# Worst beer-like substance you've ever had the displeasure to ingest **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** beer\ **Created:** [November 28, 2010, 9:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209 "2010-11-28T21:42:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2010, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/81 "2010-11-30T06:02:46Z")
> [@Hades](#): > > I really want to try a real lambic, though I do enjoy Lindemans as well. I just have no idea where to find one where I live. I’ve seen Cantillon’s offerings at Whole Foods. Or go [here](http://www.ratebeer.com/places/browse/) and search for your location to find some good beer stores near you. ---
**Author:** ![3waygeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/3/e95f7d/32.png) [@3waygeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/3waygeek)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2010, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/82 "2010-11-30T16:23:10Z")
About 20 years ago, when I lived in greater LA, I found myself at a pizza place on the west side, near Igby’s. Said pizza place had a large beer selection, so one of our number decided to try a Danish import called Green Rooster. It tasted like urinal cakes smell. ---
**Author:** ![Scumpup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ce73a5/32.png) [@Scumpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scumpup)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2010, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/83 "2010-11-30T16:35:05Z")
A Xmas beer from Anchor Steam. It was spruce flavored. Imagine that you decided to water your Xmas tree with beer. Then, the next day you said to yourself “Hey! I wanted to drink that beer!” and proceeded to drain it out of the tree holder and drink it. Or, if you can’t imagine that, imagine each bottle having a tablespoon of Les-Toil added to it before it leaves the factory. I had half a glass, about two big swallows, and I was sick for a couple days afterward. I credit taking the second swallow to my apparently being retarded. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2010, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/84 "2010-11-30T16:35:55Z")
I got a growler of Troegs Mad Elf last weekend. I hated it. Ad I hate every fuckin seasonal xmas beer. And yet I still buy them. ---
**Author:** ![tr0psn4j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/958977/32.png) [@tr0psn4j](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tr0psn4j)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2010, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/85 "2010-11-30T18:11:43Z")
> [@Scumpup](#): > > A Xmas beer from Anchor Steam. It was spruce flavored. Imagine that you decided to water your Xmas tree with beer. Then, the next day you said to yourself “Hey! I wanted to drink that beer!” and proceeded to drain it out of the tree holder and drink it. Or, if you can’t imagine that, imagine each bottle having a tablespoon of Les-Toil added to it before it leaves the factory. > I had half a glass, about two big swallows, and I was sick for a couple days afterward. I credit taking the second swallow to my apparently being retarded. Really? I’ve tried a pine flavored beer and it’s one of my xmas favorites. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 2010, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/86 "2010-11-30T20:02:39Z")
Drinking Rolling Rock was like making love in a canoe. ---
**Author:** ![FallenAngel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@FallenAngel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FallenAngel)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 2010, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/87 "2010-12-01T23:53:24Z")
I loathe hoppy beers. Imagine my instant near-spew moment the first time a friend who didn’t know my beer preferences served me up his new favorite beer a few years ago: Arrogant Bastard. For those who don’t know, Arrogant Bastard is one of the most hops infused beers in production AND the hops tasted like it’s roasted in a blast furnace. ---
**Author:** ![brad\_d](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@brad\_d](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brad_d)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/88 "2010-12-02T00:41:41Z")
Last year for Christmas a relative gave me [this](http://www.worldmarket.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3680742) “Beers of the World” sampler pack from Cost Plus World Market. All ten were on the “light-flavored” side for my usual tastes, but I still enjoyed trying them; some I’d had before, others I hadn’t. I’m generally pretty easygoing about beers; while I have favorite styles, it’s rare that I’ll find a beer I dislike. One bottle, though, was [Ed Hardy Beer](http://edhardybeer.com/). Lord knows how that made it into that selection, but it was terrible. My wife agreed - it really tasted bad. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/89 "2010-12-02T00:49:56Z")
