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Geneva beer the world's most expensive: survey

Malcolm Curtis
Malcolm Curtis - [email protected]
Geneva beer the world's most expensive: survey
Photo: Philippe Huguen/AFP

Just as Switzerland steels for a heatwave this week comes news that beer, a favourite beverage for slaking thirsts in hot times, is the most expensive in the world in the country’s second biggest city.

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With an average price of $6.32 for a 33cl bottle, Geneva has the most costly beer on the planet, according to research from travel website GoEuro.

Thanks in part to the strength of the Swiss franc, brew is more expensive in the city of Calvin than second-ranked Hong Kong ($6.16), third-ranked Tel Aviv ($5.79), fourth-ranked Oslo ($5.31) and fifth-ranked New York ($5.20).

Beer is less pricey in Zurich, Switzerland’s largest city, where it averages $4.60 a bottle, the 11th most expensive in the world, according to the GoEuro Beer Index for 2015.

Those with parched throats will appreciate the cheapest cold ones in Krakow, Poland and Kiev, Ukraine, where they sell for an average of $1.66 a bottle.

The survey of 75 cities calculates the average price of a 33cl bottle of beer in supermarkets and at bars to determine an overall average price.

GoEuro used several worldwide brands and a local major brand in each city and converted prices to American dollars according to exchange figures from June 12th.

Not surprisingly, perhaps, residents of Krakow are among those quaffing the most beer per capita in the world, downing 127 litres a year, along with Warsaw, according to World Health Organization figures.

But the champions are in Bucharest, where per capita consumption is 133 litres at an estimated annual cost of $1,132.

That’s more than twice as much as Genevans who imbibe an average of 63 litres a year, paying an average of $1,202 for the privilege.

The GoEuro survey indicates that the average price of a beer at a Geneva bar is $10.77, while the average supermarket price for a bottle is $1.87.

Zurich residents drink the same amount as Genevans, although their yearly bill is considerably less - $875.

To find the place where people spend the most for beer annually you have to travel to Helsinki, where residents pod out an average of $1,542 for 105 litres.

The least beer is drunk in Cairo, with an average of just four litres a year at a cost of $25.

In the Egyptian city, known for its long hot summers, residents may well be heeding the advice of medical experts who warn against consuming alcohol in warm weather.

For more on the GoEuro Beer Index, check here.

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