By April of , the recipe had been perfected and Newcastle Brown Ale made its auspicious debut on Tyneside. Clocking in at a rather potent 6. A TV ad from shows two local lads erecting a Newcastle Brown Ale monument on the banks of the Tyne and—in a moment that would not slide with modern health and safety laws—we see a helicopter airlifting them in a couple of bottles of Broon for a well-deserved break.
Its reputation as a solidly hometown brew was bolstered during the 80s and 90s when both the Newcastle Breweries blue star logo and the Newcastle Brown Ale logo appeared on the football strips of Newcastle United after the company secured a sponsorship deal with the club.
By the s, overseas exportation helped Newcastle Brown Ale gain significant popularity in the USA where in contrast to its homeland it was marketed as a trendy, premium import ideal for young, hip drinkers.
Though it was a hit on a global scale, the beer stuck to its roots … at least at first. As the new millennium dawned, it was awarded Protected Geographical Indication status by the European Union. In the case of Newcastle Brown Ale this meant that anyone sipping on the sweet Geordie nectar could rest assured it was indeed brewed in the Toon.
The move resulted in the loss of over jobs and triggered the cancellation of its Protected Geographical status. Yes, you read that right—Yorkshire. If you thought the move to Gateshead was controversial then you can bet the move to Tadcaster nearly caused the region to blow its collective gasket. Newcastle Brown Ale is a classic English beer which was birthed at Newcastle Breweries but over the years it has moved to different homes. Heineken took ownership of Newcastle Brown Ale back in Since then, nothing about the beer has really changed until just recently Lagunitas, a Chicago based brewery also owned by Heineken, took over production of Newcastle Brown Ale Swartz, Because of this happening, they have decided to create a new flavour with the beer.
The reasoning is the production had moved from the Netherlands to the U. Some fans of the beer fear that it has become fully Americanized but in Lagunitas defence, they use a British-style house yeast. The ABV remained the same within the flavour change as well as the colour. Sales in the U. The marketing and branding strategies for Newcastle Brown Ale have stayed relatively the same over the past 90 years.
Other than recent changes, the beer has stuck with the same look since its birth in The blue star and brown bottle is what makes Newcastle Brown Ale iconic. As mentioned before, under new management from Lagunitas, there has been a modernized look towards the beer. It still does have the blue star and brown bottle though. The beer had always gone for the mainstream audience.
The beer eventually made its way all around the world. The marketing wanted to announce clearly that this was a classic English style beer for anybody who is looking for a beer with history. Then we said, what shall we use as ingredients? The answer was to brew Newcastle like most Lagunitas ales, with similar processes and ingredients — including, conveniently, an English ale yeast the brewery employs in its iconic IPA.
The big tweak: American hops, in this case Centennial and Chinook. Lagunitas, like many American craft breweries, was built on them and their robust character. The challenge, Marshall said, was to employ those piney-floral hops in a way that made them prominent — this is craft beer after all — but not so much as to blot out the roasty nature of a brown ale. The result is still a radical updating. It was easy enough drinking and — like most brown ales — OK with a meal. The new model is a touch darker but far more muscular — elements of roast, char and even light smoke replace the caramel sweetness.
Ruined a great beer. By the look of these comments, New Castle will be a thing of the past! This is definitely not what we have all enjoyed for many years. It has a very bitter after taste like an IPA. Heineken has surely screwed up this time! We have been drinking and buying New Castle since , not anymore!
Your new Newcastle is really disappointing. Why change perfection? There are plenty of great ales on the store shelves which will see an increase in sales because we will Not be buying Newcastle again. Who ever thought up changing the recipe must have their head in the sand.
Thanks real Newcastle for 20 great years of great ale. For years Newcastle was my goto, now it will be my soso. RIP Newcastle! Bottom line another customer lost. Turned a lot of friends on to it. Just stopped by to congratulate you and thank you on ruining mine and apparently so many others favorite beer.
