Beer and Brewer Magazine

Drinking and driving might be for bloody idiots, but cars and beers certainly do mix and not just V8 Supercars and VB, writes Graham Reeks.

YOU love your car. You love your beer. Don't worry, it's perfectly natural and you're not alone. But why is it that beer and cars match up so well?

For a start cars have doors that open, and beer opens the doors to perception. Cars are kept behind garage doors and beer is kept behind fridge doors. Both can make you smile, and both account for a large proportion f your disposables.

We've heard all the psychobabble about how our car reflects our identity and there may be something to it as I've never seen a Playboy model driving a Hyundai Accent with a bunny sticker. But does the beer you're seen holding match your car keys and your personality?

Does it matter what you're seen crossing the BWS forecourt with? Should it match the car in some way? Would you feel odd if you climbed into a Lamborghini with a carton of XXXX Gold? Could you even fit a carton in a Lambo? (I'm willing to give it a try if anyone has one to lend me).

Some petrolheads are happy to send their expensive motor to a trusted mechanic, and are content to just drive and clean their steed. These are the type of people who buy their beer off the peg, but no average beer. Money is not an issue, Cascade First Harvest might come in packs of four and cost a pretty penny, but that's the price you pay for quality.

There are others with a different motivation. They take pride in maintaining their car; they do their own servicing, thank you very much and certainly don't pay a spotty youth to change their oil. They wouldn't take on an engine rebuild though - they know their limits. When it comes to lubricating their laughing gear they take the same approach - they're a kit and kilo brewer and have a brew kit of their favourite tipple.

Then there are obsessives. They build their cars from the ground up, designing bespoke parts along the way, customising the engine, borrowing from other marques. This is the sort of person that spends countless hours restoring, building, modding, cleaning, polishing, trying to win competitions. They make sure that all the nuts on their rocker covers line up uniformly. Chances are they treat their beer in the same way (if they have the spare time). They are perfectionist mash brewers only happy with the best natural ingredients. They have two sheds - one for each passion.

A Top Gear-style cool wall approach might suit so that drinkers could match their beer to their car. 

If such a thing existed, we might be living in a world of tenuous associations where V-Dub Beetle drivers would only be seen with Sol or Corona because the old shape Beetle was built in Mexico City. Drivers of the newer model would have lime in the neck of their bottles.

Those with Peugeots and Citrôens could be drinking Kronenbourg 1664 or Kanterbrau Gold, maybe Bass from Burton on Trent, because that was Napoleon's favourite? A Dodge Viper might be worthy of an Anchor Steam Ale whereas the owners of Chryslers and Jeeps might rightfully be forced to drink Budweiser and Miller.

Perhaps personality is more important than looks after all. Mini drivers could sip at pint-sized Little Creatures, and Hummer drivers guzzle down Coopers Sparkling from tallies. Frugal four cylinder car owners would stick to a mid-strength beer, whilst the souped up flashy WRX and Skyline brigade clutch on to their Crown lager. Diesel drivers would exchange their sooty exhaust fumes for a rich dark brew like Guinness. Dairy farmers would match their 4X4s with Moo Brew. And the luxury Lexus drivers would of course be Asahi drinkers. But if it all came down to the name, vintage collectors with old Singers would have no option but Singha.

Outside this fantasy world though there are some real links between beers and cars. Pilsner Urquell (actually the German name meaning original pilsner) comes from Pilzen, in the Czech Republic. On the other side of the road from this brewery Mecca is a Skoda factory where these cars (and munitions and tanks) have been made since the early twentieth century. I actually know that there are a fair few English blokes who are mad about their Triumph Spitfires, and only drink Shepherd Neame's Spitfire beer - even though it's named after the fighter rather than the car. Some have their cars plastered in stickers advertising their choice brew. I've never quite understood this idea, though. Surely the drivers spend half their life blowing into bags for the local police. It's a bit like driving around with a rego that says "I sell drugs" on it.

e've seen the TV ad that ever so subtly points to the link between our favourite drink and Ford Utes - there's beer flowing from the fountains. Maybe brewers are missing a trick here. Perhaps one of our fine breweries should be tuning their beer to appeal to a niche motoring market? In the UK this has already happened. Moorland took the UK by storm when it started producing Old Speckled Hen - named after a famous MG car with a 5.2 litre engine that has defined the strength of the ale. Greene King, makers of the robust Abbot Ale, also make a Triumph beer that uses the motorcycle logo on its pump clip.

As for me, well my old Triumph sedan was put together in this country with a few little tweaks to make sure it's better suited this part of the world, so what better beer to go with it than Boags Wizard Smith English Ale - an Aussie twist on an English classic.

So what about you? Is there a link between your motor and your amber nectar?