Inexpensive Beer Week - Schlitz Beer

I've never really ever paid attention to this beer and never thought much about it. I don't really ever remember seeing this in the grocery store, although I think I've seen this in the corner liquor stores a few times. Unfortunately I don't have a bottle or can in hand right now to drink and write about it, so I'm going to have to go on memory on this. Luckily I don't have to remember too far as it was only 2 weeks ago I got a pint during happy hour.

I go up to the guy at the bar and was about to order my go to beer, Fat Tire amber ale. John who was with me points out excitedly that they had Schlitz on tap! "Dude, try the Schlitz with me!"

What? What shit you want me to try?

"No you dumbass, I said Schlitz! They have Schlitz beer on tap. Here, I'll buy the first round."

How can I say "no" right? The bartender puts the overflowing beer in front of us and silly me, I drink it right away with lots of foam. Uggh! The initial taste wasn't anything strong that stood out immediately. It was like a clean, "old" style beer. I noticed what I thought was a corn flavor with some nice detectable hops. The corn wasn't strong like how a Corona beer is. I wasn't really trying to taste the beer, but rather just drink it since we were at happy hour. The foam went down relatively quickly in my glass and I drank it again. It's an easy drinking beer that goes down smoothly with a slightly refreshing taste. I drank the rest of it slowly and with the warm room, when I got to the bottom of the glass most of the carbonation fizzled already and lost the crispness. My fault really for letting it sit so long.

John started mentioning when he use to pick up a few cases of these, they were really inexpensive to get. He and his brothers would grab these on the way to hang out at the lake, throw them out to people and make new friends. Since the beers were so affordable, he never really thought much about handing them out to strangers.

I didn't realize Schlitz was that inexpensive. For the refreshingly simple American beer taste, I can see myself buying this again when I see it in the stores. Like their logo states: The beer that make Milwaukee famous.

Schlitz Beer

Inexpensive Beer Week - Pabst Blue Ribbon Bottle

Can't do an inexpensive beer review without the old standby, Pabst Blue Ribbon beer, or commonly known as PBR. I remember dreading having to drink this when I was younger and going to a friends house party. We were all teens of course, and the stigma of drinking PBR was simply it was cheap. Insecurities really, now that I look back at that time of my life.

I still have snobbish views of drinking PBR in a can, and in fact, I still have a can that is in my garage fridge that's been there for about 3 years! I really need to throw it out. It's probably skunky beyond belief with a strong metal flavor.

If it wasn't for my friend Eric who has no reservation of picking up a big pack of PBR and enjoying his weekend, I probably would still be dismissing it now. I remember drinking a few cans of this because there wasn't anything else to drink, and I wasn't really liking it, but after the 3rd one, it didn't matter and I just drank it.

Eric had a BBQ over his place and invited me over. He picked up a few cases of PBR and when I opened up the cooler, he said you have to try the PBRs in a bottle. It's so much different than the cans. I know you can become a beer snob, but just try it. First of all, I never knew PBR came in bottles! I grabbed a PBR bottle, finished it, grabbed another, finished that and before I knew it, I had about a 6-pack to myself that afternoon. It didn't have any of that tinny metallic taste I can sometimes detect with the can, so it's probably just the bottle and the way it comes smoothly down the neck of the bottle when I drink it.

The beer itself is your usual light wheat color beer with a thin foamy head that's common in this category. I suggest keeping it in the bottle and not try to pour it in a glass. I feel the beer gets flat really quick when you do that and the lack of carbonation diminishes the flavor as well. It's got a nice grain hint with some detectable hops to remind you that you are drinking beer and not some carbonated mineral water. I also found it excellent to cleanse my palate after eating a fatty BBQ rib. It finishes with a crisp taste that doesn't leave you with a wet grass taste in your mouth. You will however have that metallic beer breath.

If you are going to enjoy some PBR, I suggest looking for the bottles, and when you find that store that carries it, make sure to let the store manager know so he can keep it in stock.

Pabst Blue Ribbon website