all foam, no beer

alternative all foam and no beer

1. Synonym of all hat and no cattle.

   It looks good and sounds good, but it's not a true quality control program. It is all foam, no beer.

   2004, Marc A. Bringman, Swapping Lies!: Deception in the Workplace, Trafford Publishing, →ISBN

   2 more examples

   But rhetoric was all we got-turn on Clinton's spigot, and he's all foam, no beer. His boldest “action” was to appoint a study commission.

   2010 November 2, Jim Hightower, If the Gods Had Meant Us to Vote They Would Have Given Us Candidates: More Political Subversion from Jim Hightower (Revised Edition), Harper Collins, →ISBN

   Wilfred shrugged. “I think we came to an understanding.” “I doubt it,” she shook her head. “He'll be calling the mayor next.” “I wouldn't worry about Barrand. He's all foam, no beer. He'll call, make a fuss, then fix the window and forget about it.

   2016 October 4, Steve Vernon, Resurrection: Book Two of the Tatterdemon Trilogy, Stark Raven Press, page 73

   Synonyms: all hat and no cattle

2. Synonym of not the sharpest tool in the shed.

   Remember, I'm a mentally challenged college drop-out, a few beers short of a six-pack. All foam - no beer. I dropped out of GA Tech in my sophomore year.

   2007, William S. Gilmer, Investing in Stocks, AuthorHouse, →ISBN, page 336

   Synonyms: not the sharpest tool in the shed