So Heiniken said screw that, lets make it tase bad, I even hate the new logo. How about keeping the original receipe and new one, calling this other junk New Castle Light Brown. Another option is New Belguim Brewery out of Colorado. Their main stays have been Fat Tire and Vodoo Ranger. Of cource sticking with something from over the pond, good ole Bass Ale. Too many choices out ther to worry about Heiniken mistake, screw them! So disappointing! This new taste is absolutely awful.
I dumped out my beer! Did no one taste this first? Why mess up a great beer? Equally disappointed. New Castle was my favorite, but now I am going elsewhere. I do not like the new recipe and flavor. At first I was disappointed that Newcastle had changed their label from classy to garish.
I am going to try to return the unused bottles from the case I bought and am now searching for a replacement that is not as expensive as Rogue hazelnut. Michelob Amber Boch maybe??? I have been drinking Newcastle Brown Ale for nearly 30 years! The new recipe sucks very badly. I cannot drink it! I feel like I lost my best friend. Newcastle needs to go back to the original recipe. Bring back the real Broon! New Newcastle is horrible. I have been drinking this beer for 20 plus years and bought a six pack a few weeks ago and noticed new packaging never thought they would change the beer, why mess with perfection.
I am very disappointed with the new beer, its terrible and I wont purchase any more unless it goes back to the original formula. You guys really messed this one up. Well now I have to find another beer. Why buy the name, just make your own shitty brown beer. How will losing every New Castle drinker help you sell more beer. What marketing geniuses you are! By the way, the new packaging is as cheap and shitty as your beer! I was served one the new ones yesterday in a restaurant and sent it back; googled it and found the bad news.
Immediately went out and cleaned out two stores of their stock which will last me about 6 months. Did I read online correctly that only the U. Maybe we can all figure out how to ship it to us directly from U. Well add me to the lengthy list of the disappointed. This is really a terrible beer.
I do hope that someone from Heineken reads these comments and realizes that Newcastle fans do not want a re-imagined beer that drifts into IPA land, but the beer we have loved for years.
If this is the beer that Heineken and Langunitas is peddling, then they have indeed killed Newcastle. Just how sucky is the new Newc Brown?
Even the label wants no part of it! Just one day in the fridge and it peels right off the bottle. Real appropriate that Lagunitas, the brewer of this crap, has the word anus in its name. Agree with all the posts. Drank NBA for years. Never again and no Heineken or lugie water either! I have been drinking it since while stationed overseas. Huge fan most of my life. I guess Heineken has taken on the Apple mentality.
First they messed with Smithwicks and now my all time favorite. Why would you change the recipe people have come to love. Not everything needs extra hops. This new recipe is horrible. Will never buy another bottle until the recipe is changed back.
This new recipe sucks. By no means am I disparaging lemonade stand owners with that comment. Way to go assholes. You take an established brand and dump it in the trash. Having mistakenly believed this was a just redesigned packaging it looks lame I bought my usual box of 12 bottles.
How was it? It was just awful. I will not be drinking this pig swill from Lagunitas that is masquerading as Newcastle Brown. What a disaster. This new beer is disgusting and we will not drink it. We have been drinking Newcastle for over 25 years and are loyal consumers and Newcastle fans. Why, why, why did Heineken choose Newcastle to change.
This was a terrible mistake and this change will prove to be a huge loss for them. We have noticed the shelves are full of the new Newcastle because nobody will buy this crap. In the past, Newcastle was never sitting on the shelves. We have complained to both Heineken and Lagunitas. Unfortunately, they are not concerned with their loyal customers and think they can jump on the crap beer train and trick people into thinking they are drinking a Newcastle.
Goodbye dear friend, we will miss you. This new Newcastle taste like pond water. Why would take an already great recipe and fuck it up by changing it? Great business plan Lagunitas, take an already great ale and wipe your asses all over it? Eat a fat prick Lagunitas for fucking up another great and time-honored recipe! Being Dutch I gave it a fair shot and although the flavor was slightly different, I found it very acceptable. More recently my usual New Castle retailer stopped stocking it and I was fortunate to find a source elsewhere.
When my usual retailer stocked the ale again I thought it was just a packaging change. Another brewer and a new recipe! After over a decade of loyal New Castle consumption I am not drinking this hoppy domestic crap!
