The blog has reached one milestone in my journey of alcoholic beverages. Peroni Gran Riserva Puro Malto had the honour of being the 100th beer that I reviewed, and it was actually quite a good beer, considering its bulk quality. Since this blog has achieved a good number of readers, and blog entries, I've decided to update the rating scale. I realized that too many beverages were achieving the same scores, and therefore I've decided to extend the scale. Furthermore, I've decided to add a verbal grade to help readers understand what each score means. From now on, all the beverages will be graded on a scale of 1-100, 1 being the worst and 100 being the absolute maximum. Here are the verbal descriptions of each point category:
95-100 Legendary
90-94 Exceptional
80-89 Great
70-79 Good
51-69 Above average
50 Average
30-49 Below Average
16-29 Undrinkable
1-15 Abysmal
I hope that this makes the reviews even more helpful. Thanks for reading, and cheers!
Beer review: Peroni Gran Riserva Puro Malto (5.2% Italy: Birra Peroni Industriale)
Taste: The Peroni Gran Riserva Puro Malto is a light/medium-bodied beer with a bready, slightly roasted and sweet malty body. The beer offers aromas of caramel, fruits and finishes with a slight grassy hoppiness.
Overall, the Peroni Gran Riserva Puro Malto is actually a good find, considering that it's available in supermarkets so it's a bulk product. It offers quite a wide range of aromas and delivers a balanced flavor profile. Nothing exceptional, but definitely worth a try.
3.5/5
Beer review: Tennent's Super (9% Scotland: Wellpark Brewery)
The Tennent's Super is a lager, more specifically a strong pale lager. It's brewed by Wellpark Brewery, a Scottish brewery located in Glasgow. The brewery was founded in 1740 and is currently owned by C&C Group, a large manufacturer of alcoholic drinks in the United Kingdom.
Taste: The Tennent's Super is a medium-bodied beer with a slightly sweet, malty body. The beer offers fruity aromas and a faint herbal hoppiness which is surpassed by the stingy taste of alcohol.
Overall, the Tennent's Super is a very decent beer. The category of strong pale lagers, especially when it comes to the ones produced in bulk quantities is a tough one. When you add the light body of a lager with the high percentage, the result is usually a very distinctive taste of alcohol. This happens with the Tennent's Super as well, but actually in this beer the alcohol taste is still tolerable. I guess that's some sort of an achievement. However, nothing for the beer connoisseurs.
3/5
Other review: Bacardi Breezer Lime (4% Germany: Bacardi Limited)
The Bacardi Breezer brand is the most popular alcohol and soda mixture in the world. It is a mixture of Bacardi, originally a Cuban rum, and soda with 4.4% alcohol in Australia, 4%/5% in Canada, 4%/5% in Europe and 4.8% in India. Bacardi Limited is the world's largest privately held, family-owned spirits manufacturer in the world. The Breezer was the first brand in the ready-made alcohol/soda mixtures market and they have maintained their popularity against growing competition. Breezers are especially popular among young people who drink them mainly for inebriating purposes. Let's see what they're all about.
Taste: The Bacardi Breezer Lime is a light-bodied drink with a sweet, sugary taste. The drink tastes like your average lime soda, albeit a very sweet one, and the taste of alcohol is successfully lost under the sweetness of the drink.
Overall, the Bacardi Breezer Lime is a sweet drink with a well-thought-out flavor profile. The flavor of alcohol is faded under the sweetness of the drink and it's on the verge of being too sweet. You most certainly won't want to drink many Breezers, but as a single party starter it's an excellent choice. The flavor of it actually beats many lime sodas, although the sweetness might be too much for some. Although it doesn't offer rich aromatic experiences it does its job excellently. It's quite easy to see why the Breezers have achieved their popularity: the drink tastes good, is refreshing, easy to drink and it gets you inebriated, what more could young people and binge drinkers want?
4/5
Other review: Bacardi Breezer Orange (4% Germany: Bacardi Limited)
The Bacardi Breezer brand is the most popular alcohol and soda mixture in the world. It is a mixture of Bacardi, originally a Cuban rum, and soda with 4.4% alcohol in Australia, 4%/5% in Canada, 4%/5% in Europe and 4.8% in India. Bacardi Limited is the world's largest privately held, family-owned spirits manufacturer in the world. The Breezer was the first brand in the ready-made alcohol/soda mixtures market and they have maintained their popularity against growing competition. Breezers are especially popular among young people who drink them mainly for inebriating purposes. Let's see what they're all about.
Taste: The Bacardi Breezer Orange is a light-bodied drink with a sweet, sugary taste. The drink tastes like your average orange soda, and the taste of alcohol is successfully lost under the sweetness of the drink.
Overall, the Bacardi Breezer Orange is a sweet drink with a well-thought-out flavor profile. The flavor of alcohol is faded under the sweetness of the drink and it's on the verge of being too sweet. You most certainly won't want to drink many Breezers, but as a single party starter it's an excellent choice. The flavor of it actually beats many orange sodas, and although it doesn't offer rich aromatic experiences it does its job excellently. It's quite easy to see why the Breezers have achieved their popularity: the drink tastes good and gets you inebriated, what more could young people and binge drinkers want?
