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Tokyo, Japan: Kirin Brewery Co. said Tuesday it will launch test sales on July 15 of a draft beer product contained in a self-cooling keg that does not need electricity or cooling devices.

The test sales will be conducted at select liquor stores in Tokyo through the end of this year ahead of a planned nationwide launch of the product sometime next year, the beer maker said.
Special Thanks to: Kyodo News

Norway:Norway's increasing focus on lawbreaking at sea landed a sizeable catch when five people were arrested for smuggling 750 cases of beer on a 25-foot leisure vessel off Arendal. All five were arrested on suspicion of violating customs laws. Police would not comment what led them to the bust. The cargo of beer, which filled the fishing vessel, was confiscated. The 18,000 cans, plus a smaller quantity of wine and spirits, were purchased in Denmark and brought from there by boat. The 750 cases could hardly qualify as being for personal use, an argument often used to try and defend possession of massive quantities of consumables. The maximum sentence for this type of violation is six months in prison, plus fines.

Special thanks to: newsnow and aftenposten

Montreal, Canada: -- Nearly 1,000 unionized Labatt Brewing Co. workers walked off the job at their suburban plant this week in a dispute over pay and the status of temporary workers. The workers had recently rejected the company's latest offer before voting overwhelmingly in favour of strike action at the west-end plant and distribution center. They are seeking five-per-cent wage increases over each of the next three years.

Paul Wilson, speaking for Labatt, said the beer maker is "stunned and disappointed" by the work stoppage, which he said occurred during "the most critical period" for sales. "They know they hurt us, but they're hurting themselves also because we'll lose market share," Wilson added.

Besides its role as a brewery, the plant houses the distribution centre for all 3,000 Labatt retailers in Montreal as well as points of sale in a number of other cities and towns across Quebec. Labatt's contingency plan calls for management personnel to move the stock until a settlement is reached.

"We've always been ready to negotiate and we still want to," Wilson said.

Special Thanks to: The London Free Press

PRAGUE, Czech Republic: SABMiller PLC plans to launch the Miller brand across Europe as part of an effort to turn a struggling U.S. icon into an upmarket global beer, Friday's Wall Street Journal reported. The world's second-largest brewer, after Anheuser-Busch Cos. of St. Louis, said it planned to introduce Miller Genuine Draft as a sophisticated international premium brew in Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, the Czech Republic, Poland and Italy. It said the aim is to promote Miller as the liquid symbol of America, in order to attract a new generation of European beer drinkers. Despite snazzy new packaging and a sex-fueled television advertisement featuring Pamela Anderson, the beer brand's sales have fallen nearly 5% in the U.S., where it continues to trail products from rivals Anheuser-Busch and Adolph Coors Co.
Special Thanks to: Dan Bilefsky

England: Scottish Courage, the big U.K. brewer, last week began selling to British consumers ice cream that tastes like Newcastle Brown Ale, one of the company's flagship brands. The product is made via a joint venture with Doddington Dairies, which, like the beermaker, is located in Northeast England. Doddington, an award-winning dairy, is making the superpremium ice cream. It will sell initially at supermarkets in Northumberland and Newcastle, and only during the summer months. The ice cream's taste is said to reflect the nutty, caramel flavors of the namesake ale. It should be noted that while publicity may create a buzz, the product itself will not. The ice cream contains less than 1 percent alcohol.

So what do you get for your $99.95? What you get is 24 ounces of Samuel Adams Utopias, the offspring of last year's Samuel Adams Utopias MMII, which Guinness World Records declared to be the strongest beer ever sold, at 24 percent alcohol by volume. The current Utopias, brewed in April 2002 at Boston Beer's Jamaica Plain ''pilot'' brewery and just now reaching stores, ups the ante to 25 percent, or 50 proof. Although there's a wide variation, most beers are about 5 percent alcohol; the six year-round Sam Adams brews range from 4.63 to 5.93 percent. For better or worse, then, this is not the one beer to have when you're having more than one. ''People wouldn't go around drinking very much of it, or they'd be falling over,'' says Michael Jackson of London, the world's preeminent beer critic and writer. ''No one's going to drink this at a ballgame.''

Special Thanks to: Nathan Cobb, Globe Correspondent

Melbourne, Australia: The Australian brewer Carlton United Breweries has taken the decision to lock out over 300 of its brewery workers as tensions surrounding a pay dispute escalate. The lockout, at the brewer's Abbotsford brewery, will begin tonight and last for 24 hours. The workers are members of the Liquor, Hospitality and Miscellaneous Workers Union, who have been locked in a pay dispute with CUB for several weeks. Union officials claim the lock out will threaten Melbourne's beer supply. The LHMU had itself imposed a number of bans on CUB, including overtime pay, finishing work early and brewery training. CUB public affairs manager David Park confirmed employees would be locked out, but denied Melbourne's beer supply would be jeopardised.

Special Thanks to just-drinks.com editorial team