Michelob Ultra

Sharing a beer with Sandy after her last day of the school year, we've got one here that's watery enough for her to enjoy.

Budweiser

Sometime during my 20's, I had had enough of Budweiser. I used to order it in bars and restaurants, mostly because it was a quick answer when the server asked, and I must admit, I didn't know any better. Nowadays, thankfully, there is almost always some other choice to think about. So in the past several years that I have been working on this Beer Book, I have hardly mentioned, let alone tasted, Bud.

Nevertheless, Budweiser is an irreplaceable part of Americana. So while at lunch at the Budweiser Brew House in St. Louis, there seemed to be nothing better to drink than a nice cold mug of the King of Beers.

From the Brew House, we took a bus ride to the Budweiser Brewery and had a nice visit with Drew, the Clydesdale.

Natural Light

A careful reader of this beer book from Illinois recently pointed out a glaring omission. I have not yet reviewed Natty Light. My son Caleb is visiting us and wanted to help me out. He ran out to the corner grocery and bought us one to share and contemplate on. So here it goes. As you see, I poured my half into a prized beer glass fitting for such a special occasion.  If I remember right, the last time I used this half yard was Christmas, 2014 when I drank a winter warmer from Backpocket brewing in Coralville. I always enjoy the beers from Backpocket -- an Iowa owned brewery with a brewpub that offers up tasty locally produced fare. But back to the Natty Light, as you can see from the photo there is something more to the color than just clear yellow. See the hint of copper hue. 

The color reminds me of the label of Summit Extra Pale Ale, which, by the way, is an excellent beer. In my book, Summit is the standard American Pale Ale to which all others are to be compared. But again I digress. I have much more to say about this Anheuser-Busch product Caleb and I are enjoying together on this nice spring day. Ah, Spring! The robins return and the breweries release bock, my favorite style of beer, especially dopplebock. I should really look for a chance in the next few days to get somewhere that sells a nice German dopplebock, rich and thick and complex with flavors of molasses, dark fruits, and chocolate. But alas, now for the Natural Light, the actual point of this page. Which makes me think, how many Point beers have I included in my beer book? 12 – I just counted. Stevens Point Brewery in Wisconsin has been making great beer since 1857. I ought to put their brewery tour and tasting room on my list of day trips to consider this summer. I see on their website that they have just released an apricot wheat beer that sounds intriguing. While typing up my thoughts on Natty Light, I was just interrupted by a text message from daughter Rachel. She’s away at college in Ann Arbor, Michigan, not far from Kalamazoo, Michigan -- home to Bell’s brewery. Now that’s a good source of beer. I love their Oberon wheat in the summer and their Kalamazoo Stout in the winter and really, anything else they offer in between. Which brings me back to Natural Light and now I can say, of all the beers I’ve mentioned in my beer book, Natural Light is one of them.

Michelob Pale Ale

For throwback Thursday, I submit this beer from a few years ago.  Cleaning out a corner of my beer room in the basement recently, I came across an empty bottle of Michelob Pale Ale. Five years ago or so Anheuser-Busch marketed a box of “craft” brewed Michelob. Although my memory is foggy surrounding this one, I recall being very pleased by the crisp hops flavors that came out of this Michelob bottle.

Busch Light

Three years ago, I wrote a Father's Day tribute to Busch Light that I feel deserves repeating:

I try to be cultured and sophisticated. Sometimes I pretend to have a well developed pallet especially when it comes to beer. But in reality there are times when nothing will do quite as well as a Busch Light. I'm not just talking price either. When I'm fishing on a secluded tributary of the Wapsipinicon River, I don't want to haul in some stout that takes careful patient pouring, or a porter that you have to sit down for. Nah, just grab me a 40 ounce Busch Light out of the case at the gas station and I'm a happy daddy.

Busch Signature Copper Lager

This is nice. It's like a flavorful Busch Light. It has nothing extreme or out of the ordinary. Sandy even says, "Well I can drink that!"

Bud Light

For the party on our 25th wedding anniversary, our dear friend Mr. Nuss shows up with a gift that is both appreciated and humorous. He plops a case of Coors Light on the gift table. (These 24 cans of the silver bullet are, by the way, appropriately colored for our silver anniversary.) And then he pulls a pint can of Bud Light out of his coat pocket, sits it on top and says, "There! 25! One for each year."

Budweiser Batch 23185

The Vanilla Bourbon Cask from Williamsburg has a nice sweetness like bourbon. The vanilla is very faint. My son Cameron doesn't notice it.

Code of Iowa, paragraph 123.47 gives an exemption for a man not quite of age to have a beer "within a private home and with the knowledge, presence, and consent of the parent or guardian."

Budweiser Batch 43229

Because I'm so happy that the Budweiser label is on a bock beer, I am reluctant to criticize anything about it, like the lightweight body and the watery flavor. So I must emphasize how I love the sweet malt of this bock style. Oh, and one other thing, it's from Columbus! (that's the 43229 zip code of the brewery). I gotta love beers from Ohio. Go Buckeyes!

