So after my last foray into TJ beer stock, I decided to go back and try the opposite end of their selection's spectrum. I went with Red Oval. A working-man's beer if you would. Perhaps not for the beer snobs out there as much as their for the brew dogs. So what did I learn about Red Oval? Well, for one, it's brewed in Wisconsin at the Minhas Craft Brewery. You may remember them from such gems as: "Mountain Creek Classic", "Rockhead Malt Liquor", and "Wisconsin Club". What's that? You can't recall your last night out with a 40oz. of Rockhead? That's alright...neither can anyone outside of Monroe, Wisconsin.
Joking aside, Red Oval wasn't all that bad for it's price. Being a lager and of similar marketing and packaging to beers like Budweiser and Miller Lite, its not surprising that the taste was similar. There was no discernible odor, a mild hoppy taste, and perhaps most surprisingly no lingering after taste in my mouth. At under $3.00, I was just happy that it was indeed beer I was drinking and not barley-water (which I imagine would be the uber-cheap way of brewing by simply putting barley into water for an hour, chilling overnight, and serving).
The Buzz:
So the thing with cheap beer, is that they kinda skimp on the alcoholic content. Having become accustom to high-priced, high-abv, high-falutin' craft brews, I forgot that the requisite 4 beer limit for this experiment wasn't going to have quite the same impact. So, throughout the night, while being bored to death with the Winter Olympics, I put away 4 cans of Red Oval in a little under 2 hours and had nothing to show for it. The buzz was barely noticeable and I felt swindled out of my hard earned cash. Then I remembered that I had only drank about $2.00 worth of alcohol. Or the Los Angeles bar equivalent of a shot-glass of imported beer. So, who was I to complain about the lack of buzz when from an economical standpoint, I was ahead of the game in terms of drunkenness. That said, it took all my might to not finish off the six-pack and get something for my time's worth. Fortunately, I had a friend over who dropped those extra two (and several high priced beers) before the women's downhill slalom finished.
The Hangover:
Going to sleep that night, I didn't expect any hangover whatsoever due to the fact that I wasn't drunk in any way. I mean, how could you feel like shit the next day without feeling like awesome the night before? It just wouldn't seem right. Even so, I drank a full glass of water before I passed out just like the rules stated (granted, their my own rules that no one but me knows about, but rules is rules, yo!). So when I woke up in the morning with a nasty taste in my mouth and tired as all hell, I was confused and upset. A hangover? From this? You gotta be shitting me!!! Since it was only 7am, I popped a few Advil, re-brushed my teeth, and headed back to bed for another hour or two of sleep. By 9am...pseduo-hangover cured! No bad taste, no fatigue, no nothing. Just pure Sunday morning bliss!
The Verdict:
So, I went with the cheap lager this time over the expensive ale. What did I get? Just sub-par beer at a basement-level price! Perhaps if I had finished the entire six-pack the brief, barely hungover symptoms I experienced would've been far worse. But for purposes of this blog, I am NOT allergic to Red Oval.
Love the article. Very true how Red Oval doesn't give you a buzz. I went through a 6-er and got nothing. I think I'd get more of a buzz from one shot of Jack. Even though Simpler Times doesn't taste as good, I have to go with that from now on based on the 6.2% and 5.5% ABV.
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