4/5
Other review: Frizzantino Spritz Aperitivo Happy Hour (8% Italy: Unknown)
The Frizzantino Spritz Aperitivo Happy Hour is a ready-made cocktail drink available in Italian supermarkets. Spritz is prepared with prosecco wine, some bitter liqueur such as Aperol, Campari, Cynar or Select. The drink is then topped off with sparkling mineral water. Since this is a ready drink mixture, one can't expect much of it but let's give it a go.
Taste: The Frizzantino Spritz Aperitivo Happy Hour is a light/medium-bodied beverage with a bitter, yet quite sweet body. The beverage also features a distinct taste of wine. It's easy to drink and reminds me of alcohol and soda mixtures such as Bacardi Breezers, the main difference being the bitterness of this drink. The drink finishes with a slightly bitter aftertaste.
Overall, the Frizzantino Spritz Aperitivo Happy Hour is an OK drink. It doesn't come anywhere near the actual cocktail, but then again the sweetness of it makes it easier to drink than the real deal. Personally I'm not a big fan of the bitter alcohols and that's why the sweetness of this drink actually counts as a good thing. If you judge this drink in the category of alcohol and soda mixtures, and you don't compare it to actual Spritz (because that would be like comparing a restaurant meal to a microwave dinner), it's actually relatively good. If you're into slightly bitter drinks and want to buy a drink straight from the supermarket, this one's your choice. Don't expect anything close to the real deal, and instead expect a sugary soda version of it and you'll be fully satisfied.
3/5
Beer review: Menabrea Original (4.5% Italy: Birra Menabrea)
The Menabrea Original is a lager, more specifically a pale lager. It's brewed by Birra Menabrea, an Italian brewery located in Biella and founded in 1846. They produce about 10 million litres of beer annually so the brewery is medium-sized. Let's see what the flagship of the company tastes like.
Taste: The Menabrea Original is a light/medium-bodied beer with a soft, round and slightly sweet malty body. The beer offers a pleasant sweetness with a faintly bitter hoppy finish.
Overall, the Menabrea Original is a really nice find from several Italian supermarkets. The beer doesn't offer anything extaordinary but it delivers the basic features of a pale lager in a very sophisticated, pleasant manner. If you want a nice lager, which tends to sweet maltiness, this is definitely your choice!
3.5/5
Beer review: Peroni (4.7% Italy: Birra Peroni Industriale)
The Peroni is a lager, more specifically a pale lager. It's brewed by Birra Peroni Industriale, a brewery founded in Vigevano in Lombardy, Italy in 1846. The brewery has been based in Rome since 1864 and is now owned by SABMiller brewing group, the world's second largest brewing company.
Taste: The Peroni is a light/medium-bodied beer with a soft slightly roasted, dark bready and faintly sweet malt. The beer finishes with a slight bitter hoppiness.
Overall, the Peroni is an above average bulk lager. Personally I enjoy the slightly roasted malty aroma of it and overall the beer was a pleasant surprise. If you end up in Italy and enjoy roasted beers with easy drinkability, the Peroni is your choice!
3/5
Beer review: Birra Moretti (4.6% Italy: Heineken)
The Birra Moretti is a lager, more specifically a pale lager. It was formerly produced by the Italian brewery Birra Moretti founded in Udine in 1859. The brewery was acquired by Heineken International in 1996. The Heineken International is the third largest brewery group in the world. Well, it seems that almost all of the most popular beers around Europe are part of one of the big brewery groups so let's not let that fact affect our judgment about this potentially good beer. At least the label seems cool, let's see if the taste follows that line!
Taste: The Birra Moretti is a light-bodied beer with quite a watery, slightly sweet malty body. The beer finishes with a slight grassy hoppiness.
Overall, the Birra Moretti is your average bulk lager. What sets it apart from the other Italian bulk beers is the slightly sweet taste and especially the grassy hoppiness which is surprisingly potent, considering the macro quality of the beer.
3/5
Beer review: 3 Luppoli (4.8% Italy: Birrificio Angelo Poretti)
The 3 Luppoli is a lager beer, more specifically a pale lager. It's brewed by Birrificio Angelo Poretti, an Italian brewery founded in 1877. The brewery is located in Varese and it was bought by the Carlsberg Group in 2002. The Carlsberg Group is the fifth largest brewery group in the world.
Taste: The 3 Luppoli is a light-bodied beer with a faintly sweet malty body. The beer is quite light, soft and finishes with a faint bitter hoppiness.
Overall, the 3 Luppoli is a decent lager with a taste that offers nothing to write home about, but neither does it make you grimace. It's not offensive in any way and if you ever come across this beer, you can definitely give it a try...as long as you don't expect anything exceptional.
