatyousee wrote: »

How so?

Apparently larger breweries taking over smaller ones is what defines a dictatorship.

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

saywhatyousee wrote: »

How so?

See below:

crazy cabbage wrote: »

Watch this video

I am happier with very little choice

af_thefragile wrote: »

If anything there's too much choice and it spoils people...

Chinasea

summerskin wrote: »

You can also walk into most Irish restaurants/pubs and not need to look at the menu:

Chicken curry
Bacon and Cabbage
Irish stew
Seafood chowder
Roast of the day
Spaghetti bolognese
Steak.

You forgot the dreaded leek and potato bland luke warm schlop.

Chauncey

Ikky Poo2 wrote: »

Seriously. It's like saying "there are 50 countries in Europe, but I want someone to FORCE me to go to the canary islands."

Jesus. No wonder Ireland has no creativity.

Pretty sure you can get the stuff on Moore St in Dublin or any specialist Chinese shop. That said, you have a point - but you're still endorsing choice and making choice available to people: the problem is, are the strong enough to make a choice.

Reminds of just about every conversation I had with a girl when I lived in Ireland.

Me - "Where do you want to go?"
Her - "You choose..."
Me - "But where would YOU like to go?"
Her - "Wherever you want to go...."

AAARGH - I dump people because of this kind of spinelessness.

If someone does not wish to buy/eat/do something they don't want or have an interest in that does not mean they are spineless.

Since all the stuff the Irish are apparently too afraid to buy is readily available in Ireland then who is buying it?
Also, would you care to give us an overview of your own creative output of late?

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

Chauncey wrote: »

If someone does not wish to buy/eat/do something they don't want or have an interest in that does not mean they are spineless.

Not what I said - it was wanting to do soemthing, but not wanting to make a choice as to what to do.

Since all the stuff the Irish are apparently too afraid to buy is readily available in Ireland then who is buying it?
Also, would you care to give us an overview of your own creative output of late?

Mine? Came fourth in the amateur aribrush section of he world bodypaitning champioships last Friday. Any good? Anyway, we're talkign about choice, not creativity.

Chauncey

Ikky Poo2 wrote: »

Not what I said - it was wanting to do soemthing, but not wanting to make a choice as to what to do.



Mine? Came fourth in the amateur aribrush section of he world bodypaitning champioships last Friday. Any good? Anyway, we're talkign about choice, not creativity.

Perhaps they had no strong urge to do anything in particular at the time, or maybe they were allowing you a chance to suggest an activity in an effort to get to know you better.
Could it be that you gave them the impression of being difficult and whingey and they felt that anything they suggested wouldn't be good enough for you?
It's hard to tell when dealing with spineless Irish women.

Congratulations on your achievement.
To be honest, I don't find spraying paint on wobbly flesh to be terribly creative, it seems a little twee and old hat but good luck to you anyway.

EdanHewittt

All this can be summed up with the following:

Supermarket Fresh

That is all.

EdanHewittt

I can see what OP is getting at. If Spar stock a drink on the shelves I've never seen before, I *always buy it*. It kills me having to buy the same crap from these shops every time. They are homogeneous stores.

Compare Spars here to the Spars they have in London, and you're spoilt for choice with the London ones

They have Blueberry Coke and all kinds of other loveliness..

jester77

Medusa22 wrote: »

I've tasted camembert, edam etc but cheddar will always be my favourite cheese. I've been to Germany and it is extremely difficult to get cider in certain places, sort out this difficulty! Also, I want rashers and salted butter.

You must not have looked to hard, it's everywhere. Just ask for Apfelwein, lots of places even have their own apple trees and make their own version of it.

Cú Giobach

There is a question on this topic I would love to have an answer to, Centra, Spar, Supervalu etc.....are you listening?
Why the fuck do you only sell shite quality dry dog food. It's the same in supermarkets the length and breadth of the country, Pedigree and your own crap brands that have the nutritional content of cardboard. Pathetic.

Wibbs

Because people are easily led by advertising and think dry food mostly made up of cereals and utter shíte like sugars and artificial colourings that the bloody dogs can't even see is suitable for a carnivore. They're now pushing those dental cleaning yokes for dogs FFS, the same dogs that have shíte teeth because they were being fed on the crap the same companies were peddling. The big joke is it can be cheaper by the kilo to feed minced beef than some tins of dog food.

