Baby Its Hot Outside
Summer is here along with the heat and humidity it brings here in Atlanta. I don’t stop doing things when its hot out, I just sweat a lot more and drink a lot more water. I also drink a few “lawnmower beers” as I finish up a workout or yard work and am dripping with sweat. There’s something about a big can of light lager beer served Ice Cold that refreshes in the hot weather.
This is the first of a semi-regular series of “King Can” beer reviews:
Bring Out The King Cans
One of the beers I drink in these conditions is Coors Light. It’s got a low ABV of 4.2% and goes down super easy. The day was pretty warm (90 degrees and getting humid) and I was just back from a fairly hard bike ride. I figured it would be perfect to break out the 1st King Can (24oz or larger) “lawnmower beer” of the season and pour it into my special large size mug (watch the video to see the mug preview!):
Appearance: The Silver Bullet pours a very, very light, straw color, is very clear, and has visible bubbles coming off the bottom of the Andre Mug. The head is very white but disappears almost instantly and leaves zero lacing.
Smell: Not much of a smell except a little corn, grain, and a very small hint of hops. Nothing really vile was detected.
Taste: The taste is very light- Muted wet corn and hay, with a slight musty overtone is pretty much what you get. Almost zero hops and a little fizzy. Once again, no vileness in the taste.
Drinkability: This is a drinkable beer, as long as it is consumed ICE COLD. The low ABV of 4.2% means it goes down easily and doesn’t pack much of a kick at all. As the beer warms up it becomes less drinkable.
Coors Light definitely fits my definition of “Lawnmower Beer”-beer that is made to be consumed when you are hot and sweaty. There’s not much to the beer at all but nothing is “terrible bad” either. The smell and taste are there, but just barely, and the drinkability is fairly good. It does what it is meant to do, provide a very neutral beer that is inexpensive to make, low in calories, and relatively easy drinking. When compared to a craft beer Coors Light is total crap 
But, when compared to other mainstream beers it’s OK.
Here’s the score:
1. Appearance- 3 points (out of 10)
2. Smell- 3 points (out of 10)
3. Taste- 4 points (out of 20)
4. Drinkability- 6 points (out of 10)
Total 16 (out of 50) Points -2 Mugs
I wish it were April 1st so that this could be a joke post.
Coors Light? Seriously? I’m sure there is something out there that is made by a small brewer that would give you the same refreshing light flavor you are looking for.
Don’t give the big three your hard earned money!
I’ve found it quite surprising – given the number of beers available in the world (even good ones) – how many of your reviews are of beers I’ve been drinking myself around the same time; the Stone Imperial Russian Stout, Carnegie Porter, Rochefort, Mikkeller Beer Geek Breakfast Stout are recent examples.
This one has to take the biscuit, though. I never (well, almost never) drink this sort of beer, and yet I had a bottle of Coors Light just over a week ago. I’d gone for a drink after work and, since pubs in Northern Ireland generally don’t serve anything particularly interesting in the way of beer, I took the opportunity to rate some of the more dubious products. First I had a bottle of Corona Extra, which was a total revelation (I hadn’t realised that it was possible for a beer to be so devoid of the ability to stimulate any of the senses), and went directly to the bottom of my list. Then I had the Coors Light, which seemed to have some merit by comparison, but easily made it to number two from the bottom. My tastebuds were furious at the betrayal and wouldn’t talk to me all the way home (where I was finally able to placate them with a Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale).
It was only the second Coors Light I’ve drunk in my life (the first was in 2001 when I got nabbed in the street, by some marketing research people, to give my response to a television advertisement for the beer, in return for which I would be given a bottle of it and £5). There’s probably a lot of worse stuff out there, but it still gets no mugs on my scale!
Michael,
Maybe we’re on some sort of parallel beer drinking plane or something
I’ll agree that Coors Light, and the other light beers/adjunct lagers, aren’t the tastiest beers in the world, but they do serve their purpose. For me that purpose is to quench severe thirst when its very hot and humid outside. Maybe it’s the fact that I drink them ice cold, which effectively eliminates taste beyond the very basics. I wouldn’t waste my money drinking a craft beer at 35 degrees so this does the trick. If I drink these at any other temperature they quickly become very bad tasting.
Just came across this site and I must say I love it! It’s always a pleasure watching video beer reviews.
As for the Coors Light, I drink them from time to time but usually when I don’t need to pay much attention to my beer. I find these perfect to drink while playing poker with some friends, for example.
Can’t put these anywhere near the same league as any of the “craft” brews, but in certain situations they do the job.
It’s not a joke, I do drink these types of beers every once in a while, believe it or not
Craft brewers get the VAST majority of my beer dollar. They(the big 3) represent less than 5% of my total beer consumption.
I will review every beer that I can, no matter who makes them. My hope is that non-craft beer drinkers will find my reviews and will see the other beers and be inspired to expand their horizons.
Hi Chris,
Glad you like the site! Hopefully you will keep watching and reading.
Coors Light is one of those beers that is great in the right situation. You’re right that it is miles from a “craft” beer but has its place. For me, that’s usually in the Summer when it is very hot and humid out.