I been drinking newcastle for past 20 years I just bought The new Newcastle I open my first bottle and tested and it test like shit I had dump my 24 case in dumpster I would never ever by the newscaster again Please go back to the original newcastle. Have enjoyed this beer for 20 years, bought this 12 pack, after first sip I noticed the hoppy taste, just a replica of all the IPA beer being made now.
Where can I buy my old Newcastle??????? Newcastle had been my go-to beer for years. For those who are still looking for an acceptable replacement to Newcastle… I happened to be browsing the beer cooler at a local liquor store and must have looked a bit puzzled over what beer to buy. I started a conversation with a guy who was also pondering the available selection or brews and made my point about the spoiled Newcastle.
We both left the store with a six pack of cans…. When I got home and trepidatiously opened a can and tried a sip I was sold! Why in the wide world of sports did they think this would be a good idea. I will be looking for the Kilt Lifter and give it a go. I migrated to Kilt Lifter a while back but went back to Newcastle when it was really Newcastle. Not bad beer but just got tired of it.
Plus it has more alcohol so I am forced to drink less. Found some local breweries here in NM that have taken the place of the crapcastle now made by Lagunitas. Bring back the old recipe……now.
Like buying a Corvette then popping the hood and seeing a 4cyl in it, def false advertisement. I want my money back. I guided many friends to trying Newcastle and they liked it! I do not like or drink IPA. Guinness Stout has way too much treacle and sweetness.
The old Newcastle recipe suited my palate, just fine. So much for Loyalty! Lagunitas ruined the once great beer. Someone should kick the genius who thought this was a good idea in the a.
Good news for me … Wish I could share but … I am just as sad as everyone about the new crap they are pushing as Newcastle. They were right along side the new stuff. Been a loyal Newcastle drinker since … After my find is gone … Panic? I sent them a note in the comments section. If enough people rise up, take the time and complain, maybe someone, somewhere will take notice realize they screwed the pooch on this one. I did send fairly stern messages to Heineken no response and the new, fake Newcastle Brown Ale which I assume just goes to Lagunitas.
I directed them to this page and the Newcastle Facebook page which is all it takes to see They did respond politely but they are standing by their new product and proud of the fancy hops they use. They did not address the fact that it tastes terrible and virtually every Newcastle drinker in the USA hates their guts. In their mind, they did a really great thing and the world is soon going to love them for it.
They did the same. Copying here. Indeed standing by swill! Hey there, thanks for reaching out. Our brewmaster reimagined the recipe using Centennial and Chinook hops, and brought to life by members of both brewery families, Newcastle Brown Ale reflects our take on a craft classic.
Maybe we can bombard them to point that they see our point, because we are never going to come on board with this crap…. Here is the link. Bombard away! Ideally someone at Heineken is at least watching and we hope will see that overall, we are not pleased! He had found a Nutri-Matic machine which had provided him with a plastic cup filled with a liquid that was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea.
The Lagunitas version is almost, but not quite, entirely unlike Newcastle Brown Ale. It is a filthy drink. Truly Disappointed! This Crap Sucks!!
I used to love this beer. Sales are going to go down the tubes. This has been one of my favorite and most drank beers over the last 15 years. After first sip, completely disappointed. Thank you Lagunitas for putting your own twist on an amazing beer. If you liked old Newcastle and also like Smithwicks, then I think I will try it as well! Since I will not be drinking new Newcastle. This new recipe is awful. The whole point of enjoying original imported from Holland Newcastle, was the flavor and followup.
This new recipe flavor has an unpleasant bite. The new recipe color is lighter. The new bottles are not easily used by a bottle opener, the lip is too round. Overall, a terrible decision. I will not be buying any of the new recipe ever again, neither will any of our many friends who lustfully enjoyed original Newcastle.
I went to several stores today to find any old recipe Newcastle. All i find is the new version. Bad decision on the part of Heineken and Lagunitas!!! Thanks for making my favorite beer tast like shit.
Will not tell my friends about the Newcastle ever again. The new recipe is very disappointing. I am a long time Newcastle fan but will never buy this Lagunitas brand again! Hope they consider bringing back the original. Lagunitas Newcastle sucks. If you take old good Newcastle, leave it in the sun, add some dry bark and dirt, boil it down and put it in a different bottle, then you have new bad, even terrible Newcastle. I do not like it and will not be drinking it.