Cú Giobach

Wibbs wrote: »

Because people are easily led by advertising and think dry food mostly made up of cereals and utter shíte like sugars and artificial colourings that the bloody dogs can't even see is suitable for a carnivore. They're now pushing those dental cleaning yokes for dogs FFS, the same dogs that have shíte teeth because they were being fed on the crap the same companies were peddling. The big joke is it can be cheaper by the kilo to feed minced beef than some tins of dog food.

One of my favourite advertising slogans is "All natural ingredients", what the f*** does that mean, Arsenic, Mercury, Lead, the Ebola virus maybe? All wonderfully natural thingies.
On the Pedigree they claim they can trace all the food back to the farm, I don't want to know the farm, I want to know what part of the animal is used in the production, though people vomiting at the thought of where the meat comes from probably isn't good for sales.

gobnaitolunacy

summerskin wrote: »

You can also walk into most Irish restaurants/pubs and not need to look at the menu:

Chicken curry
Bacon and Cabbage
Irish stew
Seafood chowder
Roast of the day
Spaghetti bolognese
Steak.

And all the "kids menu" is sausage and chips, nuggets and chips, chips and bloody chips etc.



Drives me mental, nothing different unless you go Chinese/Indian etc. (all of which I like, but not everyone does)

Would it be so hard for them to have just a little variety?

When there is a stir fry on the menu its almost always a 'vegetarian option'. I have to ask them if I can have the veggie option with meat in it!


re 'Kiddies menu', its no wonder they're waddling around the place.

gobnaitolunacy

Shenshen wrote: »

*lol Not just that, but they only come in 5 colours: 70% silver, 10% black, 10% dark blue, 5% red and 5% white...

I recently bought a car and nearly despaired, cause I wanted a colour that would allow me to find the car again easily on a big car park.

Theres a practical reason for that, silver doesn't look as bad when it starts fading.
Red goes pink after a while. For some reason green cars are v. scarce.

wendell borton

Choice is only an illusion created between those with power and those without.

Mr Benevolent

OP, we can get what we want in Ireland, you just have to shake off the 'ah it's grand' mentality. I can can any beer I want in certain off licences, and any cheese I want in Superquinn.

Shenshen

Confab wrote: »

OP, we can get what we want in Ireland, you just have to shake off the 'ah it's grand' mentality. I can can any beer I want in certain off licences, and any cheese I want in Superquinn.

You do know that Superquinns are hard to come by outside Dublin?

As I had said in my original post, it is improving slowly, I've noticed a good bit of improvement from when I first came here.
And contrary to what people would think, it's not so much the lack of international food choices that I find puzzling. What I don't really get is the lack of local specialities.

I don't mind that I cannot get 10 different French cheeses in Tesco, I find it strange that I can only get 2 or 3 local cheeses in Supervalu (or other local shops).
I don't mind that I can't get decent German beer here, I think it's sad that the only actual Irish beers on sale (in the vast, vast majority of pubs) are Guinness and Smithwicks.

I realise that Ireland used to very very isolated, and with not a lot of money going around. But this very same situation has resulted in most other places in an abundance of small local specialities (because the big international stuff was expensive and hard to get), made by small companies or even simply individuals.
And consequently, I wonder where and why Ireland took a different route...

BraziliaNZ

Shenshen wrote: »

You do know that Superquinns are hard to come by outside Dublin?

As I had said in my original post, it is improving slowly, I've noticed a good bit of improvement from when I first came here.
And contrary to what people would think, it's not so much the lack of international food choices that I find puzzling. What I don't really get is the lack of local specialities.

I don't mind that I cannot get 10 different French cheeses in Tesco, I find it strange that I can only get 2 or 3 local cheeses in Supervalu (or other local shops).
I don't mind that I can't get decent German beer here, I think it's sad that the only actual Irish beers on sale (in the vast, vast majority of pubs) are Guinness and Smithwicks.

I realise that Ireland used to very very isolated, and with not a lot of money going around. But this very same situation has resulted in most other places in an abundance of small local specialities (because the big international stuff was expensive and hard to get), made by small companies or even simply individuals.
And consequently, I wonder where and why Ireland took a different route...

