Everywhere I go I see Bud Light Lime being sold. Now I see it in 24 pack cans. This has become a very popular beer and it’s a shame. Bud seems to be playing off the popular trend of putting a lime in Corona, Pacifico, etc. and are now making a bunch of money off of it. I did think it was going to worse than it was after trying the train wreck that is Miller Chill. Anyway, artificial flavored crap from Bud. There are so many amazing fruit beers out there that are refreshing and still give you the satisfaction of drinking a good beer.
REVIEW
Pour: Golden color pour with no head.
Aroma: Smell of lime.
Taste:It tastes like a bad diet lime soda; artificial and weak.
Overall: I know it is a big trend right now but try to avoid this beer. Try a Wheach from O’Fallon or a Son of Peach from RJ Rockers instead. Those are terrific fruit beers.
RATING: F

Eastern Iowa residents: This beer is available everywhere, but go to a local Hy-Vee and pick up O’Fallon Wheach or RJ Rockers’ Son of Peach. Even buying a sixer of Pacifico and putting a lime in it is much better than this.

Bass Pale Ale is relatively well-known around the world. Most Irish pubs will have this on tap or in the bottle. All liquor stores I have been to carry this beer. This beer was brewed in Ireland for a while but now is being made in the UK. Not a knock your socks off beer but not too bad either.
REVIEW
Pour: Amber colored pour with nice white head.
Aroma: A faint smell of toast but not much for hops.
Taste: Flavor is malty not very hoppy like your American Pale Ales. Kind of disappointing.
Overall: So many better pale ales out there, I wouldn’t waste my time with this one. Flavor seems to have changed as this used to be pretty decent. Buy a good American Pale Ale and don’t blow $8 on a sixer of this.
RATING: D+

Eastern Iowa residents: This beer is available all over the area, but don’t spend money on this, look to Millstream’s Pale Ale or Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. This is a pretty piss poor pale ale.

A favorite brewery of mine is Ale Asylum in Madison, WI. Very hoppy and fantastic beers and really cool brewery with a limited but very good menu ranks Ale Asylum near the top of my list. Ambergeddon is a hoppy beer with a nice amount of malt flavor. Madison, WI is only a 2-3 hour drive for Eastern Iowaners, so make the trip to Ale Asylum (www.aleasylum.com). On the drive up, stop in Potosi, Mount Horeb, and New Glarus, for some great beer.
REVIEW
Pour: Amber colored pour with nice white head.
Aroma: Smell of hops and malts.
Taste: Initial flavor of hops and the malts come in next. Good stuff!
Overall: Another strong beer from Ale Asylum. Like I said above, Wisconsin is making some awesome beers, make the trip up there and drink some really good stuff.
RATING: C+

Eastern Iowa residents: This beer is available at all Hy-Vee Wine and Spirits, John’s Grocery, Benz Beverage Depot, and probably most liquor stores. Give it try!

A beer that impresses me every time I have it for its creaminess and smoothness. Young’s Double Chocolate Stout (http://www.youngs-chocolate-stout.com/) is one of the finer stouts out there. An English brewed beer Young’s combines milk chocolate with dark chocolate for this wonderfully smooth stout. I try to keep this beer in my fridge as much as possible but for a 4-pack of their cans the cost is anywhere between $8-$10. But, sometimes to drink good beer you have to ignore the price. 
REVIEW
Pour:Dark cloudy brown with a thick tan head.
Aroma: Smell of chocolate and maybe a little coffee.
Taste: Wonderfully chocolate flavor with a little coffee in there as well. Creaminess is very similar to Guinness if you have had that.
Overall: A terrific beer. If you are into stouts this is something for you. If you are new to trying the “darker” beers you might want to start with this one because of its creaminess and smoothness.
RATING: A

Eastern Iowa residents: This beer is available at all Hy-Vee Wine and Spirits, John’s Grocery, Benz Beverage Depot, and probably most liquor stores. Give it try!

A beer that impresses me every time I have it for its creaminess and smoothness. Young’s Double Chocolate Stout (http://www.youngs-chocolate-stout.com/) is one of the finer stouts out there. An English brewed beer Young’s combines milk chocolate with dark chocolate for this wonderfully smooth stout. I try to keep this beer in my fridge as much as possible but for a 4-pack of their cans the cost is anywhere between $8-$10. But, sometimes to drink good beer you have to ignore the price. 
REVIEW
Pour:Dark cloudy brown with a thick tan head.
Aroma: Smell of chocolate and maybe a little coffee.
Taste: Wonderfully chocolate flavor with a little coffee in there as well. Creaminess is very similar to Guinness if you have had that.
Overall: A terrific beer. If you are into stouts this is something for you. If you are new to trying the “darker” beers you might want to start with this one because of its creaminess and smoothness.
RATING: A

Eastern Iowa residents: This beer is available at all Hy-Vee Wine and Spirits, John’s Grocery, Benz Beverage Depot, and probably most liquor stores. Give it try!

I don’t think I have to go into the background of Budweiser too much. A nationally known symbol and icon that people are drinking quite a bit of yet today. It has been brewed and sold since 1876 by Anheuser-Busch in St. Louis, MO. An american tradition although Anheuser is no longer American owned.
REVIEW
Pour:Pale yellow pour with small white head.
Aroma: Grainy aroma.
Taste: Flavor is lacking, grainy, but that’s about it.
Overall: Nothing much going on with this beer. A cool label and marketing campaign but there is no flavor for this beer. I’ve said this before, don’t waste the money on beer like this, instead support local (Millstream) or craft beer that is out there today.
RATING: D-

Eastern Iowa residents: This beer is available everywhere. The Bud marketing machine makes sure you see this beer in the center of the shelves. Avoid it, buy something good.

Just bought a six pack of Anchor Steam beer, haven’t had it in quite a while. Anchor brewing (http://www.anchorbrewing.com/) is located in San Francisco and was one of the first microbreweries to get the craft beer revolution started. Iowa residents will probably recognize the man behind Anchor, Fritz Maytag. Maytag is from the same family that produces the nationally known Maytag Blue Cheese located in Newton, Iowa. He moved to San Fran and bought Anchor and turned it into what it is today. Some Iowa roots located on the west coast.
REVIEW
Pour:Deep amber pour with a thick creamy head.
Aroma: Malts, yeast, and floral hops.
Taste: Flavor of malts, caramel, and citrus hops.
Overall: A very enjoyable beer to sit and enjoy. A little bit of bitterness that rounds out the sweet flavors of the malts. A good session beer.
RATING: C

Eastern Iowa residents: I’ve seen this beer throughout Eastern Iowa. Hy-Vee, good liquor stores, and sometimes even small town grocers have had this in their selection. Give it a shot.

A beer I drank for a long time but haven’t much of late since I’ve been focusing on drinking micro/craft beer was Amstel Light. Amstel Light (http://amstellight.com/) is a light beer with only 3.5 a.b.v. It is brewed in the Netherlands and has that somewhat distinct skunk flavor that Heineken has but not to that extent. A little skunkiness but also somewhat refreshing.
REVIEW
Pour:Lighter gold with solid white head.
Aroma: Skunkiness smell.
Taste: Crisp clean flavor with not much finish.
Overall: If you are one of those people who only drink light beers, then I would recommend this. If you are more adventureous, there is much more offered out there than this.
RATING: D

Eastern Iowa residents: This beer is available pretty much anywhere. Don’t buy this, spend your money on a Millstream product and support the local brewer.