How is this done to a fantastic beer? I have found out the old recipe is available in Holland. Why not ship me the Newcastle I like and serve this new crap to people who like beer that tastes like stale bark and dirt and call it something else? Would love to know more info on that assertion. I hope the New Castle people read this. Because I just bought my last new castle ever.
I hope this recipe change fails miserably and disappears forever. I thought I had got a bad batch, now I know that they ruined Newcastle. Awful idea, awful taste. Simply awful. Complete failure. I just recently discovered New Castle Brown and it became my favorite beer. The first 6 pack was from Holland. Then I noticed it was the new packaging. Now I know the full story and am devastated. Not drinking the new crap!!! I immediately complained to my wife about buying the wrong New Castle box.
Are there any lawyers following this thread? With all the other BS lawsuits out there this pretty seems valid, to me?.? My buddy asked for Budweiser as soon as I gave him one of these New Castle beers while roofing shingles. Takes like shit he told me. Worst beer I have had the displeasure of ever tasting in my life. Jeremy Marshal should be offered a steaming hot, Newcastle Brown enema.
What sort of ego driven dolt, has the balls to think that they can improve on an established favorite? Why would Heineken be stupid enough to allow some dim bulb, wannabe brewer, to tinker with the recipe? It should be either renamed or taken off of the shelves. Can we move it back to the Netherlands? Why would you want to ruin such a good beer like that??? What the mother fuck — you ruined my fucking 4th!!
I cannot even drink beer now. Fortunately I have found an alternate use for the remaining beers left in this unfinished 12 pack. Join me? Thank you Alvin, I will. The new taste is horribly disappointing!
They have lost our business unless they change the recipe back. Hopefully, Heineken will see that sales have completely dropped off and change it back as soon as possible. HATE the new Newcastle. Totally idiotic to change the recipe. They ruined Newcastle. I will not purchase this ever again. I just thought I got a skunk batch. And still selling at import price at my grocer. I agree with Jerry Kindall: if the recipe and packaging are different, how can it still be called Newcastle Brown Ale?
It does seem like consumer fraud. I wonder if the recipe of Heneiken has changed also, because it tastes more bitter as well. Will never buy either beer again: unless the old one is brought back. Will never buy this beer again: unless the old one is brought back. The taste is not the same it leaves a bitter after taste. This sucks. Totally fooled me. Gagged on the first swill — what the hell?!?! Then I closely read the bottle. Louis either. Newcastle had a distinctive individuality.
Good luck, Big Business Brewers in Petaluma — your new pet project will be off the market within a year or 2. The best tasting beer, I loved so much… Why did they change the recipe??? This new one is bitter and nasty. Taste just like most other American beers.. Like piss! I agree…after having consumed many gallons of Newcastle Nut Brown Ale in my day, I am sadly disappointed with this new version. Get on it! Bring the imported stuff from Europe in.. I used to like their beer, but its horrible now..
It would be like letting Budweiser brew Guiness. Newcastle used to be a unique good beer. This change is unbelievably disappointing. When I had the first taste of the new beer in a restaurant, I told the waiter it must have been a bad bottle so he brought me another and it tasted as bad as the first. I went home and went online and found this site and my heart sank. So I went out to our local liquor store a bought all their stock of packs, then went to the grocery store and bought packs, then to the last store and bought their remaining pack so now I have 6- 12 packs which should last me about 6 months.
Screw Heineken. I hate how they ruined my favorite beer. I used to import it in China at great expense because I loved it so much. Now, goddamnit. I started drinking Smithwicks because it is closer to Newcastle than Newcastle is. How long before the suits at Heineken buy them out and screw me over again. Never a Heine, wish those guys would go bankrupt. My favorite smooth, thirst quenching and easy drinking beer in the world is now ruined by these douche monsters.
NBA was the perfect blend of smooth, light, not too heavy, caramelly, perfect. My fucking favorite beer in that nice looking clear bottle.
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