This is What Made Milwaukee Famous?
Written: Aug 25 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Price is low
Cons: Little real beer flavor; gassy
The Bottom Line: Schlitz is a bad- tasting brew that has fallen dramatically in popularity over the past 30 years.
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| Bryan_Carey's Full Review: Schlitz |
Hello, fellow Epinionators! This is my fifth entry in a six- part series titled "For the Love of Bad Brew". I have selected six horrible malt beverages for the purpose of this solo write- off, which I will present, one miserable brew at a time, over the next several days. Cheers!
Schlitz beer is a product brewed by the Joseph Schlitz Brewing company, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This is a product that was once a big seller, ranking in the top ten in sales among United States consumers. For the past 20 years, sales of Schlitz have tapered off significantly. Is this just because of bad marketing, or is taste also a factor? Let's take a look at this stuff they call Schlitz.
Basic Characteristics of This Beer:
Schlitz is golden in color and a little darker than other beer in its class. The foam level is decent at first, but it falls apart quickly, leaving just a thin layer of white froth on the top of your glass. The aroma is sweetish and unappetizing.
The taste of Schlitz is sweet at first, and it contains flavors of light barley malt, corn and other grain, with a trace of hops in the finish. The bitterness is most pronounced at the end of the drinking experience, just like with most beer, but Schlitz seems to get more and more bitter as you drink. Its flavor is like a piece of multi- grain bread soaked in water and alcohol. The aftertaste lingers for some time after drinking, and its not pleasant at all!
The alcohol level of this product is moderate- 4.7 percent by volume and there are 146 calories in a 12 oz. serving. These numbers are very similar to an equal serving of Budweiser or Miller.
Food Compatibility:
For those who are brave enough to drink Schlitz with food, I might suggest an equally cheap food, like a 50 cent pot pie or some frozen french fries. But that's really about it. This beer was not made to be consumed with good food. It's meant for drinking solo, playing drinking games, and as a beverage to serve to unwanted party guests. Just a few sips should be enough to turn most people away.
Final Thoughts:
Schlitz was once a great- selling beer, with a substantial advertising budget, frequent corporate sponsorship of events, and a decent amount of general business activities that made Schlitz a highly- visible name. Everything fell apart for Schlitz in the early 1980's, partly due to marketing failure and partly to the bad taste of its flagship product.
Schlitz has more bad points than just the taste. The beer is overcarbonated, and it gives the drinker a gurgling feeling in the stomach. All of that gas has to go someplace, and more often than not, it escapes right back through the throat and out the mouth, allowing the drinker to amuse those around him/her by making disgusting sounds in countless numbers of ways. And if it doesn't come back out the mouth, the body has other ways of expelling excessive amounts of gas. Take away the "L" in the name "Schlitz", and what do you have? I rest my case.
The can design that Schlitz uses is ugly and it gives the beer a very outdated look. It's just a simple white colored can with the company logo on the front. The company doesn't spend a whole lot of money anymore on advertising and product improvements, so I assume that this is why the can hasn't been redesigned.
Schlitz has a nasty aftertaste that I can still taste right now, in fact, more than an hour after drinking a couple of cans. After this review, I will probably head to the restroom and gargle with some good mouthwash. I can still feel the gas also. It's been an hour, but those two cans have really revved up my stomach. I'm still having small belch attacks while I type.
Schlitz beer will not likely ever achieve the sales success that it experienced a few decades ago. The product is too poor, and the company simply doesn't have the cash (or apparently, the desire) that's necessary to improve the product, step up advertising efforts, and increase sales.
Schlitz was once touted as the "Beer that Made Milwaukee Famous". This slogan is still printed on the label of each can, and it's a testament to a beer that was once fairly popular, not so much because of quality, but because of advertising and corporate exposure. Is this enough to "make a city famous"? In terms of money and economics, I suppose it is enough. But if I was a resident of the city of Milwaukee, I don't think I would repeat this slogan. The founding fathers of the city of Milwaukee would be sticking their heads in the sand if they could experience the taste of a glass of Schlitz.
Overall, this is another cheap beer to avoid. You can pick up a 12- pack of Schlitz for only about $4.99, so it does make for a nice cheap buzz. But remember that you get what you pay for. Paying a few extra dollars is worth it to get a beer that's at least semi- drinkable.
Unless you're dirt poor and need a good buzz, avoid this stuff they call Schlitz. Your digestive tract will thank you for your decision.
Recommended:
No
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