We were basically a nation of deprived, oppressed peasants, until quite recently in history. Sorry that we didn't amass an exquisite varied cuisine over the years. I'm a lover of food but German food is nothing worth talking about is it?!

gobnaitolunacy

BraziliaNZ wrote: »

We were basically a nation of deprived, oppressed peasants, until quite recently in history. Sorry that we didn't amass an exquisite varied cuisine over the years. I'm a lover of food but German food is nothing worth talking about is it?!

German beer is nice stuff. The traditional food is solid peasant fare as you would expect.
Bacon and (pickled) cabbage.

lifelongnoob

800 years of british occupation made irish diet very plain and simple due to the british exporting most of the good foods leaving scraps for the irish population and over time the irish people found ways to make the most out of feck all.. this eventually became integrated into our culture.

Guinness gained it's popularity because it was first brewed here in dublin and exported to the rest of the country via the old canal networks... when the irish went to the pubs years ago all they had on offer was guinness, smithwicks, and whiskeys.

that too got integrated into our culture.

its only in the past decade or so we have seen a huge influx of foreigners moving here. and really only the polish and asians have bothered setting up shops to import the foods and drinks they like to eat... not many other people from other countries living here have done anything to help them get the food in that they like to eat.

if your finding it hard to find the foods you like to eat perhaps ya should set up a shop and import and sell such foods as im sure more of your own people living here would shop there if it meant they could easily get the foods they like for a reasonable price.

Shenshen

lifelongnoob wrote: »

800 years of british occupation made irish diet very plain and simple due to the british exporting most of the good foods leaving scraps for the irish population and over time the irish people found ways to make the most out of feck all.. this eventually became integrated into our culture.

Guinness gained it's popularity because it was first brewed here in dublin and exported to the rest of the country via the old canal networks... when the irish went to the pubs years ago all they had on offer was guinness, smithwicks, and whiskeys.

that too got integrated into our culture.

its only in the past decade or so we have seen a huge influx of foreigners moving here. and really only the polish and asians have bothered setting up shops to import the foods and drinks they like to eat... not many other people from other countries living here have done anything to help them get the food in that they like to eat.

if your finding it hard to find the foods you like to eat perhaps ya should set up a shop and import and sell such foods as im sure more of your own people living here would shop there if it meant they could easily get the foods they like for a reasonable price.

Again, it's not about the availability of foreign foods.
It's about the absence of local foods... as you said, Guinness was transported around using the canals. But surely it wasn't the first beer ever to be brewed in Ireland? Surely the pubs must have been selling local brews before the big black came around? Whatever happend to them?
And surely Irish people must have been making cheese before the English introduced cheddar? What happened to that?

munchkin_utd

Shenshen wrote: »

Again, it's not about the availability of foreign foods.
It's about the absence of local foods... as you said, Guinness was transported around using the canals. But surely it wasn't the first beer ever to be brewed in Ireland? Surely the pubs must have been selling local brews before the big black came around? Whatever happend to them?
And surely Irish people must have been making cheese before the English introduced cheddar? What happened to that?

all these things obviously have a reason.

I suppose cheddar was made as it's a hard cheese that can mature and keep for a long time, just like why they so fond of curing hams in mountain areas like Tirol or Black forest. It was a way of preserving stuff for the winter before refridgation came along. Same as cheddar that can keep for months and months.
Its peculiar that only cheddar ever took off BUT maybe thats a cheese that can ripen well in damp humid conditions like in Ireland and Britain?

Guinness are good at marketing so just like Budweiser now seems exotic and desirable thanks to marketing, Guinness those days was an glamorous drink.
Ireland is statistically the most brand aware country in the world, possibly this was also the case in previous generations.
Regarding other beers, again its a lot to do with marketing and distribution BUT dont forget that in England and Germany things are on the whole worse seeing as a pub only serves beer from a single brewery that they are tied to.

BTW, in germany now most people drink blonde/ pils lager types of beer.
100+ years ago people mostly drank dark beer and pils wasnt widely available at all (if for no other reason filtration was only being invented!!).
In France when champagne was invented it was FAR more sweet than currently is the case.
Things change and Ireland is really advancing now in getting beyond just the standard cheese/ beers etc. even though many pubs or shops still dont stock the widest range of beers or foods.

