Becks Vier

Becks isn’t a beer I particularly like, I probably won’t even review it, however the less alcohol equivalent is something I occasional order. 

The pub I used to get this from is the Proverbial in Harborne but it has now closed down. The beer choice used to be very good with the likes of Peroni and Estrella but they used to cost over £4 a pint and rather than settling for the Carling I went for this. 

Becks Vier beer isn’t anything special, and why should it, it’s not branded as premium but neither is the price. The taste is fairly generic lager, nothing complex, slightly ruined as I know they’re better lagers out there. Not too fizzy and only 4% alcohol so you can spend a night drinking a few of these. The real thing that makes this beer stand out to me is that it’s the same price as Carling but slightly better in every way, even the glass.

5/10

Buddha Beer

Lucky Buddha is an Australian rice beer brewed in China and is advertised as Enlightened. 

Like Asahi I found this beer in Wagamama and was enticed by the interesting bottle.

I had the beer with food and it worked well with my ramen. However it only worked well as the taste wasn't strong. The taste that was there was pleasant making it very drinkable and the 4.8% will get you tipsy. I will be ordering this lager again but compared to some other lagers there wasn't anything amazing to write about. 

6/10

Shirley Beer Festival

Last weekend I spent some time at the Shirley Beer Festival. The large crowd drank the place dry, but I was able to sample three of the ales. They were all good so look out for them in the future.

Gravekeeper's Ale

This was a dark ale, the tasting notes states it used two types of hops to create a complex flavour. However there was nothing complex about it. It tasted like chocolate. The texture was smooth and went down easy, I could have happily sat in a pub and drank it all day. With an alcohol percentage of 3.8 you could get through a lot.

The only compliant I have with it is that it isn't a 'summer' beer. It was too chocolatey and not crisp enough to cool me down in the middle of a warm field.

7/10

                                         
Red

The tasting notes for this beer describe it as, spicy, fruity and robust. I don't agree with the spicy, it was no where near as complex as that. It was on the fruiter side of ale, the best out of the three for the warm weather. I can also attest to the robustness, I could happily drink this over a Sunday roast or in a beer garden mid July.

6/10

Mischief 

This was the last out of the beers I wanted to try, things were getting busy at this point and the good stuff was running out. I was left a little disappointed. Although very nice, it tasted a little too close to the commercial ales like Abbot or Ubu. At 5% it will get you tipsy and the taste is refreshing, just a little boring to write about.

5/10

Mongoose Lager

We’ve all had a Cobra with our chicken Balti and we all know it tastes pretty good.

Mongoose lager, like it's animal namesake is challenging the curry house snake head on. The brand isn't even shy to admit it with the label depicting a Mongoose with a Cobra in it's mouth. 

Like Cobra this beer is very smooth but it has slightly more of a hoppy taste to it. This can be seen two ways, firstly it’s a better stand alone drink. I struggle to drink a Cobra without a curry in front of me. But saying that I do like the way Cobra doesn't interfere with my curry. For this reason I won’t be changing my curry house staple. So unfortunately for Mongoose I won't be buying it again, as there are better stand-alone lagers out there.

4/10

Hoegaarden Rosée

Shopping for some beers I noticed a large 75cl bottle of what looked liked a sparkling wine with the word Rosée written on the bottle. I thought somebody must have screwed up and put some wine amongst the beer. Then I noticed the price of £2.99, so I had another look. Turned out to be Hoegaarden mixed with raspberry juice.

Alcohol content is pretty low at 3% so I didn’t feel bad drinking the whole big bottle, which also had a cork like a sparkling wine. The taste is how you imagine, beer mixed with raspberry juice. It was okay and just about worked, got a bit boring after about half the bottle. One glass when you have company is probably what this intended for and that one glass would be something different. Just don’t make my mistake and buy a whole one for yourself.

3/10

Samuel Adams

This beer was recommended to me by my mom’s boyfriend and after looking up some reviews it scored highly, so I tried it. I was very disappointed.

 The taste is very unusual, an almost floral taste. Initially it tastes bad, then a few more swigs and you think, 'hang on I like this.' Then you get to the last little bit and feel you just can’t finish it because of taste fatigue. So really I’m not sure if I like it, but I probably won’t be buying it again. You'll have to try this one yourself.

I asked my mom’s boyfriend why he recommended it, he answered, “it tasted so bad it would be funny to see you drink it.”

4/10   

Shark beer

An average guest ale from my local.

Shark beer from the Dog Head Brewery is a golden ale I spotted at my local. It sas under £3 a pint and had a fun picture of a shark, so I went for it. 

The drink is smooth like most good ales and goes down very easily. There is a bitterness to the taste but not in a good way. It tastes unintentionally bitter and I don't think I could drink a lot of it without getting taste fatigue. I would have been better off sticking with the well known Ubu or Abbot Ale. A fun picture left me a little disappointed. 

3/10

Asahi

A Yo Sushi! classic that has now become one of my staples.

The label describes the drink as dry, which isn't a lie. Making this beer a refreshing choice. It isn't too gassy but does have carbonation, a middle ground between Cobra and Carling. This is perfect as you get your lager experience without getting bloated making it a good choice with food. The taste is subtle so you can drink a few without getting bored, the problem is the bitter aftertaste it can leave.

I can see why it's Japan's number one beer and would like to see more pubs in this country carry it. This is the everyday beer that Carling should be. 

7/10

Dab Beer

While on a trip to Florence I got to try a German lager called Dab.

Sitting in a restaurant choosing between the sea food or pizza a waiter came to grab our drinks order. I spied some Peroni in the fridge and thought it might taste different in it's home country so I made my order. The waiter however told me no. For 50 cents less I could try the tap beer. I was glad I did.

After a days travelling and warm weather the golden/yellow liquid refreshed me. There was no bitterness but not a lot of taste either. What was there however was pleasant. 

I spent the rest of my time in the city drinking it and it worked well in the heat. I would want to taste it in this country out of bottle rather than a super chilled tap. Until then I might just call it a holiday romance and score it

5/10

Carling

It's only natural that the first beer on this list should be the first I tried, Carling.

I first tried a proper pint of this stuff as an eighteen year old, and I didn't like it. So ended my relationship with beer and Weatherspoon cocktail pitchers took hold of my life. But on a fateful day I found a pub by my university and it wasn't the sort of place I felt comfortable ordering a spirit mixer, so I manned up and ordered a lager. So began my love of beer.

Hundreds of beers later I shunned Carling as something you have if there's nothing else, until the time of writing where I was forced to go back. 

The first thing I noticed was how gassy it was, almost hard to swallow. Once you get over that there is a bitterness that is hidden when on draught but from the warmer fridge it's the prevalent taste and is a little off putting. 

As a note I am including price in the scores but saying that it isn't the cheapest beer out there, and because of it's bitter taste and average price it scores. 

2/10