Draft beer on Veendam?

Going on Veendam next month - wondered what brand of draft beer is available? We are guessing Heineken.

Going on Veendam next month - wondered what brand of draft beer is available? We are guessing Heineken.

 

Can't wait to see the answers to this question. I only drink black beers and am a Guinness fanatic. Have had Guinness Foreign Extra in bottles on ships that have been to Europe and have some left over. Scored a case of Foreign Extra on a later cruise thanks to a fantastic Beverage Manager... Bottom line is that if you like dark beers, you will not be pleased. If you look at the offerings listed in the Onboard Indulgences you will not see any black beers.

 

I recognize this rant does not answer your question about draft beer but gives me the chance to "gig" HAL for not offering "real" beer. Please understand that I am a HAL cheerleader except for their selection of beer. I did see some amber beers offered on tap at some of the newer bars on some ships. Good luck...

Going on Veendam next month - wondered what brand of draft beer is available? We are guessing Heineken.

 

They have draft, Stella for sure and Miller I believe, the only problem is that the beer is not to well carbonated, because the hose from the keg is too long...

Going on Veendam next month - wondered what brand of draft beer is available? We are guessing Heineken.

 

I have pictures of the bar menu from the Veendam. However, sadly, I'm not at home and can't access them right now. I'll check back in a couple of days (when I'm home) and post them then.

Two years and a few months ago they had Stella A, Beck's, Boddington's, & Bass. No dark. :( :(

My DH only drinks the bottled Grolsch. His very favorite.

HAL has crap beer on all ships which is strange for a Seattle based company since that is a great brewing region.

Grolsch is also my favorite beer while cruising with HAL. As a bonus, Grolsch has extra large bottles.

 

igraf

 

 

 

My DH only drinks the bottled Grolsch. His very favorite.

Grolsch is also my favorite beer while cruising with HAL. As a bonus, Grolsch has extra large bottles. igraf

Yes, DH loves those bottles. DH says he does not remember ever seeing draft beer on a HAL cruise. He will check for sure in a couple of weeks.

Edited February 9, 2014 by Linda&Vern

DH says he does not remember ever seeing draft beer on a HAL cruise. He will check for sure in a couple of weeks.

It is only on ships with The Mix (four S-class and Rotterdam), not Zuiderdam.

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Edited February 9, 2014 by jtl513

Two years and a few months ago they had Stella A, Beck's, Boddington's, & Bass. No dark. :( :(

That is what I remember from our Veendam cruise three years ago, the worst of the German, Belgian, and British beers. Beck's tasted better from a bottle than from the tap. I wonder if they sell draft beer quickly enough to keep it from going out of date. I rarely saw anyone drinking draft beer in the The Mix.

 

Grolsch is my brew of choice on Holland America. I wish they would bring a few cases of local beer aboard in foreign ports and have a mini beer festival. I would think they could turn a profit on it.

Draft beer on international ships is a big problem.

 

Due to some bizarre tax regulations, the cost of draft beer sold on a ship is much higher than the cost of the same draft beer sold on land. It is nearly impossible for a cruise ship to make a profit on draft beer. We charge too much for the beer, reducing the turnover and the freshness/quality of the beer.

 

Then there are the barrels. Most beer barrels from Europe and Asia require one type of connector, and barrels from North America require another connector. There is no draft beer machine available to ships that will allow them to accommodate both types of barrels.

 

Then there is the deposit on the barrels. In the past, cruise ships would sail away for long periods of time and not return the empty barrels. So the distributors require large deposits in order to get them back.

 

A ship has to store empty and full barrels for long periods of time. North American distributors will not accept empty European or Asian barrels. European and Asian distributors will not accept North American barrels. As you know already, storage on a ship is very limited, so we get stuck storing all those empty barrels for extended periods.

 

The draft beer dispensers belong to the distributors - not the cruise line. If and when they need servicing, we need to pay to fly a technician into do the work. If the distributor is in Miami and the ship is in China, it gets very expensive.

 

Then there is the USPH. They do not like draft beer dispensers, claiming that they cannot be properly cleaned. Ships inevitable lose points or get negative observations about the draft beer dispensers during USPH inspections.

 

All in all, it is just not worth it to have draft beer on a ship.

Going on Veendam next month - wondered what brand of draft beer is available? We are guessing Heineken.

 

Not a great picture, but here it is:

 

 

Draught Beer (16 oz) $4.75

Bass Pale Ale

Beck's

Boddingtons

Stella Artois

They do. Alaskan Brewery beer is offered on Alaskan cruises. In fact, they usually have a Alaskan Brewery display out by the Lido pool.

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

..I wish they would bring a few cases of local beer aboard in foreign ports and have a mini beer festival. I would think they could turn a profit on it.

I wish they would bring a few cases of local beer aboard in foreign ports and have a mini beer festival.

In Warnemude Germany the Westerdam brought on Rostock beer and an oom-pah-pah band for a beer fest at the Lido pool.

In Warnemude Germany the Westerdam brought on Rostock beer and an oom-pah-pah band for a beer fest at the Lido pool.

Excellent! I hope Holland America expands the local beer offerings. I don't need anything fancy. I had hoped that they would have offered a few Chilean and Argentine beers on our Cape Horn cruise. It was not to be.