Cheers Beer: Fact Or Fiction?

Norm Peterson, the beer-loving barfly on Cheers, almost always had a beer in his hand. However, the actor who played him, George Wendt, did not drink real beer. Instead, he consumed near beer, a non-alcoholic beverage with a low alcohol content of around 3% and lots of salt to keep a frothy head. Wendt described the fake beer as warm and flat and said that pretending to like it required some serious acting. Interestingly, in one of the final scenes of the series finale, the cast drank real beer, and they were visibly drunk when they later appeared on The Tonight Show.

Norm drank non-alcoholic beer

Norm Peterson, played by George Wendt, is a beer-loving barfly on the show Cheers. However, despite being rarely seen without a beer in his hand, Wendt has revealed that he was actually drinking non-alcoholic beer, or "near beer", on set.

The non-alcoholic beverage was far from appealing, according to Wendt. The producers of Cheers wanted the fake beer to be served on tap, but the specific type they used wasn't available in kegs. Instead, they put cans of the generic fake beer into soda dispensers, which meant the beer was flat by the time it was poured into Norm's mug. To improve its appearance, the props team added salt to the mugs so that the carbonation would create a frothy head. Wendt recalled that it took "some serious acting to pretend [he] liked that stuff".

The unappetising nature of the flat, salty drink was compounded by the fact that it was often warm, having been left under hot stage lights for hours. Despite this, Wendt's acting prowess meant that the beer never looked unappealing to viewers.

Wendt is a beer enthusiast in real life and wrote a book titled Drinking With George: A Barstool Professional’s Guide to Beer, in which he references Cheers. However, he has noted some key differences between himself and his character. While Norm is ambivalent about his wife, Vera, Wendt loves his own wife, who voiced Vera on the show. Additionally, while Norm never seems to get drunk, Wendt acknowledged that he does occasionally get drunk in real life.

The beer was flat and salty

In fact, Wendt has gone on record to say that he "had to drink fake beer" for the show, and that it was "far from appealing". The specific type of fake beer they used wasn't available in kegs, so the cans were put into soda dispensers long before filming, making the drink flat by the time Wendt had to consume it on-screen. The salt was added to improve its appearance, creating a frothy head once again.

Wendt, who wrote a book titled "Drinking With George: A Barstool Professional's Guide to Beer", is a beer enthusiast in real life, just like his character. However, he has stated that there are some differences between himself and Norm. For one, Wendt actually likes his wife, unlike Norm's ambivalent attitude towards his wife, Vera, who is heard but never seen on the show. Another difference is that Wendt would get drunk if he drank a lot of beer, unlike his character, who was never allowed to seem like he was getting loaded.

Despite the less-than-appetising nature of the flat, salty "near beer", the cast of "Cheers" did drink real beer in one of the final scenes of the finale as their characters sat around talking about life and their importance to one another. Executive producer James Burrows was also drinking real beer off-camera.

It was served warm

While the character of Norm Peterson on Cheers is seldom seen without a beer in hand, the actor who played him, George Wendt, did not actually drink real beer. In fact, the beverage he consumed on screen was "near beer", a non-alcoholic beverage with only 3% alcohol content and lots of salt to keep a frothy head.

The reason for serving the beer warm is rooted in the production process. The show's producers wanted the fake beer to be served on tap, but the specific type they used wasn't available in kegs. Instead, they took cans of the generic fake beer and put them into soda pop dispensers. This process took place long before filming, so the beer was flat by the time it was served on screen.

To improve its appearance, the props team added salt to the beer mugs so that the carbonation would create a frothy head. This was particularly important due to the heat of the studio lights, which caused the foam to fade quickly. However, this made the drink taste horrible, as Wendt recalled: "That was some serious acting to pretend I liked that stuff."

The warm, flat, and salty nature of the beer made it far from appealing, and it posed a unique challenge for Wendt, who had to portray a beer enthusiast despite his dislike for the beverage.

The cast drank real beer in the final scene

While the cast of Cheers mostly drank fake beer, in one of the final scenes of the finale, they drank real beer. As the gang sat around talking about life and their importance to one another, the cast, including executive producer James Burrows, drank real beer.

George Wendt, who played Norm Peterson, revealed that the fake beer was ""Near Beer" and was non-alcoholic. The producers wanted it to be served on tap, but the specific type they used wasn't available in kegs. Instead, they put the cans of generic fake beer into soda dispensers, resulting in flat beer by the time it was poured on screen. To improve its appearance, the props team added salt to the beer mugs to create a frothy head, which was necessary due to the heat of the studio lights. Wendt described the drink as "warm, flat, salty, non-alcoholic beer," and said that pretending to like it "was some serious acting."

The cast of Cheers also drank real beer later that same night on The Tonight Show, which was airing live from The Bull & Finch in Boston, the real bar that the show was based on. By the end of the hour, they were visibly drunk.

The bar was fully stocked with real alcohol

The bar on the set of Cheers was fully stocked with real alcohol. However, the actors did not drink it. Norm, played by George Wendt, was often seen with a beer in his hand, but he was drinking "near beer", a non-alcoholic beverage with only 3% alcohol content. The addition of salt helped the beer keep its head under the hot studio lights.

Wendt, who wrote a book titled Drinking With George: A Barstool Professional’s Guide to Beer, is a beer enthusiast in real life. However, he did not enjoy the fake beer he had to drink on set. The producers' preference for the fake beer to be served on tap meant that the crew had to put the canned beverage into soda pop dispensers. By the time Norm drank it on screen, it was flat. To improve its appearance, the props team added salt to the beer mugs so that the carbonation would make the head frothy again. Wendt recalled that it was "warm, flat, salty, non-alcoholic beer" and that it took some serious acting to pretend I liked that stuff.

In one of the final scenes of the series finale, the cast drank real beer, and they were visibly drunk by the end of the episode.

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