This paired so wonderfully with the perfectly done rib-eye steak seen in the background.

Budweiser Batch 94534

I am reminded of a steam beer as I enjoy this full flavor North Pacific Lager from Budweiser. The malted grain flavor is smile provoking and the tangy hop finish keeps it nice and refreshing. I’m so happy that the brewmasters are at it again with a second edition of their Project12. 

Bud Light Lime

Aaaah!

Photo by Justin Allen

Black Crown

The Budweiser label brings another interesting recipe out. This one has some toasty flavor to the grain that I can really appreciate.  Black Crown does not have a great depth of character; you don’t have to think to hard about it. So it makes a great drink while playing Assassin’s Creed.

Budweiser Batch no. 63118

The best time to drink a beer is on a warm, sunny day . . . and also in a blizzard.

As the snow begins to fly, I sit comfortably covered up on the couch watching movies and sipping on Batch no. 63118 of the Budweiser Brewmasters’ Project 12. 

This Pilsner with a nice body and full flavor is a good old fashioned American beer. It reminds me of a time when “light” was not a nice word to apply to beer.

Back in the day, men were men. They didn’t drink light beer. And they didn’t have mobile devices telling them that they better stay indoors because the wind is going to blow and snow is going to fall.

Budweiser Batch no. 23185

As we all know, beer is the best beverage to go with a fried bologna sandwich, specifically a cheap lager.  This evening I explored this pairing by choosing a Budweiser Brewmasters’ Project 12. 

Batch no. 23185 has more flavor and character than the usual mass produced lager which helps it to stand up to the pepper mustard on my sandwich.  It’s supposed to have some vanilla flavor added, but I’m not catching it. 

It’s alright, but my quest for the best bologna beer will continue.

The name comes from the zip code of the brewery in Williamsburg, VA.

Budweiser Batch No. 91406

Happy National Lager Day!

I’m celebrating here with a Bud.  Anheuser-Busch (one of the main forces behind making lager the only kind of beer most Americans even consider) is making it a little easier to enjoy Budweiser with the more flavorful offerings of Brewmasters’ Project 12. 

Batch no. 91406 has some attractive color, some complexity in flavor and a somewhat decent body, all characteristics I wouldn’t expect from Budweiser.  I probably won’t buy this again, but I hope other Bud drinkers might and thereby gain a little more enjoyment from their drinking.

The name comes from the zip code of the brewery in Fairfield, California.

Michelob Amber Bock

On my daughter’s 17^th birthday we went out to eat at Big Ed's Firehouse.

Here we are pictured with a Michelob Amber Bock that the Firehouse has on tap.

I am very proud of my daughter. She makes me smile. She delights us with her music.  She is kind, responsible, and charitable.  She gets straight A’s in school.  She encourages others when they are down. And she always laughs at my jokes.

Oh, and before I forget, Michelob Amber Bock is good.

Bud Light Platinum

Advertising works, whether we want to admit it or not.  The couple of commercials for Bud Light Platinum in the first half of the Super Bowl last week caught my attention and piqued my interest. When I walked by a big display in the action alley of a store this evening, I suddenly became a completely helpless zombie of a consumer, compelled to put a box in my shopping cart.

Although sweeter than the usual popular mass-produced beers, it has a tanginess to it that I believe comes from an extra amount of carbonation.

Pictured here is one I poured into a pilsner glass, but really, the blue bottle is the coolest thing about this beer.  My advice to the reader is: just drink it straight from the long-neck.

Overall, it’s drinkable.

Michelob Golden Light

I can still enjoy a light beer. I hope I don't ever grow up so much that I despise the simple things of life. Here’s a mass produced, non-distinct beer that quenches your thirst and makes you happy. I really enjoy blogging about all the esthetic qualities of fine beers -- flavor, body and bouquet.  But let’s remember: beer is given to us mainly to quench our thirst and make us happy.

By the way, Michelob Golden Light Draft Beer is only available in "Flyover Country".

As I sipped this, I read the controversial Atlantic article by University of Iowa Professor Stephen Bloom, Observations from 20 Years of Iowa Life. If you don’t want to bother reading the article, I can just sum it up: Bloom hates Iowa and pities Iowans.

He ridicules the state as a “throwback to yesteryear” place where religion still matters and folks greet even a stranger they pass with a nod or a two fingered wave.  Someone once summed up the law of life by saying it all comes down to loving God and loving your neighbor.  Iowans understand this.

Much of what Bloom says can’t be denied.  This ain’t New York or L.A. or Paris out here.  I can appreciate the esthetic qualities those fine places offer – culture, glamour, sophistication.  But let’s remember, life is given us mainly so we can love God and love our neighbor.  Let’s never grow up so much that we despise the simple things of life.