Multinational giants Anheuser-Busch have been using this ad to describe their Bud Light brand in the US for the last year. What Anheuser-Busch are trying to state with this ad and the whole ethos behind Bud Light is that it isn't heavy tasting, or too filling. In essence, although Bud Light is a light beer, and inherently suggests it is a bit girly, you drink it because you can easily drink more of it. Ergo you look/feel more manly as you can drink loads.
For me however, the vast majority of the drinkability argument is a nonsense. I'm going to widen the spectrum a little here outside of just the beer world to illustrate my point. You see, drinkability is not about the volume you can consume, or the alcoholic strength of a drink. Drinkability is all about having a correct time and place to enjoy that drink. Let me explain a little further.
In the summer I am drawn to paler beers with low abv. You have a terrible thirst, the sun is beating down, you are dehydrated, you aren't going to reach for the room temperature bottle of barrel aged Imperial stout are you? Likewise in the winter, it is cold, dark and rainy outside, that once inappropriate barrel aged stout really hits the spot. While I'm at work I crave tea, I'll happily drink four or five cups a day while I'm brewing. If it is late and I have come home on my own, I'll often have a small glass of whisky (single malt Islay is my favourite).
Every drink has a place and a time, one of the main things I struggle with Brewdog's new Sink! beer is that I can't really ever imagine a time or place I would really want to drink it.
I would say that Sink! and TNP are drinks to have in place of, or perhaps as well as, your Islay. Mind you, I have yet to try the new beer from these boys, so we'll see.
ReplyDeleteThe trouble is an Islay is less expensive per shot......
Couldn't agree more Pete. In fact I've just sunk a room temp Imperial Stout as I read it.
ReplyDeleteDave- I was up in London with Mark and other for the Sink! launch the other day. I didn't really get it to be honest. Massive marmelade hops, sweetness, bitterness and a big alcoholic burn. I can't see it replacing whisky. I had a bottle of TNP over Christmas, which possibly got a little closer to how I would drink whisky. But for £40 a bottle I could buy a bottle of Ardbeg or Bowmore and get a tenner change, no competition really.
ReplyDeleteSean- Good stuff, was it homebrewed? I bottled my 8.2% Imperial oatmeal stout a couple of weeks ago. Should be drinkable in a couple more weeks. I think i'll probably age most of it for few months at least.
I think context is a parallel issue to drinkability and every beer has it's time and place. You sday that you don't know when Sink! has a time or place, but we experienced the right time and place on Friday.
ReplyDeleteDrinkability is a big concept in beer and it means a lot of different things. For me it's the combination of a few different things, centered around whether you'd want another one or not. If you want another then it's got drinkability.
I just went to Bud Light's website and it the Official Home of Drinkability. Brilliant bullshit.
I couldn't agree more! Would you like to do a review of our craft beers? Contact me. I would love to hear from you!
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