3/5
Beer review: Moritz (5.4% Spain: Cervezas Moritz)
The Moritz is a lager, more specifically a pale lager. It's brewed by Cervezas Moritz, a Spanish brewery located in Barcelona, Spain and founded in 1856. The Epidor is based on an recipe from 1923 and was relaunched in 2009. Today the Moritz beers are produced under license in the brewery La Zaragozana, in Saragossa.
Taste: The Moritz is a light-bodied beer with a sweet malty body. It offers aromas of corn, syrup and even honey. The beer doesn't really offer any hoppiness to speak about.
Overall, Moritz is a decent beer with a sweet, light and refreshing taste. It doesn't offer any exciting aromatic experiences but I'm sure it's a good choice when served ice cold on a hot day.
3/5
Beer review: Moritz Epidor (7.2% Spain: Cervezas Moritz)
Taste: The Moritz Epidor is a medium-bodied beer with a sweet bready malt body. The beer features a wide set of aromas: a fruity, caramel and a surprising, nice aftertaste of liquorice. The bitter aftertaste of alcohol increases as the beer gets warmer. The beer ends with a faint herbal hoppiness.
Overall, the Moritz Epidor is a really nice, sophisticated beer with quite a wide selection of aromas. It doesn't achieve a position among the legends of beer but it's definitely a nice choice if you find it in a bar.
4/5
Beer review: Rosita Original (5.5% Spain: Cerveses La Gardènia)
The Rosita Original is an ale, more specifically a golden/blond ale. It's brewed by Cerveses La Gardènia, a small Spanish brewery located in Tarragona, Spain. Despite it being a relatively small brewery, the beer is quite widely available around Spain. There isn't much information available about the Cerveses La Gardènia but it seems to be a small artisan brewery. Sounds good, let's have a taste!
Taste: The Rosita Original is a light-bodied beer with a sweet, lightly malted body. The beer is quite soft and offers aromas of honey and toffee malts, some citric aromas and ends up with a faint citric hoppiness.
Overall, the Rosita Original is quite sweet, yet light and refreshing. Although it doesn't offer a rich set of aromas, the ones that it provides are nice, and the overall character of the beer is well-balanced. It could do with some stronger hoppiness but it's definitely worth a try, especially if you're into mildly sweet honeyed beers.
3.5/5
Beer review: Estrella Damm (5.4% Spain: Sociedad Anónima Damm)
Estrella Damm is a lager, more specifically a pale lager. It's brewed by Sociedad Anónima Damm, one of the largest breweries in Barcelona, Spain. The brewery was founded in 1876 and Estrella Damm has been brewed ever since. It's produced in bulk qualities but let's see if it offers a special Spanish set of aromas.
Taste: The Estrella Damm is a light-bodied lager with a slightly sweet malty body. The beer offers aromas of corn, and unfortunately some quite stingy metallic aromas. The beer finishes with a slightly bitter, hoppy taste.
Overall the Estrella Damm is a really decent bulk lager. There are definitely better options available and I was put off by the metallic bitterness. However, it's still drinkable and if you just want to get drunk I guess the Estrella Damm will do the job, although after each gulp your face will be left with a grimace.
2/5
Beer review: San Miguel Especial (5.4% Spain: Grupo Mahou-San Miguel)
San Miguel Especial is a lager beer, more specifically a pale lager. It's brewed by Grupo Mahou-San Miguel, the leading brand in the Spanish beer market. The brewery was founded in 1890 and San Miguel Especial has been brewed since 1957. Today the brewery produces 75 % of all Spanish beer consumed worldwide.
Taste: The San Miguel Especial is a light-bodied lager with a slightly sweet malty aroma, with hints of corn. The beer features a sharp metallic taste and finishes with a slightly bitter, faint herbal hoppiness.
Overall the San Miguel Especial is a decent lager. It's everything that one could expect from a bulk lager and what sets it apart from all the others is its slightly sweet aroma with a faint taste of corn. However, the bulk quality of production clearly shows and unfortunately it's nothing "especial".
2.5/5
Beer review: Desperados (5.9% France: Heineken)
Desperados is a lager beer, more specifically a pale lager flavoured with tequila. Originally it was produced by the Fischer Brewery, located in Schiltigheim, France. The brewery was bought by Heineken in 1996 and in 2010 the production of Desperados was transferred to the l'Espérance brewery, also located in Schiltigheim. One of the many products of the Heineken beer corporation, the third largest brewery corporation in the world, Desperados is widely available. Its speciality is the addition of the tequila flavor, and any time there's something extra added to a beer, my suspicions arise. In any case, let's try it out!
Taste: The Desperados is a light-bodied beer with aromas of faint sweet malt, citrus and corn. As the label suggests the taste of tequila is present as well, unfortunately in a very artificial and unnatural way.
Overall, the Desperados is a decent refreshment, but there's only little resemblance to real beer. It's quite similar in taste to Corona, Sol and other "refreshing, citric pale lagers" but with the special touch of tequila. Too bad that the tequila aroma is stingy and artificial so the overall impression of the beer lacks true refreshment, and basically everything else as well. Desperados is more like a tequila and citrus soda than beer.
2/5
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