Ask Josem about visiting/living in Australia

[Josem]

[ QUOTE ]
Serious question: since you call ketchup "tomato sauce," what do you call tomato sauce (stuff you put on spaghetti or a pizza)?

[/ QUOTE ]

We call do call "ketchup" "ketchup." It is available for sale in supermarkets.

However, it is generally not popular, and tomato sauce is massively more popular.


(I understand that ketchup is tomato sauce plus some additives of some sort)

[Jethro87]

I'm gonna be heading to Melbourne (hopefully) for a school exchange in july. Are there any "must see" things that a college student would find interesting? Money's not a huge factor. Thanks for doing this.

[Josem]

Some key July things:

Aussie Rules Football (MCG)

More: http://www.thatsmelbourne.com.au/info.cf...p;x=17&y=11

I've just quit my job, and will be finishing in April and moving back to Melbourne then - PM me closer to the time

[Ditch Digger]

Why is beer from the liquor store so friggin expensive?

[Lonhro]

[ QUOTE ]
Why is beer from the liquor store so friggin expensive?

[/ QUOTE ]

Because our Government is so friggen greedy [img]/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img]

[Josem]

[ QUOTE ]
Why is beer from the liquor store so friggin expensive?

[/ QUOTE ]
Key sources of information on this:

http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/r...6rb15.htm#nine

and

http://www.ato.gov.au/businesses/pathway...001_003_043_003


Abbreviated version (copied from the Australian Parliamentary Library site):
Excise and the GST are levied on a range of alcoholic beverages. Excise is levied on the basis of alcohol content, that is, so many dollars per litre of alcohol

Excise on beer has been levied on the basis of alcohol content (that is, per litre of alcohol) since 1988. Beer excise is generally structured so that, the higher the alcohol content, the larger the amount of excise payable. This provides an incentive to consume low-alcohol beer. Australia is in the minority of OECD countries where the excise amounts are progressive by alcohol strength.

[WhoIam]

What's the capacity of those little thimbles bartenders have to pour booze into when making mixed drinks? I spent over $100 on $5 gin and tonics on several occasions and I'm far from being a big guy.

[ QUOTE ]
Why is beer from the liquor store so friggin expensive?

[/ QUOTE ] I found that imports at least were comparable to US prices.

[Josem]

[ QUOTE ]
What's the capacity of those little thimbles bartenders have to pour booze into when making mixed drinks? I spent over $100 on $5 gin and tonics on several occasions and I'm far from being a big guy.


[/ QUOTE ]

They are 30ml.

They have the alcoholic content of 1 standard drink, the same as a 100ml glass of wine or a 285ml pot of full strength beer.

More information is available online at http://www.therightmix.gov.au/sdg.asp

[Ditch Digger]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Why is beer from the liquor store so friggin expensive?

[/ QUOTE ]
Key sources of information on this:

http://www.aph.gov.au/library/pubs/r...6rb15.htm#nine

and

http://www.ato.gov.au/businesses/pathway...001_003_043_003


Abbreviated version (copied from the Australian Parliamentary Library site):
Excise and the GST are levied on a range of alcoholic beverages. Excise is levied on the basis of alcohol content, that is, so many dollars per litre of alcohol

Excise on beer has been levied on the basis of alcohol content (that is, per litre of alcohol) since 1988. Beer excise is generally structured so that, the higher the alcohol content, the larger the amount of excise payable. This provides an incentive to consume low-alcohol beer. Australia is in the minority of OECD countries where the excise amounts are progressive by alcohol strength.

[/ QUOTE ]

Interesting. It's weird that you can get a bottle of wine for 10 bucks but that'll barely buy you 3 beers. Taxation for beer vs wine is completely out of whack.

If somebody drinks "light" beer, is he considered a puss?

[Josem]

[ QUOTE ]
If somebody drinks "light" beer, is he considered a puss?

[/ QUOTE ]

Light beer, in Australia, means low alcohol beer.

It is consumed almost entirely by people who are going to be driving soon after - the maximum blood alcohol concentration in Australian states is 0.05%. It would be highly unusual for someone under the age of 30 to be drinking light beer in other circumstances.

Australia, and in particular, the state of Victoria, has the toughest road regulations anywhere in the world.

Amongst other things, it was the first place in the world to have compulsory seat belts, compulsory random breath testing for drink driving, and now the first place in the world to have compulsory random drug testing for drivers.

More info on this is available at http://www.arrivealive.vic.gov.au/