Could this be Thailand's worst beer?
I was browsing the soft-drinks cabinet at my local 7-Eleven when my eyes were suddenly drawn to the beer section where I saw a can of beer I didn’t recognize. The can was the most gloomy-looking drinks container I had ever seen. The name “Archa Beer” leapt up at me like a geriatric chess player.
I decided that I must have happened upon something remarkable. At just 19 baht, Archa is the cheapest beer in 7-Eleven. I bought one can and hurried home. Back in my room, I opened the can, took a sip, swallowed and was met with the odd sensation of a canned beer with an afterkick similar to drinking straight shots of Sangsom.
I’m unsure when this new brand, with its 5.4% of loveliness, made its was into 7-Eleven, but Archa Beer may well be the most vile canned drink on the planet. The beverage was flat within about two minutes and after drinking half a can, I began to feel a buzz in my head just enough to counter the unusual goings-on in my stomach.
Archa Beer was launched in 2004 “to respond to increasing demands from a new generation of beer drinkers who prefer smooth beer with lower alcohol content”. That would explain the flatness of the beer.
I may have missed out on being a part of a generation of beer drinkers who prefer flat beer and so I was left feeling a disappointed that my 19-baht bargain lacked the refreshing traits of other beers on the market.
Try it for yourself and let me know what you think. Archa Beer may have been on the shelf long before I noticed it.
Beer Chang has got to be up there with Thailand's worst.
Can you get beer lao in Phuket?
I first encountered this beer last Thursday after I've been staying in Thailand for four years. I couldn't believe I could have missed that drink from the shelves or the drink menus but well I had to wait for an after-party in a Queen's park hotel room after we all realised it was too late to buy alcohol from the 7 downstairs and found out THAT in the mini-bar. Overpriced of course. Never too late.
A terrible drink if I may but when nothing else is on offer…
This beer is a sister (or brother) to Chang and comes from the same manufacturer. I understand it's recognized as being poorer quality but cheaper.
Horse beer; this beer can be found at Godzilla Bar, just in front of Super Cheap (Phuket Town) for an amazing 15 baht a jug (almost 1 litre). Like you, I just had to know what a jug of 15 baht beer tasted like. Weak, flat… but not undrinkable. Saying that, I've never tried it again.
Thanks for the warning. Some Thailand-blog has a rather large review about Thai-beers – forgot which one, but maybe there are worse beers out there …
This beer has been around for several years. The first time I saw it was in Carefour in Rama IV. Not worse than the cheap high octane "diesel" brew you can find in this side of the world.
Beer can never be worst
If you want lots of beer reviews see http://beerasia.blogspot.com/
Nope, Archa is not the worst – have you tried "Cheers" Beer? I am planning a beer review on my blog too.. need some more research first… :)
Try it for myself? After what you just wrote? No, thanx :-)
I cant believe I'm the only person here that likes it. About 3 months ago I bought 24 for 310 baht (13 baht each!) What's there to complain about :)
@Chris – They have beer lao and beer lao dark here in Phuket.
This post is againts some TOS ;-p
Oh, one more comment on Archa beer….i found the can interesting and attractive….i guess that is a matter of taste!
[...] beer notes #7 By beyondbagot Archa Beer – Thailand – [...]
As a Belgian, I never drink pilsner beer even though it is the most brewed type of beer across the globe. We have far better than that all over the country, and renown troughout the world. Hell, we Belgian beers dominate the top 20 of best beers in the world.
Living in Thailand, I was looking for a decent beer for an acceptable price, since Belgian beer is totally overpriced here. It may astound you, but I found my taste in Archa beer. Seems most people love highly carbonised beer with low taste. I admit, I am not one of them, and I found a friend in Archa beer.
You are quite right about beer in Belgium. I've been to Belgium maybe half a dozen times and each visit, I was astounded by how good the beer tasted.
hi thursday 1 oct hi up here in korat we have a promotion on archa beer 3 large 660 ml bottles in bars for 110 batt or a jug the same …i;have tio tell you its ok ;i like leo but 6 bottles and a snack box for 255 batt ,talking and looking football its a real deal dave ,not to flat ,and no hheaache ,fresh up buy
Hold on a second before bashing this beer. I tried this beer a year or 18 months ago and found it tasted like paint thinner and made my eyes tear.
Now I have tried it again 11/09 and have determined that they must have changed the brewing recipe.
It is a little flatter than other beers but I like the taste better than Leo. And at 29 baht per big bottle at Tesco & Tesco Express it is one of the great bargains in all of Thailand.
Archa Beer I think is the second best beer in THAILAND .,
1. TIGER Beer
2. ARCHA Beer
3. Beer Lao
4. Singha
5. Chang
-100. Cheers Beer <- RAT Poison
From most people who I see, drink beer in Thailand they buy a large warm beer and they place ice cubes in the beer, I'm not sure I'd call that a beer drinker. I would like a cold Small bottle of Cheers to deliver that smooth refreshing taste without having to add ice. The cans are great, but I'm a beer drinker who like's cold beer out of the bottle adding ice kinds of defeats the purpose in my mind. Beer drinker for 40 years America, Germany and now Thailand, Small Cheers bottle would hit the spot, but haven't found yet.
This was the first site that came up on a google search for archa beer. I had just opened mine happened upon this entry…
on the low budget kick now, enjoying archa at 1/2 the price of singha, and don't have to play with the foil!
I used to drink Beer Chang, what headaches the next morning!!!!! When I tried Archa up in Nong Phai, I was an instant convert, and after a big night drinking Archa, to my surprise, NO MORE headaches next day.
Archa is a perfectly good beer, better than most in Thailand (how does anyone drink singha?)
