So I just randomly grabbed one of these tallboys because the tin was so darn good-looking. I assumed it would be in line with the Heinekens and Becks’ and Boris’ of the world. Eurolager. Not bad, but not awesome. How close was I?
Estrella Damm
From an attractive red tallboy with a best-before date on the bottom, the beer is a nice lemon yellow with a good head after a moderately hard pour, head dissipates quickly to thin film that didn’t leave much lace. Aroma actually is a little hop-forward, metallic and a touch piney. There is clear cereal grains, and maybe some corn. Taste is metallic, like, I wonder if it’s the hops or not, old hops or grains? There is a nice sweet gain, lightly malty under the metallic taste, but a significant metallic presence, which I didn’t taste when I drank it on Sunday. Strange. Mouthfeel is nice, pretty carbonated, and dry on the finish. It’s an easy-going beer that is a good measure better then any macro brews we’re making here in Canada, but it’s still a pretty standard Euro-lager. Not bad, but not something I would seek out. And this particular one has that metallic twang… Still, good value, and I would drink it over a Heineken or Stella any day of the week.
That’s interesting, I just read the label and guess what? Apparently in Spain, you DO have to list the ingredients of your beer. In Estrella Damm:
Water, barley malt, rice, corn, hops, propylene glycol alginate (stabilizing agent E-405). That last one is a derivative of kelp, and is a thickener and emulsifier. Basically, it’s there to make the beer feel a little smoother in your mouth and improve head-retention.
Imagine what we would see on the label of a Bud or 67……
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