Beer Review: Red Stripe

Red Stripe is a beer that has gained popularity through advertisement over the years; because of this, the makers and distributors have been able to play it off as a beer superior to generic macro lagers. We'll see how it fares in a real world test in just a minute.

The beer pours a thin straw yellow color with quite a bit of carbonation. There's not head to speak of; even with a rather aggressive pour, only a few stray bubbles manage to make it to the surface. Overall a pretty generic looking beer. 

There's a sweet smell to Red Stripe; something akin to a corona or similar imported lager. Kind of musty but definitely syrupy. Not altogether off-putting, but not what I would call pleasing. 

Taste is sweet right off the bat. You get some bready/malty mix throughout the sip but not much else beyond that. Taste is funky; not quite your generic bud taste but almost like you took a bud and aged it. 

Soft drink consistency; drinks thin with a watery mouthfeel. I can deal with watery if there's some flavor to it but if you've read the previous paragraph you know my opinion on that. Not as thin as a light beer which is I guess a redeemable quality. 

You can find Red Stripe "Jamaican Lager" at your local store for around $7.99 but honestly, don't. There's not much that distinguishes Red Stripe from your corona-type varieties; some twists on the adjunct lager taste but basically its the same beer. The only thing keeping me from giving this beer an "F" is the slightly-better-than-light-beer mouthfeel. No other way to describe it other than a bad value. Want taste like this? Get a 30-pack of whatever macro is on sale.

Score: D-  1.5/5