I reckon most of the bad comments is with guys that get the old bottles – this stuff like all beers will break down and go nasty with age if not kept cold- so many bars etc in thailand turn the fridge off at closing and it spoils the beer. Tell them they dont believe it, they think beer is a product like coca cola. Look for the sell by on beer bottles – get one 6 months old and compare with a fresh one, you will understand.
wouldn't it be great if they put Archa in small bottles.
I have been living in Thailand for a year since coming from America. Archa is a perfectly fine beer with the limited choices found in Thailand. Singha is nothing special, Chang makes you feel horrible the next morning, Leo is nice but Archa is a nice find considering the possibilities. Sure could use a Sierra Nevada or a Dos Equis though. What's up with Corona being everywhere. Talk about one shitty beer.
"The name 'Archa Beer' leapt up at me like a geriatric chess player."
I've tried for the last ten minutes or so to envision just what it is you mean here…and all I can come up with is a big, fat….WTF?
Leapt up at you like a geriatric chess player….grasping at straws were you? Journalism abilities got you down?
Anyway, just wanted to put my two cents worth in here…I'm a drinker. I'm not a *ucking CONNOISSEUR like some of you pretend to be….
I drink beer for one purpose…the effect.
I don't place it in a freaking brandy snifter and try and experience the embodiment and aroma. I don't take a sip and roll it around in my mouth coating my taste buds and trying to catch the various hues, flavors, fruitiness, nuttiness, etc.
I search the label for the alcohol content..the higher the content, the better the brew in my opinion.
Beer Chang rocks!
Leo beer, while smooth and good tasting, is more expensive than Chang (I live in the south of Thailand and Chang goes for 40 baht a large bottle…who the *uck messes with those baby bottles and cans?…while Leo bottles go for 45 baht per bottle). I've tried them all…and then some most people haven't…but now I drink my own.
Yes, I brew my own beer now. Been saving up for years for it and drinking some very expensive Grolsh beer just for the bottles since I hate bottle capping. I'm also currently growing my own hops. I order all my equipment, syrups, hops, sugar, hydrometer, etc. online and all is delivered in non-descriptive packaging. What I brew is enough to supply me with high-alcohol content "horse-kickin'" brew at approximately five bottles per day, with a large back log. Wonderful stuff!
Sometimes I resort to drinking Thai Whiskey straight up…I've found a store that sells it the cheapest, and hey…for 35 baht a bottle and a good ten to twelve drinks outta a bottle…can't beat it. But, Thai whiskey is a much different animal than beer. The high is different, and not comparable to beer.
So, in essence…screw the taste and let's get *ucked up!
Yeah!
-Jeeem-
You're one of those guys who drinks special brew in the park, aren't you.
You are a fucking spina mate
Archa has to be one of the best beers in Thialand, you are obviously not a beer drinker
stick to your Spyes pal!
I use to drink beer chang.till i met archa beer. the best in thailand. no hangovers……
Hi
Lived in Thailand 4 yrs and I love Archa, smooth taste. I am married and when in the village the brothers etc expect me to buy a case of beer every nite so I bought the cheapest Archa it had Aussie Gold on. Now they buy it. It is a good Beer.
I'm sitting round the pool in chaweng drinking archa from a bottle right now. I honestly think it's one of the best beers I've had anywhere. Maybe it's the can that effects the taste as with most drinks. Try it from a bottle it's great. I'm really shocked that people think it's the worst beer, if you don't like it that's fine but worst!? Have you not tried carlsberg, Stella or holsten pilsner!!! There are far worse beers than archa trust me!
I just recently moved to Bangkok from Portland, Oregon, USA (the beer capital of the States), and am definitely a beer drinker. It may not be Belgium there, but there are around 40 microbreweries which cater to a population of only about 600,000 people, and I've worked at two of them, so I consider myself to be pretty educated on brew. My game plan when moving to Thailand was to cut way back on the brews since there was so much less selection, and way less variety in taste. However, I've had to give all the local brews a whirl, and, like Cliff posted above, I just cracked my first Archa (due to flooding, it was all that was left at the 7-11, and I haven't had a beer in five days, so I needed a cold one!). I've gotta say, as cheap as this stuff is, I was a little apprehensive. But, honestly, I was pleasantly surprised by this little scamp of a brew. It's not mind-bendingly, wizards and rainbows outstanding, but it's leaps and bounds better than Chang (which tastes like malt liquor…UGH!). Plus, I read elsewhere it's around 5.4%, so it's got more pop than Singha or Tiger, without the taste of raw butthole like Chang. I'd have to say it's my favorite so far. I don't understand the "flat/paint thinner" descriptions at all. If I had to rank them, it'd be:
1. Archa
2. Singha
3. Tiger
4. Leo
5. Chang
If this is too long for you to wade through, and you need a summary: If you see this cheap swill in your local market for 30-30 baht per 22 oz. bottle, scoop one or two. You'll be spending half as much as you would've on Singha/Tiger, and getting a better buzz with better (read: any semblance of) flavor. On second thought, I haven't tried 'em side by side, so maybe get one of each.
u think archa is bad? try export chang beer , the chang beer that they export to other country is a FUCKING ARCHAR BEER! with chang lable , how fucking bullshit is that , u drink with the imagination of once was a good beer with the worst hangover ever but so dissapinted once its in ur throat yes i know that for a fact! why? cuz my cousin's husband works for thaibev who owns chang and i live in the usa , i don't even drink chang anymore and i never told my customer this bcuz they can't tell the different between the taste, well i can but as long as i make money i don't give a damn lol , chang was my fave until the recipe changed in 2000 that's a big WHAT TA FUK!