Any other questions you need an answer to?

galah

on the topic of local veg - why on earth do supermarkets feel compelled to import seasonal veg from half-way around the globe (when it's in season here), and even worse, why do people buy it????

for example, beans and mangetout - tis the season here, yet the local supermarket gets those manky beans from Kenya and mangetout from Zambia!!!! why? do people not realise that these veg can be grown here? or is it actually cheaper to import veg from that far? that stuff doesnt even taste nice. (there's no local farmers market, and I usually find that they're more expensive anyway)

on the general choice - it's gotten better in the last 10 years I think, especially cheeses and stuff - mainly thanks to Aldi and Lidl though!

I remember my first week here, ages ago, going shopping for the first time - stood in Tescos in front of a huge shelf full of baked beans. Two different brands, but no variations, nothing else, just a very long aisle of tins of baked beans. couldnt believe it...(and phoned home for supplies straight away...)

BraziliaNZ

Shenshen wrote: »

Again, it's not about the availability of foreign foods.
It's about the absence of local foods... as you said, Guinness was transported around using the canals. But surely it wasn't the first beer ever to be brewed in Ireland? Surely the pubs must have been selling local brews before the big black came around? Whatever happend to them?
And surely Irish people must have been making cheese before the English introduced cheddar? What happened to that?

The country was a backwater and way behind the rest of Europe throughout history. We just were not as sophisticated and are trying to catch up now. It's as simple as that.

token101

Shenshen wrote: »

Hah, you thought this was going to be about procreation, didn't you?
Sorry to disappoint.

No, this is about the choices, or rather the limits of them, for Irish customers.

I'm not originally from Ireland, but please don't misunderstand this thread as a complaint. It's about a puzzling phenomenon I've observed as a consumer here, a distinct and rather inexplicable lack of choice.

Take cheese, for example. It's fair to say that the Irish are a nation of dairy-lovers. They are seriously into their dairy.
Yet when it comes to cheese, it's cheddar. Lots and lots of different brands, but still, all cheddar. It's only quite recently that some other kinds of cheese are making their appearance on regular supermarket shelves, both international and Irish ones. But they still aren't anywhere near as prevalent as the cheddars.
So, why the obsession with just one type of (English!) cheese? What happened there?

Also, it's equally obvious that the Irish love their drink. People will give you directions using only pubs as landmarks. They may not know the name of the street they're on, but they will know the names of the 5 pubs on it.
Yet, nearly every single pub the length and breadth of this country will serve the same handful of drinks : the same 5 or 6 types of beer, the same 2 types of red and 2 types of white, the same cider and the same whiskeys.
As someone used to pubs and bars differing vastly in what drinks they have (in my home town, no two bars are likely to serve the same kinds of beers on tab), I'm finding this strange. Supermarkets and off licenses offer a little more choice, but still essentially the same drinks.
When did that happen? I know it's getting a little better, with breweries like the Porterhouse and the Franciscan Well, but I still can't really understand when 4 million people decided that all they wanted was Guinness and Heineken?

Does anyone have an explanation, an idea? Or any thoughts? Or has this never ever struck you as odd?

At a guess, you only immigrated relatively recently? As in the last decade or so? Because before Tesco and the bigger supermarkets arrived, it was like Soviet Russia when it came to choice in almost anything! It's getting better, but very,very slowly!

Shenshen

munchkin_utd wrote: »

all these things obviously have a reason.

I suppose cheddar was made as it's a hard cheese that can mature and keep for a long time, just like why they so fond of curing hams in mountain areas like Tirol or Black forest. It was a way of preserving stuff for the winter before refridgation came along. Same as cheddar that can keep for months and months.
Its peculiar that only cheddar ever took off BUT maybe thats a cheese that can ripen well in damp humid conditions like in Ireland and Britain?

Guinness are good at marketing so just like Budweiser now seems exotic and desirable thanks to marketing, Guinness those days was an glamorous drink.
Ireland is statistically the most brand aware country in the world, possibly this was also the case in previous generations.

So it would be a relatively recent thing, historically speaking?
As in, the last 100 or 200 years?

Regarding other beers, again its a lot to do with marketing and distribution BUT dont forget that in England and Germany things are on the whole worse seeing as a pub only serves beer from a single brewery that they are tied to.

BTW, in germany now most people drink blonde/ pils lager types of beer.
100+ years ago people mostly drank dark beer and pils wasnt widely available at all (if for no other reason filtration was only being invented!!).
In France when champagne was invented it was FAR more sweet than currently is the case.
Things change and Ireland is really advancing now in getting beyond just the standard cheese/ beers etc. even though many pubs or shops still dont stock the widest range of beers or foods.

