A “Real Beer” from Budweiser?
Even after drinking three or four over the last few weeks, I still can’t decide if I actually like Budweiser’s American Ale. My first impression was something like “eh, it’s a pretty average beer that’s a bit too sweet“, though I admit the beer was too cold and I wasn’t able to give the beer my full attention. I gave the beer another shot while sitting in my friend’s basement/brewery. Before I even pursed my lips for that first critical sip, a little voice in my head reminded me to be fair; after all there is no real reason why the brewers at A-B cannot make a great tasting beer. Did my inner voice just call me biased?
I poured the beer into a very clean, room temperature glass. American Ale pours with a tan, fairly tight and rocky head, reddish color and free of haze. The first thing I did was attempt to get a snoot full of the beer’s aroma. The aroma is very clean, but malty sweet with an earthy/citrus hops aroma. Yes, you heard me; I actually smelled hops in an Anheuser-Bush beer! The first thing that I noticed upon tasting the beer was a pleasant hop bitterness that was surrounded in an almost-too- sweet, medium bodied beer. The beer is definitely drinkable, but is it good? The “drinkable vs. good” dilemma is always the challenge for a macro-brewer who is used to brewing by committee, relying on the results of countless consumer taste panels instead of the brewer’s instincts. Did Bud simply formulate a beer to meet the demands of the masses? Not this time…
“American Ale” is a transformational beer for the Budweiser brand; it is a “Real Beer.” It may not be a beer that will win shelf space in the fridge of the hard-core beer geek, but it may very well help win over a few beer-geek wannabees, and that is not a bad thing.
I found the beer to be good enough to have a few, but I am not sure that I really like it. One thing that I noticed is that the beer suffers greatly when served too cold. The hop aroma disappears and the underlying malt complexity just tastes sweet (as with all flavorful beer); this is nothing new. My concern is that this being a Budweiser branded product, it will not be differentiated from its macro-brother and will wind up being served in frosted mugs at the local sports bar. The only way this beer has a chance to be a “real beer” is if it is served properly; otherwise all bets are off…
Pairing recommendations: I would treat this beer like an American brown or red ale. Pair it with grilled salmon or pork tenderloin. I think it would be great with mild cheeses that were aged, like Gouda or maybe even aged Asiago. It will be pretty versatile at the table, so have some fun experimenting!
October 30th, 2008 at 2:02 pm
I basically agree with the review. I really wanted to like this beer for 2 reasons. 1. I was thinking of getting a keg of it for a Halloween party and 2. I thought I might actually be able to find an ale at a local restaurant instead of 6 “different” light lagers. But…, I was unimpressed. It’s not bad. I would pick it over Bud or Bud Light, but it’s not awesome either. I saw an online magazine review that said something along the lines of “It’s what American Micorbreweries would make if the could.” WOW, If no one’s rolling over in their grave from that comment, they will be ! I will admit that the one’s I had were pretty cold. Maybe one more slightly warmer chance is the least I can do for our friends at A-B.
October 30th, 2008 at 2:26 pm
I can’t beleive that online reviewer’s comment! As for the comment on finding Amer-Ale as an alternative on a beer menu, Sam Adam’s has been saving my butt for too many years…
November 3rd, 2008 at 11:30 pm
I’ll admit to being biased–AGAINST A-B. They killed the hometown breweries and then–for decades, remember–fed the public nothing but crap. Now they come along–late–and try to get in on the game with a “real” beer? No thanks. I think I’ll wait about 50 years before I give them a break–or a try. Hard attitude? You bet.
It might be what I’d grab if the only other beers in the cooler are Bud Light, etc., but I will not buy this beer. Maybe it’ll get BL drinkers drinking something else, and that’s good. There are plenty of those lightweights to purchase this offering. But for beer lovers–don’t call ME a beer geek, ’cause I’m not one–I encourage turning up the nose at this. It’s simple justice for the decades of mistreatment A-B has given us.
Get this–I don’t care about the beer or about its taste. It’s the principle. It’d be just as absurd if Hummer started producing realistically-sized hybrids. I wouldn’t buy one because I don’t like how they’ve behaved. Boo hiss on A-B (for the next 50 years or so, until we know it’s not just cashing in on a fad) and cheers to the breweries who respect our intelligence and don’t have a history of trying to pour crap down our throats.
Slante!
November 4th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
Hey TPS Reports,
I enjoyed the Hummer analogy and definitely admire you standing up for what you believe in, but I’m surprised that you refer to Craft Beer/Brewing as a “fad to cash in on”. I also hate to see other beer drinker’s called lightweights. We have to be beer advocates and promote better beer to these people, in order to in the end get a better beer selection for ourselves ; ) At least they are drinking beer, vs. branding us unruly drunks who only want high ABV beer to “get drunk quicker”.