As an infantry soldier, my unit only had access to beer when we were at a firebase or when visiting a major base camp. At the firebase, the options were limited to Falstaff, Pabst, and Black Label. Major base camps typically had a PX (post exchange), along with EM, NCO, and Officers Clubs, which functioned as bars and offered a much better selection, including hard liquor. The beer at these locations was ice-cold and cost about 10 cents in Military Payment Certificates (MPC).
If you had access to a major city like Saigon or Da Nang, bars were abundant and local beers were cheap and plentiful. Imported beer usually sold here for one dollar or more MPC.
In the bush, some units received one beer per person on resupply days. The temperature was usually around 90 degrees, and the beer had an acquired taste that not everyone appreciated. Many soldiers chose not to drink beer and instead traded it for their favorite C-Ration treats, soda (like Fresca), or cigarettes. I remember seeing armored units with cases of C-Rations and beer stacked inside their vehicles. They rationed these items carefully or used them to barter with other units.
When we arrived at a firebase or rear area for a three-day standdown after spending about a month in the field, we were treated to steaks, burgers, and fries, along with unlimited cans of ice-cold beer from large 55-gallon drums. Many of us found ourselves tipsy after just three or four beers since our bodies weren’t accustomed to partying; we ended up passing out and enjoying a full night’s sleep.
So, what kind of alcohol did you have access to during the war, and where did you drink it?
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1st ANGLICO
Gale Fechik
The ROK Marines gave us a couple of Crown beers a month. When I rotated of my hilltop and spent a couple of days in Hoi An, I drank whatever was furnished. It was wet and better than the water.
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We mostly survived on Tiger Beer and 33. And yes, at base camp, the selection was better, and colder
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hello all
i don’t know what the grunts drank. but as an officer on merchant ships bringing supplies 65-68 to vietnam ports on america export ships, i can tell you what we brought….. carling black label, 3.5 per cent alcohol. tons and tons of it. i might have tasted a few myself. i remember you could not get drunk on it.
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Knickerbocker, Black Label, Budweiser. I also drank, and preferred, 33. Larue was justifiably labeled “Tiger piss.”
33 was the only beer that could standup to the local ice in a tea glass. All other beers wilted.
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Hamms or whatever came over on some ship. It would be the only choice for about 2 months.
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Hi John, I am truly amazed at the recollection of your off duty time !
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My unit was one that did receive one can of Black Label beer per man on resupply days. I found that one beer would give me quite a buzz. Even though the buzz was completely sweated away within the first hundred meters of humping away from the resupply LZ, I always traded my beer for a soda, C, or LRRP. But either way, 30-60 seconds of rolling a hot metal can on a block of ice cooled it to just above freezing and it was a delicious treat. But truth be told getting clean underwear and fatigues and resupplied with water was far more important to me than beer or soda.
C 5/7, 1st Cav 70-71
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I was with the Air Force at Danang Air Base, November 1968 – November 1969. I was assigned to the 4th SOS, AC-47D Spooky gunships. I was a crew chief on one of the aircraft. A majority of the time I was there, I worked sunset to sunrise when our aircraft flew support missions. In addition to the usual maintenance activities, we were also the load crew for the aircraft. We delivered the amno and flares to the aircraft. We had ration cards. Each month, we had a limited amount of alcohol we could purchase at the BX’s. Once the blocks for alcohol were punched, we had to wait until the next month. I have never been an alcoholic beverage drinker due to a family history of living with alcoholics. One of my coworkers was also a “tea-totaler”. A group of us would go the the Navy BX several times a month. We would see Army troops who had been away from civilization for a while and were visiting the BX. My friend and I would offer to purchase alcoholic beverages for the Army and Marine troops who were milling around outside the BX. Not being rich and as much as I appreciated what they were doing when on duty, we offered to purchase the alcohol for whatever the BX was charging. Tom and I would limit each person to one bottle of hard liquor or three cans of beer.
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Carlton Black Label, usually it was warm, and smelled like a skunk. If you were lucky enough you could get Aussie beer that as stronger than 3.2 and it would kick your butt. Tab soda was so bad that even the Vietnamese didn’t want it. I heard that pilots would fly in with Coors beer and could get anything for it. San Miguel from the PI was a good beer when it was cold and not the export stuff.
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I drank Schlitz as my “beer in the rear” (GEEK in video title pic); I got kicked out of 188 MP Co 504th MP Bn 18th MP Bde into C Co 1-20 11Bde AMERICAL, where it didn’t matter. I was a dead man
https://youtu.be/R8fkePkJEWE?is=Z4d2iVvf-8jd8hN2
and knew it.
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Think It was called Ballentine Beer. It was a 3-2 product and I was in the Pleiku, Kontum area. But then, like now, I never liked the taste of alcoholic beverages. Cool-Aide Brother….
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I never saw a beer ration when I was with the Marines in 1970 before I got wounded. When we could steal or trade for beer the brand didn’t matter. We took the same route with the hard stuff. Where there was a will there was a way.
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What ever was cold at the time!!
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Warm schlitz
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we drank cold Budweiser we bought a case at a time
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Most the beer we got shipped to us in the field was Schlitz. When I was in a town like Tay Ninh, at a bar, I drank a lot of Vietnamese beers like “33” and “Tiger.” If I found a bar with Michelob or Budweiser, I’d drink that.
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I was with 101st and we had the same beers that you mentioned….I was bombed after 1 beer ! At FB Professional ( Americal AO ) the medic somehow got a bottle of 151 Rum. He and I drank most of it in one afternoon/evening ……Yikes !
An ECSTATIC MAN…. A DROWNING MAN…. BOTH RAISE THEIR ARMS
The Devil made me do it the first time but I done it on my own the Second Time
The Sun’s not Yellow IT’S CHICKEN ! PO BOX 72 Chester Ma.01011 413 768 9519
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