Any other questions you need an answer to?

It's certainly true about tastes changing.
I never thought it was a bad thing that any one pub in Germany or elsewhere would only serve beer from one brewery... if people make up their mind about which pub they want to go to, they do so by thinking about which beer they feel like. When I came here, all pubs were exactly the same as in all were serving the same drink. How do you decide where you want to go? Why would you go to any pub but the nearest one to where you live?

Shenshen

token101 wrote: »

At a guess, you only immigrated relatively recently? As in the last decade or so? Because before Tesco and the bigger supermarkets arrived, it was like Soviet Russia when it came to choice in almost anything! It's getting better, but very,very slowly!

8 years, going on 9 now.

ScumLord

token101 wrote: »

At a guess, you only immigrated relatively recently? As in the last decade or so? Because before Tesco and the bigger supermarkets arrived, it was like Soviet Russia when it came to choice in almost anything! It's getting better, but very,very slowly!

There's only so much better it can get, Ireland has a small population that's dispersed outside of Dublin. Even in Dublin it's not that densely populated by international standards, I'd guess.

We simply don't have the buying power to get all these alternative brands and products on shop shelves.

emul8ter25

token101 wrote: »

At a guess, you only immigrated relatively recently? As in the last decade or so? Because before Tesco and the bigger supermarkets arrived, it was like Soviet Russia when it came to choice in almost anything! It's getting better, but very,very slowly!

I married an Irish girl and have lived in Ireland for a bit over 5 years now.

I have often been annoyed and struggle with the lack of choice as well, but in just the 5 years I have been here I have seen the options grow.

Meals I wanted to cook that I was unable to before, its no problem getting the ingredients now.

munchkin_utd

Shenshen wrote: »

So it would be a relatively recent thing, historically speaking?
As in, the last 100 or 200 years?

Do you mean brand awareness of Guinness or breweries closing down?

Guinness were just great business people.
The beer guinness you drank in a pub down the country wasn't actually bottled in Dublin 100 years ago but was shipped in barels and then bottled and sold by local distributors who had an interest in pushing the stuff to make their margin. And the margin would be good with the branding and advertisment that Guinness did for them.
Possibly it was just more profitable to buy in barels of guinness beer and bottle that than brewing and selling your own beer with the staff and plant costs that it would incur by running your own brewery.

Irelands largest sweet makers oatfield sweets have gone this way now. They closed their plant in Donegal and are now getting their products manufactured in bulk in England and are only focused on marketing what someone else is making for them.
Possibly the same process that happened to local breweries/ bottlers 100+ years ago.

token101

ScumLord wrote: »

There's only so much better it can get, Ireland has a small population that's dispersed outside of Dublin. Even in Dublin it's not that densely populated by international standards, I'd guess.

We simply don't have the buying power to get all these alternative brands and products on shop shelves.

True, but Tesco was the one who brought any semblance of choice. Super Valu and Dunnes had to change or they'd have gone out of business entirely. Their choice used to be pathetic up until about 15 years ago! I remember that even as a child! 'What yoghurts would you like? It's Petit Filous or......we'll get Petit Filous sure'. I can't even imagine what pubs were like for choices before the Celtic Tiger and immigration here!

Shenshen

munchkin_utd wrote: »

Do you mean brand awareness of Guinness or breweries closing down?

Guinness were just great business people.
The beer you drank in a pub down the country wasn't actually bottled in Dublin 100 years ago but was shipped in barels and then bottled and sold by local distributors who had an interest in pushing the stuff to make their margin. And the margin would be good with the branding and advertisment that Guinness did for them.
Possibly it was just more profitable to buy in barels of guinness beer and bottle that than brewing and selling your own beer with the staff and plant costs that it would incur by running your own brewery.

Irelands largest sweet makers oatfield sweets have gone this way now. They closed their plant in Donegal and are now getting their products manufactured in bulk in England and are only focused on marketing what someone else is making for them.
Possibly the same process that happened to local breweries/ bottlers 100+ years ago.

