Story and pictures by BRIAN MARTIN

FOR someone who is a teetotaller, Ralph Lee certainly has an unusual hobby he collects beer coasters.

Lee, 33, has more than 1,000 coasters of all shapes and sizes in his collection, some new and some rare.

"Beer coasters can be divided into two types, coasters that have beer company emblems or coasters that belong to individual pubs," he said.

Lee, the manager of Backyard Pub in Taman Sri Hartamas, began his collection five years ago.

"A regular patron, Englishman Peter Smith presented me with an antique collection of six coasters.

I hung the set on the wall of the pub, and before I knew it, other patrons started passing me coasters!" he recalled.

As the pub has a cosmopolitan mix of patrons, Lee soon amassed a collection of coasters from around the world.

Many expatriates gave him coasters from England, Scotland, Australia, Brazil, Germany, Argentina, Japan, the United States and other countries. The genial Lee's collection can now be seen adorning almost every corner of the pub.

"The coasters are fascinating. Some come in a series, some are in jigsaw puzzle format and there are others that portray types of beer that most of us will never get to savour," he said.

There are some unusual coasters in his collection, but the one he likes best is a set of 10 which depicts the oldest pubs in London on one side and London tourist attractions on the other. "The coasters cannot be bought and are given free by beer companies or the pubs.

"My collection is growing all the time as people who hear of my hobby keep bringing me more coasters," Lee said with a smile.

Lee has been offered RM2,000 to part with his collection but he says his coasters are for keeps.

"It has become too much of a talking point in the pub for me to even contemplate selling the coasters," he said.

The Tapah-born Lee is also an avid Liverpool fan, which explains his other hobby collecting football scarfs.

"I hung my Liverpool scarf on the ceiling of the pub and since then I have received more than 100 football scarfs from around the world from my customers," he said.

The scarfs, representing football clubs from leagues around the world, are hung from the ceiling and add a colourful touch to the pub.

Lee's beer coaster and football scarf collection can be seen at Backyard Pub, Taman Sri Hartamas, Kuala Lumpur, Tel: 6510318.

Pix: Lee with part of his beer coaster collection at the Backyard Pub in Taman Sri Hartamas.

© Star Publications (Malaysia) Bhd