I suspect that the reason I'm reviewing Budweiser American Ale today has much more to do with the subliminal messages I received after seeing this new brew's commercial about thirty times this week than a genuine interest. Yet even if my brain now belongs to the Budweiser collective this still presents us with the opportunity to try something interesting: Budweiser's answer to beers that don't suck.
Please excuse my snobby behavior when I say that Budweiser produces the very best, tasteless, corporate, piss beer there is and should be avoided like the plague. If given the option between a Bud or any boutique beer I wouldn't hesitate for a second to reach for whatever else was available. Then again, given the choice between Budweiser and unfiltered toilet water I would have to think twice.
American Ale is trying to trick snobbier drinkers with an appealing packag and a flavor that leans toward Red Hook. My questions is this: if I'm going to be shelling out $6.49 for a six pack of beer should I choose American Ale over any of my other options?
Let's find out.
Tastes: hoppy with an extremely bitter after taste. A group of tasters and I came to the consensus that this beer is just "meh." A few of us would be willing to drink two or three...as long as nothing tastier was in arms reach; and that's just the problem with this brew.
I got mine: at Safeway for a grand total of $7.03 after tax.
Goes with: apple pie, baseball and corporate bail outs. Okay, sorry. I don't mean to pick on the marketing strategy behind this beer, but come on. Budweiser has missed the patriotism boat by a few years. If they really wanted to cash in on current patriotic fervor, they should have called it Budweiser "Change" Ale or at least got Stephen Colbert on the cover somewhere. Hell, they already have Colbert's eagle.
Verdict: Is there any reason to prefer American Ale over dozens of other beer selections available in practically every grocery store? No. There isn't.
That being said, there is a perfectly reasonable time for drinking this beer and it is when nothing better is available. Take it in stride, Budweiser. Considering I wouldn't touch your mainstay with a ten-foot pole, I'd consider a recommendation to drink this beer when nothing else is around progress.-- Jonathan McNamara
