Live Beer Tastes

Here at The Brew Chronicles, we are always looking for "the edge". Today The Mrs. The Third and I visited the local grocer. Since it is Fat Tuesday, we decided to purchase a couple of sixers. I bought a sixer of Phoenixx Double Extra Special Bitter {It is winter seasonal inspired by the great ales of the UK but brewed with a distinctively American attitude. English crystal malt gives Phoenixx its subtle toffee and caramel notes, but this ale is about hops. The blend of English hops, highlighted by its namesake, Phoenix, yields a complex hop character that dominates this special brew. ABV: 7.2%, IBU: 50}

The wife purchased a six pack of Bud. As we were checking out we saw some single beers for sale. We purchased a couple of Budweiser Select 55. I have heard about it and I I have seen the commercials but I have never actually tried one. So....... I am going to do a live taste test. I will pop the top on on of the cans, pour it into a clean chilled pint glass and will taste it for the first time. so here goes

2:51 PM.................... putting the lap top down

2:53 PM.................... Ok I have the beer and I am setting back down on couch.

2:54 PM.................... Pouring beer

The color is about the same as Budweiser actually I think it is slightly darker.

2:56 PM.................... First swallow

The beer does not have much of a smell or aroma. The taste is typical of a light beer,

not much, if any hoppy after taste. It reminds me of a beer flavored alka seltzer.

It does have alcohol in it though. According to my beer app (on my really cool Motorola Droid) it packs a whopping 2.4 % abv. The other beer I purchase rates at 7.2% abv which equates to three times as much. I admit that this beer is not all that bad. I probably will never purchase another one though. I like more taste in my beer and this one just does not deliver. Beer geeks tend to stress how certain beers "pair" with certain foods. I usually do not like to drink beer as I eat. I know it is a personal taste sort of thing. I think Select 55 would be one of those beers that I could drink while eating. That is if someone else is buying.

3:08 PM.................... One swallow left.

3:17 PM..................... gone

"You can't be a real country unless you have a beer and an airline - it helps if you have some kind of a football team, or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least you need a beer."
-Frank Zappa

The Third