This Formula One racer would like to buy you a beer

If you happen to spot Formula One driver Valtteri Bottas in an Australian pub this summer, you should insist he buys you a beer. 

The Finnish driver, who spends his off-season in Australia, is taking up a summer job with his favourite brewery: Adelaide-based Coopers Brewery. 

Coopers has handed Bottas a Coopers Gold Card, unlocking free Coopers beer around the country - meaning the beers could be on him for punters who spot the Cadillac racing driver in a Coopers venue this summer. 

Bottas has twice finished runner-up in the World Drivers' Championship - in 2019 and 2020 with Mercedes, and has won 10 Grands Prix in total.

Since February 2020, Bottas has been in a relationship with Australian cyclist Tiffany Cromwell and they have a home in McLaren Vale, outside Adelaide.

 

He has been newly appointed as a "Coopers’ Quality Assurance Trainee", tasked with visiting pubs to conduct taste testing of Coopers beers. 

As part of this he will be on the lookout for ultimate freshness, keg quality and perfect pour. 

Bottas, who says his favourite beer is Coopers Australian Lager, visited Coopers Brewery in Regency Park, South Australia, after the Singapore Grand Prix for an induction, training and his own taste test with the Coopers brewing team in the $70m restaurant and microbrewery on site. 

Coopers Brewery managing director Michael Shearer said: “We’re honoured that Valtteri is a huge fan of Coopers, which made him the natural appointment to take on the task of tasting our ice-cold Coopers beer in venues across Australia this summer. 

“We are delighted he has taken on the role and expect he will be tapping his Coopers Gold Card frequently as he pops up in pubs nationally. 

“Fans should keep their eyes on Bottas’ socials as we know he has plans to invite fans to have a beer with him this summer. 

It's a marketing exercise - but a fun one. 

“I think Coopers is the best beer in the world and I’ve been a fan of the brand for a long time," Bottas said. 

"I’m very honoured to have this job. I tasted Coopers when I first came to Adelaide in 2020 and I fell in love with the taste. 

“I’ve travelled a lot and I always try the local stuff. With Coopers, it’s just the taste, the way they make it and the story of being family owned.” 

# Founded in 1862, Coopers Brewery is a sixth-generation Australian family company and the nation’s largest independent brewer. 

NSW wine advocate slams Sydney Fish Market

A fierce advocate for the New South Wales wine industry has slammed the operation of the new Sydney Fish Market.

David Cumming, a marketer, wine retailer and PR based in Orange, says local wines are being all but ignored at the state-owned facility in Glebe (above), which opened at the start of the year. 

"The people of NSW own the Sydney Fish Market," Cumming says in a LinkedIn post. .

"The NSW Government built it on public land at Blackwattle Bay. It was built to showcase NSW seafood. The company that runs it is owned by NSW fishers and seafood merchants.

"So we read every wine on its restaurant lists. All 441 of them. 33 are from NSW. That is 1 in 13.

"Half the wine is imported. There is three times more South Australian wine than NSW wine. The Barossa has more wines on these lists than the Hunter Valley. 

"NSW seafood on the plate. Someone else’s wine in the glass.

"The government still holds the head lease, so it can ask for NSW wine at the table."

He has a point. 

Is this Sydney's best meal deal?

Sydney is Sydney, which means big city prices. Most of the time.

An exception to that rule is a new deal at Sydney CBD favourite Chophouse.

You get a a full-sized martini, a premium beef slider and fries for just $15 every weekday.

Chophouse, operated by celebrity chef Matt Moran, says it is "bringing a little everyday indulgence to the city with a new weekday offering that pairs classic steakhouse quality with an exceptionally good price".

The Martini & Slider deal pairs a slider made with Australian beef, golden fries and a chilled, full-sized martini.

Chophouse says: it is "the ultimate high-low pairing - three classics done right, bringing a little luxury to the weekday without the price tag. Think leisurely lunches, afternoons on the Terrace and after-work martinis, with a very good excuse to linger a little longer".