Both the brand awareness and the disappearance of local goods...
The process you outline sounds plausible. It's kind of strange to me, as I would think of small business dying out due to the marketing of big business as a much more recent phenomenon altogether.

munchkin_utd

Shenshen wrote: »

Both the brand awareness and the disappearance of local goods...
The process you outline sounds plausible. It's kind of strange to me, as I would think of small business dying out due to the marketing of big business as a much more recent phenomenon altogether.

but there the small local business was the bottler of Guinness.

Same as pepsi cola in Germany is bottled and pushed to a large extent by local breweries nowadways!
Pepsi isnt killing local mineral water distributors but actually making them profitable.

just like guinness 100 years ago in Ireland.

FTA69

Tabnabs wrote: »

As for pubs, go to the UK where the selection is lousy and you'll appreciate the choice we have here.

Complete nonsense. I work in a pub over here and the set up is very similar. Instead of Bud, Heineken etc on draught you'll have Stella, Carling, Kronenbourg etc. In that sense they're exactly the same. However real ale is now huge in England with any decent pub having at least one or two cask ales on tap. The variety in these ales are huge. You can have session or strong ales, dark or pale, hoppy, sweet or malty, porters, stouts or IPAs; each brewery or region having an independent taste or flavour or style. Nothing in Ireland compares to it.

Stout is our national drink and you can only get three varieties of it based in only two cities.

ScumLord

token101 wrote: »

True, but Tesco was the one who brought any semblance of choice. Super Valu and Dunnes had to change or they'd have gone out of business entirely. Their choice used to be pathetic up until about 15 years ago! I remember that even as a child! 'What yoghurts would you like? It's Petit Filous or......we'll get Petit Filous sure'. I can't even imagine what pubs were like for choices before the Celtic Tiger and immigration here!

Pubs in Ireland have been selling the same drink for decades, there's a bit of a drink cartel here.

I don't see Tescos as adding any real choice, they added there own brands to the market, and started a price war to wipe out local products, or at the very least degrade the quality of Irish products by forcing price cuts. What brought choice was having more money to risk on trying different products.

prinz

Shenshen wrote: »

Question.

To answer your question a mixture of laziness, tradition, lack of adventure, lack of education and repetition.

gobnaitolunacy

FTA69 wrote: »

Complete nonsense. I work in a pub over here and the set up is very similar. Instead of Bud, Heineken etc on draught you'll have Stella, Carling, Kronenbourg etc. In that sense they're exactly the same. However real ale is now huge in England with any decent pub having at least one or two cask ales on tap. The variety in these ales are huge. You can have session or strong ales, dark or pale, hoppy, sweet or malty, porters, stouts or IPAs; each brewery or region having an independent taste or flavour or style. Nothing in Ireland compares to it.

Stout is our national drink and you can only get three varieties of it based in only two cities.

There's at least three small brewers that do stouts here.

Watching pub customers 'somewhere' in the North of England, the two beers most frequently ordered were Guinness and Fosters. I like some real ales, but they tend play havoc with the digestion system. See 'Farting' thread.

Lord of the Bongs

I hate these nationalistic stereotypes, i for one am Irish and my own person. the things that makes me Irish are my ancestors and the fact I was born here. I dont particularly think i have much difference to say an Englishperson even though an outsider would say we are worlds apart, infact we are more similar than different. When I lived in the States (Boston) it was like Dublin but with really tall buildings. People are set in their ways and like the things they are accustomed too, I think the 'Irish' though are a very well traveled people who have sampled almost everything this life has to offer, except Moon sauce!

prinz

Lord of the Bongs wrote: »

I hate these nationalistic stereotypes,........ I think the 'Irish' though are a very well traveled people who have sampled almost everything this life has to offer, except Moon sauce!

Ya what?

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

Chauncey wrote: »

Perhaps they had no strong urge to do anything in particular at the time, or maybe they were allowing you a chance to suggest an activity in an effort to get to know you better.
Could it be that you gave them the impression of being difficult and whingey and they felt that anything they suggested wouldn't be good enough for you?
It's hard to tell when dealing with spineless Irish women.

If it were a one-off, I'd agree, but I'm talking about the people who never espress an option or a choice.

Congratulations on your achievement.
To be honest, I don't find spraying paint on wobbly flesh to be terribly creative, it seems a little twee and old hat but good luck to you anyway.

Not sure what you mean by twee... Or what you meant be creative, either, for hat matter: it's a rather unusual artfrom.