> [@brad\_d](#): > > One bottle, though, was [Ed Hardy Beer](http://edhardybeer.com/). Lord knows how that made it into that selection, but it was terrible. My wife agreed - it really tasted bad. That’s all about branding, surely – if it weren’t of the lowest possible quality, offensive to taste, and priced a premium, it wouldn’t be an Ed Hardy™ product. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/90 "2010-12-02T01:50:05Z")
> [@Hades](#): > > It’s $14.99 at the gas station across the road from where I live. I might eventually buy it just out of morbid curiosity. That’s a lot more than I’ve heard. I can get a 30-pack of Red Dog here for 12.99, not that Red Dog is great. Buy it, try it, and report here. I’m curious. I’ve heard it is mostly water. ---
**Author:** ![Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b38774/32.png) [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swords_to_Plowshares)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/91 "2010-12-02T02:46:52Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I got a growler of Troegs Mad Elf last weekend. I hated it. Ad I hate every fuckin seasonal xmas beer. And yet I still buy them. Unfortunate. That stuff is awesome. (It’s a strong Belgian dark ale flavored with honey and cherries, for those who haven’t heard of it. Well balanced and not too sweet.) ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/92 "2010-12-02T11:27:04Z")
> [@Dr.Rieux](#): > > Drinking Rolling Rock was like making love in a canoe. I had a RR last weekend probably for the first times since college. I’m guessing 30 years. I’m guessing it will be another 30 before I have another one. ---
**Author:** ![Norse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a9adbd/32.png) [@Norse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Norse)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/93 "2010-12-02T11:58:31Z")
> [@Larry\_Mudd](#): > > American-style light beer is pretty banal, but I have no problem drinking it out of politeness without being a dick about it. (By which I mean expressing anything apart from “Hey, beer! Thanks!” by word, deed, or subtle facial expression.) +1. And making love in a canoe is nice once in a while, too. But yeah, American industry lagers, and especially the lights, are just meh. No hops, no taste, no aftertaste. Nice fizz and a small buzz for a hot summer day. > [@Hades](#): > > Guinness \*is \*weak beer. It’s only 4% alcohol, while Bud Light is 4.2%. For a beer lover, “weak” might just as well refer to the taste rather than the alcohol content. I’ve drunk Scandinavian “light” beers (which really are low-alcohol beers with only 2.5% alcohol) which have a much stronger (and better) taste than your American “Light” beers at 4.2% > [@WarmNPrickly](#): > > Lambics take some getting used to. They are the moldy cheese of beer. I love moldy cheese, but I’ve never aquired the taste for lambics. To me, they taste moldy and sour, not the way beer should taste. I guess that lambics, together with the more creative Belgian products like cherry beer, raspberry beer and some of the oaked beers are the small-brewery beers which I really dislike. > [@Anonymous\_Coward](#): > > Hrmm. Perhaps a Danish beer called Faxe. 10% alcohol and tastes like ass in a can. > > It gets you good and ripped though. It’s not just Faxe brewery that makes those high-alcohol content lagers, other Danish breweries also do that. And Faxe brews a quite decent ordinary lager which is no better, no worse than other European industrial lagers. The 10% alcohol content is just for getting drunk and it makes the beer really crappy. A light lager with 10% alcohol tastes bad. Just bad. A lager just can’t carry that much alcohol. And I think I’ll nominate that product as the worst beer-like substance I’ve ever ingested. Not only for the taste, but also for the concept (hey, let’s make a beer that only has one thing to boast about: It’s really strong, so you get drunk faster) Now, try a Belgian Triple, they contain some 8-10% alcohol and taste just great. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/94 "2010-12-02T18:27:05Z")
Guinness isn’t what I’d call “weak.” I consider it the perfect session beer. Plenty of flavor, but low on the alcohol. Unlike the double IPA from the brewery hear in town, I can drink Guinness all night long without falling over or having to switch to Diet Pepsi halfway through the evening. > [@Mahaloth](#): > > Buy it, try it, and report here. I’m curious. I’ve heard it is mostly water. Just to be pedantic, _all_ beer is mostly water. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/95 "2010-12-02T18:43:56Z")
[quote=“Gary “Wombat” Robson, post:94, topic:562209”] Guinness isn’t what I’d call “weak.” I consider it the perfect session beer. [/QUOTE] Yeah. I wish more beer bars started offering lower-alcohol session beers. I’ve pretty much burned out on the 6%+ alcohol stuff. Occasionally, one of the local breweries (Goose Island) has an English Mild or similar English bitter on tap, clocking in at 3.5%, which I find very useful for helping me pace myself through the evening. Actually, Goose Island is pretty good about offering a wide range of alcohol levels on tap, and even have a section of their menu dedicated only to session beers. The last beer bar I was at, however, didn’t have anything less than 5% on tap. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 6:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/96 "2010-12-02T18:48:13Z")
