$3.65 for the pleasure of a 12 oz bottle at Buffalo Wild Wings, Douglasville, GA, USA. Pour is about as expected in terms of a ridiculously pale color and an alarming lack of head, retention and lace. I say "alarming" since this kind of beer is rarely under carbonated but this one seems lifeless - not the usual "fizzy" macro. The nose and tastes are basically zero with a little grainy sweetness. The really depressing thing about this beer is really two-fold. Firstly this is what some people...
Notes on beers in the style
Light Lager
Michelob Ultra Lime Cactus
Six pack brought by a guest for dinner. Well, it is what it is. Slightly disconcerting, neon-like, fluorescent yellowish/green appearance. Urine comes to mind with an absolute clarity. I was expecting a bigger nose and taste of lime but really it was quite muted. Flavors are not really offensive and with baking hot sun and circumstances that did not call for flavor, I suppose it would be possible to drink this, however I think a larger lime element might make it more palatable. As it is it's...
Stroh’s Light
12 oz can from Arbor Place Beverage, Douglasville, GA, USA. $0.75 in the bargain cart - can't go wrong (I assume) - we'll see! Pour is, as expected, very, very light yellow with a high head on the initial pour that fades to almost nothing within 60 seconds. Scant lace. Nose and tastes reveal the standard macro "nothingness", and frankly this drinks largely like carbonated water. On the plus side, it's in a can (handy) and is non-offensive (meaning no nasty, "off" tastes or skunky aftertaste)....
Michelob Light
12 oz bottle, Villa Rica Sports Cafe, Villa Rica, GA, USA. Typical bright yellow urine appearance with low carbonation, no head, no lace and (again) as far as I can tell, no aroma. Apart from a very slight dry bitterness in the very back of the beer, there is almost nothing here. Finish and aftertaste are dry and characterless. Seltzer water with a touch of alcohol. Give a Mich Light drinker an Arrogant Bastard and watch the fun!
Miller Genuine Draft Light 64
$3.65 for the 12 oz, clear glass bottle at BWW in Douglasville, GA, USA. Possibly the palest beer I have ever seen. Initial head is better than expected to be honest. Some lace. Apart from the disturbing color this pretty average. Light vegetal nose but barely recognizable as beer. Body is as expected but if you can taste much of ANYTHING you are a better man than me. Seltzer water would be my description. Funny stuff; imagine giving a 64 drinker a RIS for comparison of styles!!! I suppose it...
Sapporo Light Beer
12 oz single from Green's on Ponce, Atlanta, GA, USA. $1.35. Well, it has to be said that the expectations for this beer aren't exactly sky high! Take into account the reviews already on BA, plus the style, plus the origin and it's not exactly the latest stunning, IRS limited release is it!?!? HAVING said that, that may not necessarily be a bad thing...read on.... Pour, look, color, head and lace are all what you would expect, i.e. not much, but the beer is at least unoffensive and relatively...
Natural Light
$0.75 as a single from the bargain bucket at Arbor Place Beverage, Douglasville, GA, USA. Not sure what to say about this really, but here you go; Possibly the palest "beer" I have ever seen. The head on the pour is not bad, and there is even a touch of lace. Obviously the carbonation fades to absolutely nothing after a couple of minutes, but it was there when the can was cracked. I dunno, this tastes like seltzer water to me. Flavored water with zero hop character and only a touch of sweet...
Milwaukee’s Best Light
$0.75 12 oz can from the bargain bucket at Arbor Place Beverage, Douglasville, GA, USA. Lifeless pour with a head that looks good for about one minute (rocky and leaves some lace) but then inexplicably fades to nothing. Pale golden color. Not the lightest beer I have ever seen but lacks any semblance of body. No distinctive tastes here AT ALL. In a blind taste I think I may mistake this for carbonated water. There is an impossibly light bitterness in the finish but essentially this is not beer...
Port Royal Light
Described by Josh as, "Our lightest beer yet - straw in color, with a crisp, clean finish and a light hop character. Perfect for those steamy Beaufort days & nights". Difficult to argue with the description of the beer as being light, this brew is a very nice example of the style, but simply something I am not especially interested in. It DOES have the redeeming characteristics of a beer in the style, namely really good head and great lace, great clarity and a simple, refreshing clean edge...
Yuengling Light Lager
12oz bottle, $3.00 Wild Wing Cafe, Hilton Head Island, SC, USA. Well, what exactly are you expecting?? An amberish pour with good clarity and a decent head. Of course, in true macro style the head is gone in seconds to leave no lace and a simple, light brown body. Mouthfeel is largely non-existent, and the beer lacks all character and has virtually no aroma. Some grain notes, and cleanish so that's OK. The color is better than usual, but otherwise it would be difficult to distinguish this from...
