In yesterday's post about how "humility" and "disgrace" play an important role in China I mentioned one of the many places in China that felt far away from issues of censorship, detainment or any of the other negatives of China -- the Prague Cafe in Kunming, Yunnan:
However, while in many ways the cafe is a sign of progress for China there was one clear indication that progress takes time -- at least in the eyes of those of us with particular tastes in beer (see here). Despite offering a couple of different options for Czech beer, the beer of choice by the Chinese customers there was this:
The customers at the Prague Cafe were drinking a local brew -- Dali Beer. I've had it before, in Dali in fact, and it's a mid-range quality Chinese beer (however, like for many things in China the boundaries can be fuzzy). This may be another example of localized tastes. More likely, though, it was related to another important issue - cost. Many of the customers were college students and the Czech beer was significantly more expensive.
At least the customers have the choice to someday discover a wonderful Czech beer. If they're really lucky, they'll even get to try some Czech inspired bia hoi in Vietnam some day and learn the ins and outs of how not to be tricked when trying to find some.
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| Outside of the Prague Cafe in Kunming |
However, while in many ways the cafe is a sign of progress for China there was one clear indication that progress takes time -- at least in the eyes of those of us with particular tastes in beer (see here). Despite offering a couple of different options for Czech beer, the beer of choice by the Chinese customers there was this:
 |
| Dali Beer |
The customers at the Prague Cafe were drinking a local brew -- Dali Beer. I've had it before, in Dali in fact, and it's a mid-range quality Chinese beer (however, like for many things in China the boundaries can be fuzzy). This may be another example of localized tastes. More likely, though, it was related to another important issue - cost. Many of the customers were college students and the Czech beer was significantly more expensive.
At least the customers have the choice to someday discover a wonderful Czech beer. If they're really lucky, they'll even get to try some Czech inspired bia hoi in Vietnam some day and learn the ins and outs of how not to be tricked when trying to find some.
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