> [@Norse](#): > > For a beer lover, “weak” might just as well refer to the taste rather than the alcohol content. I’ve drunk Scandinavian “light” beers (which really are low-alcohol beers with only 2.5% alcohol) which have a much stronger (and better) taste than your American “Light” beers at 4.2% I like strong beers, both by taste and ABV. It seemed \*\*LOUNE \*\*was calling it weak based on the latter – it’s definitely not watery – and I was confirming his statement. ---
**Author:** ![drastic\_quench](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e36b37/32.png) [@drastic\_quench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drastic_quench)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/97 "2010-12-02T20:09:21Z")
[quote=“Gary “Wombat” Robson, post:94, topic:562209”] Guinness isn’t what I’d call “weak.” I consider it the perfect session beer. Plenty of flavor, but low on the alcohol. Unlike the double IPA from the brewery hear in town, I can drink Guinness all night long without falling over or having to switch to Diet Pepsi halfway through the evening. Just to be pedantic, _all_ beer is mostly water. 😉 [/QUOTE] Guinness is a dry Irish stout, and it has a very thin mouthfeel compared to Ameican/English stouts, and the flavor is nowhere near as robust. So I see where weak is an apt descriptor in that regard and both in ABV. Guinness is just fine in my book for that very reason though. It’s a good selection to get someone into beer other than American adjunct lagers. Compared to the Bud Light most people drink, Guinness looks intimidating. That’s where it’s incorrect reputation as heavy, strong, and “like a meal in a glass” comes from - beer rubes. Again though, it’s a good transition beer even with that rep, because once you show people they can drink and enjoy a beer like that, they’re more open to trying a wide variety of great craft beers. And they can enjoy it because it’s thin, a bit watery, and not robust – much like their adjunct lagers. Also it’s everywhere, and it’s a recognized brand, so they’re more open to trying that vs what they perceive as some weird little-known odd beer. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_Robson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gary_robson/32/3448_2.png) [@Gary\_Robson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_Robson)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2010, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/98 "2010-12-02T21:16:09Z")
> [@drastic\_quench](#): > > Guinness is a dry Irish stout, and it has a very thin mouthfeel compared to Ameican/English stouts, and the flavor is nowhere near as robust. So I see where weak is an apt descriptor in that regard and both in ABV. Guinness is just fine in my book for that very reason though. It’s a good selection to get someone into beer other than American adjunct lagers. Compared to the Bud Light most people drink, Guinness looks intimidating. That’s where it’s incorrect reputation as heavy, strong, and “like a meal in a glass” comes from - beer rubes. Again though, it’s a good transition beer even with that rep, because once you show people they can drink and enjoy a beer like that, they’re more open to trying a wide variety of great craft beers. And they can enjoy it because it’s thin, a bit watery, and not robust – much like their adjunct lagers. Also it’s everywhere, and it’s a recognized brand, so they’re more open to trying that vs what they perceive as some weird little-known odd beer. I quite agree with you. Like most beer aficionados, I don’t have a single specific beer–or even a single style–that I drink all the time. I have favorite session beers (Guinness being one of them), and favorite lawnmower beers (e.g., McTarnahan’s), and favorite “just one after dinner” beers (e.g., Ola Dubh), and so on. If I’m just having one, it’s much more likely to be Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout or our local brewery’s English-Style Stout than a Guinness. I wish we could get Guinness Export in the United States. I enjoy that one, but it appears that it ships everywhere in the world except North America. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2010, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/99 "2010-12-03T14:04:46Z")
Speaking of Guinness, I was at a party last year where they served an ice-cream cake. There was Guinness on tap. Someone had the genius idea of making a Guinness float. Heavenly. ---
**Author:** ![fiddlesticks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddlesticks/32/18129_2.png) [@fiddlesticks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fiddlesticks)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2010, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209/100 "2010-12-03T16:03:21Z")
Warm Miller High Life (get nauseous just thinking about it). Thoroughly skunked Pilsner Urquell (its default state in the US market, unfortunately). [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/worst-beer-like-substance-youve-ever-had-the-displeasure-to-ingest/562209.md?page=6)