Bud Light Lime
Well, it is what it is - no more, no less. Taco Mac, Douglasville, GA, USA - on the house! Golden macro pour with a large white head. Very little lace and no retention to speak of. Aroma is that of a traditional British, lager-shandy. The lime notes are not pronounced as lime, but more of as a British lemonade. Sweet, carbonated Sprite/R Whites like rather than citrusy. Nose and aroma are not aggressive by any means. Slight citrus/lemon taste, but obviously nothing much else. Refeshing, but...
Miller Chill
I SPECIFICALLY went to my local Sports Bar in Villa Rica, GA, USA, to try this. Anyone visiting Villa Rica, GA should visit the Sports Cafe etc (yes, that's its name with the etc. added), just for the experience (however I cannot imagine why you WOULD be visiting Villa Rica). $3.50 a bottle, I tried a couple. Poured into an iced mug, this is what it is - no more, no less. There is a hint of citrus but I do not get the "salt" factor. Very good head is formed (at least in the short term) and it...
Sam Adams Light
$4.00 Taco Mac, Douglasville, GA, USA. 12 oz Bottle. Light Amber clarity with a head that disappears quickly to leave virtually no lace or head. Aroma? Not much at all. Some light biscuit malts and a dryish clean feel. Distinct lack of bitterness but a surprisingly creamy feel to the body. This is unusual to say the least because everything else about the beer is light and uninteresting. Increase in sweetness as it warms. Rich moutheel (considering) is surprising. Well, I suppose this is a...
Southern Flyer Light Lager
Yikes! Is it Ginger Ale?? It has an almost transparent appearance with a slight yellow tinge. Has a large head and a very fizzy appearance. Very, very light tastes of citrus with almost lemonade notes. This is just about as close to a non-alcoholic beer (that actually DOES have alcohol) that one can get. Not only is is 3.67% ABV, it also tastes of nothing much and honestly looks pretty close to water. Amazing clarity and lack of color! Not my thing, but in the land of light lager this isn't...
Blonde Light
If you have to drink a light beer then this will be more palatable than most. Light, golden hue with decent carbonation. Surprisingly some lace present too. Taste has a little character, more than most for the style, but not much beyond what you would expect. It always puzzles me as to why brewers of any distinction bother to produce beers like this - obviously purely a commercial decision to satisfy the ignorant masses. I doubt that they dervive much pleasure from making this type of...
Heineken Premium Light Lager
Quite what the point of this is (at least from a beer point of view) is utterly lost on me. Obviously purely a marketing ploy. All in all, very much like Heineken except watered down. Extremely thin in the mouth and taste but still manages to stamp the trademark "skunk" smell and taste. I have come to the conclusion that this is not really skunk as such, despite all the paranoia about green bottles etc., it's simply the way Heineken tastes and smells - Skunky! On the grand scale, relatively...
Corona Light
Slightly offensive aroma drinking from the bottle. Golden yellow color with some skunk. Interestingly enough, the skunk is the most well defined character of this "beer"! There is a very, very slight hop bite in the finish, but outside of that this is cold water. A nasty, dryish mouthfeel completes the deal. Products like this are simply being marketed and sold to the masses as a consumer item not a beer, so I don't get too upset about its role as a bad beer because I don't suppose the brewer...
MoonShot Beer
Interesting. Very surprised to see that only four people have reviewed this so far. It's been around for ages. Also surprisingly, this is a decent looking beer, with a head that has much better retention than most macros, and comes with a little lacing too! Body is golden yellow with not too pale an appearance either. In fact to look at, this is pretty darn good! OK, after the appearance, then it's not so good, but is far from the worst beer I've ever drunk. The aroma is typical alcohol based...
Miller High Life Light
Not at all bad - for what it is you understand! Typical adjunct in most respects, but slightly above average. Scores well in the "very, very hot summer" refreshing department, and is a pretty smooth drinking beer that lacks the real nastiness that most beers of its type have. No skunk and a decent thirst quencher. Of course, that's where the story begins and ends, but this does do well when compared to others of its type, especially in the Light/Lite category. Take it for what it is, and you...
Coors Light
This is an absolutely extraordinary product. Quite LITERALLY no aroma (I was tempted to give it a 5 for "exceptional") and very close to no taste. All that there is a slight bitter finish which lets you know that this is not just very, very cold club soda. I'm assuming that this is what the "brewer" is trying to achieve. It must be quite difficult to do if you are starting with malt and hops. My question is, "Are they starting with malt and hops??" Extremely pale yellow color, with zero head...
