Spring Break
A better beer taste, but with fewer calories
Valerie Calderon
Issue date: 9/29/08 Section: Focus
There's nothing like sitting back and popping open an ice cold beer to relax. The one problem with this refreshing drink is that most beers average 150 empty calories in each 12-ounce can or bottle.
Society has become a lot more health conscious. In order to please the number of Americans that don't want all those calories there have been a number of light beers marketed that claim to taste just as good as the originals. The majority don't.
Which low-calorie beer has the best all around taste? I tasted these beers so you don't have to.
Michelob Ultra
95 calories, 2.6g carbs
4.2 percent alcohol by volume (ABV)
This beer has a nice golden color and is highly carbonated. It has a seltzer-like taste, going down smooth but leaving a bitter taste afterward.
It has a full taste compared to the other beers, but is still somewhat watered down.
3 out of 5 stars
Heineken Premium Light
99 calories, 6.8g carbs, 3.3 percent ABV
Heineken did something right with this beer. It
has enough taste to mask the fact that it is actually a light beer. It has a light hint of citrus and is very smooth. It even has a richer aroma then the other beers tasted. There's no bitter after taste and this beer is palatable. It is on the higher end with the amount of calories, but the alcohol content is also one of the lowest.
4 out of 5 stars
Natural Light
95 calories
3.2g carbs
4.2 percent ABV
Oh Natty Light, nothing good can really be said about this beer, except that it is dirt cheap, around $14 a 30-rack. This beer is foamy and tastes completely watered down. This isn't a beer to sit back and enjoy, instead it is a beer to drink just to get drunk. For the price of this beer, its taste is to be expected.
1 out of 5 stars
Amstel Light
95 calories
5g carbs
3.5 percent ABV
This beer has a strong taste and a deep color, but in this case these are not good things. Amstel Light has a bitter, almost skunky aftertaste that is only made worse by the beers odor. It also had a drier taste than the other beers reviewed. There's nothing that sets it apart leaving it tasting mediocre.
Society has become a lot more health conscious. In order to please the number of Americans that don't want all those calories there have been a number of light beers marketed that claim to taste just as good as the originals. The majority don't.
Which low-calorie beer has the best all around taste? I tasted these beers so you don't have to.
Michelob Ultra
95 calories, 2.6g carbs
4.2 percent alcohol by volume (ABV)
This beer has a nice golden color and is highly carbonated. It has a seltzer-like taste, going down smooth but leaving a bitter taste afterward.
It has a full taste compared to the other beers, but is still somewhat watered down.
3 out of 5 stars
Heineken Premium Light
99 calories, 6.8g carbs, 3.3 percent ABV
Heineken did something right with this beer. It
has enough taste to mask the fact that it is actually a light beer. It has a light hint of citrus and is very smooth. It even has a richer aroma then the other beers tasted. There's no bitter after taste and this beer is palatable. It is on the higher end with the amount of calories, but the alcohol content is also one of the lowest.
4 out of 5 stars
Natural Light
95 calories
3.2g carbs
4.2 percent ABV
Oh Natty Light, nothing good can really be said about this beer, except that it is dirt cheap, around $14 a 30-rack. This beer is foamy and tastes completely watered down. This isn't a beer to sit back and enjoy, instead it is a beer to drink just to get drunk. For the price of this beer, its taste is to be expected.
1 out of 5 stars
Amstel Light
95 calories
5g carbs
3.5 percent ABV
This beer has a strong taste and a deep color, but in this case these are not good things. Amstel Light has a bitter, almost skunky aftertaste that is only made worse by the beers odor. It also had a drier taste than the other beers reviewed. There's nothing that sets it apart leaving it tasting mediocre.
Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 4
jeff
posted 9/29/08 @ 8:52 AM EST
I don't see the point of light beers really. I would just have the regular kind with only 20-50 more calories and have a little less of it. Or I could get a real beer with double those calories and only have half the amount
Kyle
posted 9/29/08 @ 2:02 PM EST
What about the Yuengling folks? Have you all forgotten about America's Oldest Brewery? Yuengy (pronounced Ying-ie by locals) makes a traditional Light (98 calories) and a Light Lager (99 calories) which both blow the rest of the competition out of the water in terms of taste, and as far as price goes a 12 pack of bottles can be found for as low as $7. (Continued…)
Steve
posted 12/17/08 @ 8:24 PM EST
Just as important is how much alchohol is contained in each beer compared to the calories. Check out the following site that rates each beer according to alcohol and calorie content: http://www. (Continued…)
Rosetta Cheeseman
posted 4/20/09 @ 3:17 AM EST
This article is amazing. I'm going to spend so much time procrastinating on here. I'm not quite sure if I should be thanking you, or cursing you
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