The Martini & Slider is available Monday to Friday, 12pm–6pm, until December 31.

It is served on Chophouse's al fresco terrace and at the bar, exclusively for walk-ins.

See https://chophousesydney.com.au/prime-pairing

Image: Supplied 

Thieves with impeccable palates, and expensive tastes

Thieves with fine palates and expensive tastes have struck one of Italy's highest-profile wine producers.

Masked men broke into the Cantine Marchese Antinori storage facility in Cortona and stole around 30,000 bottles from the high-end Tuscan winery producer.

The haul was estimated to be worth US$5.8 and was Italy's most lucrative wine heist.

The stolen wines were all from 2023 and included some of the region’s most iconic labels, news hub the drinks business reported.

Around seven bandits disabled the alarm system and surveillance cameras before using the winery’s own forklifts to load two trucks with bottles. The theft happened on a Saturday but was was only discovered by staff on Monday.

The stolen wines have retail prices of between €150 and €500 and include Solaia, Tignanello and Guado al Tasso, all flagship “Super Tuscan” reds.

"The gang was very prepared,” said Renzo Cotarella, chief executive of Marchesi Antinori, which was founded in 1385 and is run by the 26th generation of the family.

“A theft of this scale and value has never happened before in Italy.”

He said he had “great confidence” that investigators would locate the stolen wine.

Qantas launches New Zealand sale fares

Fancy a New Zealand getaway? 

Qantas has just launched a week-long New Zealand sale, in partnership with Tourism New Zealand, offering one-way economy fares from as low as $289 between the Gold Coast and Auckland.

Travellers from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane can fly to Auckland, Christchurch or Wellington from $359, while Melbourne to Queenstown starts at $379. 

For a little more comfort, premium economy between Sydney and Auckland starts at $599 one way, while business class fares start at $749 from Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane to Auckland, Christchurch or Wellington.

All Qantas customers enjoy 30kg checked baggage, food and beverages plus inflight entertainment included in all trans-Tasman fares.

“For a lot of Australians, New Zealand is the easiest overseas trip there is, and over the past year we’ve made it even more accessible, with new routes from Adelaide and the Gold Coast to Auckland and more flights to Christchurch, Wellington and Queenstown," says  Qantas International CEO, Cam Wallace. 

"This sale with Tourism New Zealand gives customers the chance to lock in a seat from $289.

“Whether it’s a long weekend in Auckland, a few days in Wellington or the ski season in Queenstown, there are some great fares here for Australians wanting a quick trip across the Tasman.”

The sale ends on October 19. 

Dual pricing raises its ugly head in Bangkok

Dual pricing is one of the Thai tourism industry's dirty little secrets.

No matter where you come from you are likely to be paying more than locals. Unofficially, sometimes officially. 

Reasons: the average foreigner is assumed to have more money than the average Thai and can afford to pay more. Also, because foreigners don’t pay taxes, they can help fund tourism projects.

The Thai dual price system exists across popular travel destinations such as temples and national parks, and sometimes at markets.

Nowhere, however, is it more obvious than when using public transport in Bangkok.

Locals will pay a maximum of 45 baht ($1.90) for all electric train lines per trip starting from January 1, 2027, but foreigners are not eligible.

Our Thailand correspondent says that the press release trumpeting the new fare scheme carefully omits that this is for Thais only, saying only "eligible" passengers.

Under the planned system, Thai citizens would be charged according to the actual value of their journey. If the fare exceeds 45 baht, the government would refund the difference. 

Deputy Transport Minister Siripong Angkasakulkiat confirmed foreigners won't be eligible, which is why refunds will be paid through the government's Pao Tang app. Expats and tourists will keep paying standard fares.

Which sounds very complicated. And something that could well annoy tourists who are already threatened by increased entry and exit taxes by Thai authorities.

Regular readers know that Thailand is one of GoTR's favourite destinations. But...

"Somewhere in the dark corner of a government building there is a department which houses a group of people whose only job is to dream up ways to make anything as complicated as possible," our correspondent reports.