Sleeman Clear
Fairly nasty, but frankly what do you expect? Largely devoid of any aroma, significant taste or body, I suppose the brewer has succeeded in their goals. Completely transparent, on the verge of colorless, certainly tasteless since the "beer" has been taken out of this brew. Lawnmower potential fairly high, but lacks lacohol as well as taste so perhaps not. Don't know what else to say, other than quite how this and, say for example, Celebrator Dopplebok are both called beer remains a mystery to...
Kelly’s Light Irish Stone Brewed
Not at all bad. Never going to be my favorite style, but this hits the spot on a hot Atlanta Spring day. Good looker, with a clear pale straw color, excellent head and some lacing. Good bitterness all the way through and a definite thirst quenching effect. No skunk and decent level of carbonation and crispness. Reminded me a lot of a Kolsch. This is not a great beer, but I was happily surprised by its general drinkability and quality. I wasn't expecting much, but got a little more than I...
Budweiser Select
O.K., I think to an experienced drinker that has tasted the full range of styles over the course of many years, "products" like this don't really qualify as "beer" at all. Having said that, this is no worse an offender than scores of similar others, but what really irks me is the fact that this is clearly a child of marketing strategy rather than the art of brewing. Ho hum, another example of capitalist America pandering to the masses. Budweiser Select is certainly a "clean" beer. That is...
Kirin Light Beer
Well - what do you expect? Amazingly light color (for beer anyway) and an aggresively carbonated, fizzy appearance. Nasty skunk in the first whiff, but this does seem to settle down. There's lots of artificial sweetness and an amazing feeling of consumption of gas with this "beer". Nasty carbonation in the mouth and unpleasent aftertaste. Apart from that, not bad!! Frightening to think that millions of people think this is what beer is!
Pub Light
Oh dear. My best guess is that the Hilton Head Brewing Company has made a calculated decision that the production of a light lager is what the folks want, and that this has the potential to be a commercial success that exploits the ignorance of the masses. This is utter garbage. The whole experience, from appearance through to aftertaste, combines all the charms and depth of Bud, Aspen Edge, Michelob Ultra and Spring Water. A real treat! Pale, with lots of initial carbonation, the brew then...
Amstel Light
No matter what type of BA you are; a hop head, malt lover, stout or lager lover, etc. once you have established the fact that you like beer that tastes like "something", then it's hardly surprising that when you taste a beer that tastes like "nothing" it becomes pretty much good for nothing except drain pour. My problem with this stuff (and others like it) is that apart form the appearance, it has no relation to beer whatsoever. It's tasteless, thin in the mouth and comes with zero character....
Michelob Ultra
An appearance, smell and mouthfeel on a par with hundreds of other macro adjuncts, but a taste that almost defies description (mildly acidic water was the closest I came), gives this product the lowest drinkability I can ever recall. Beer? No it ain't. This is one "beer" that I will actually seriously consider turning down in preference for something non-alcoholic. I don't recall that EVER happening before. What concerns me about this "product" is the way that it has been clearly created to...
Bud Light
Another "beer" that most BA's simply don't consider to be a beer at all. I suppose one is allowed to call it beer because of the process that takes place before it reaches the glass, but in relation to quality brews of almost any distinction, this is no more than an alcoholic soda water. The color and aroma are almost 100% missing, and all I remember about drinking this stuff is that the combination of carbonation and coldness give a sandpaper effect to its consumption. If all beer were like...
Miller Lite
Updated Review 01/08 === $2.00, 16oz serving, Buffalo Wild Wings, Douglasville, GA, USA. Light golden color, zero head, zero lace. Vegetal mild bitterness, essentially wet with no taste. Slightly gassy. What's the point? Original Review 07/04 === $2.00, large serving (22oz?), Smokey Bones, Restaurant & Grill, Douglasville, GA, USA. The problem here I think, is that once one has opened up one's horizons to quality beer, stuff like Miller Lite is hardly what one would consider to be "beer" at...
Edison Light Beer
A surprisingly enjoyable experience. A very sweet malty experience with a light hop after taste. As usual I came to this brew with some pre-conceived ideas, but as can happen, I was pleasantly surprised. A very clean looking presentation with the clear bottle and the deep yellow color, the beer pours with more head, carbonation and body than most other light lagers. The first tastes are refreshing and this is maintained throughout the drink. Not bad at all! Might even go there again.