REVIEW 89: NATURAL ICE

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:  USA

BREWERY:  Anheuser-Busch

STYLE:  Adjunct Lager

ABV:  5.9%

PURCHASE:  Case of 30 12-oz. cans, $15.99

SERVING:  12-oz. can, poured into pint glass. A typical pour resulted in head taking up almost half the glass. A slower one on Round 2 still got almost two solid inches. For kicks, I did a fast ten-second pour for Round 3. I'm sure you can imagine the results. Decent head retention, if you can believe it. (I also had one of these the other night in the Chimay glass as a joke. I don't think it enhanced the taste any.) 

APPEARANCE:  Clear straw (or brass, if you prefer). Very bright white, sudsy head. Steady bubbling. Lacing was spotty on the first two cans, but showed up with more prominence on the third beer, due no doubt to using the same glass. 

BOUQUET:  That classic adjunct aroma of generic grain, water, and the can it came in.

PALATE:  That classic adjunct taste of generic grain, water, and the can it came in. Well, I think I detected a trace of hops in there . . . somewhere. Maybe that was an accident. Mouthfeel is consistent from start to finish. It's slightly husky, but offers nothing else distinguishable. No real aftertaste. I suppose that could be looked at as a good thing. It's fairly carbonated, and has a very light body for a beer that is almost 6% ABV. Very drinkable so long as you keep it cold; it seems to start spoiling as soon as it reaches 40 degrees. 

MUSINGS AND METAPHORS:  I have to admit, it's not nearly as bad as I remember it being at frat parties. Maybe A-B improved the recipe. Or maybe frat boys just don't keep their kegs cold enough. 

I found the Natty of today to be on equal footing with Miller Lite, more or less. I found it to have a bit more actual beer character than Ultra. Other than that, I have nothing else to say, except . . . I can't believe I'm not flunking it. What else is there to say? It's a "SUB-premium" beer, for fuck's sake! 




GRADE:  D-

I'm sure this impressed a room full of sorostitutes.