Monday, July 18, 2011

Day 199, July 18 / Ballantine XXX Ale


Day 199 /  July 18, 2011

Pabst Brewing Co. / Milwaukee, WI

A
NG
P
G
VG
O

Respect your elders?

From a young age, we’re told to respect our elders.  We should respect their experience, their knowledge, the dues they’ve paid.

Believe me, I want to like this beer.  I really want do.  I mean, Ballantine is an iconic brand of American beer.  At one time (1877), Ballantine was the 4th largest brewer in America.  Even through Prohibition, Ballantine remained one of the primary beer brewers in the US through the 1960’s.

A series of ownership changes, mismanagement, slow response to the changing beer market, led to Ballantine’s decline.   The brand is now own of several classic brand now owned by Pabst.  A comprehensive history of Ballantine can be found here.

Now the beer… When I opened the bottle, I was taken by the smell of this once legendary ale, and it wasn’t a good smell.  The smell didn’t get any better as I poured it into the glass.  And then came the taste.  The best I can describe it as is… foul.  Think the worst of Heineken combined with Schlitz.

Frankly, I was looking forward to my next drink, pictured here, to get the taste out of my mouth.

Since I drank the whole thing, and out of respect for my elders, I’ll give Ballantine a Not Good instead of an Awful.

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