Stella Artois 4% / Légère

Brewed by Samlesbury (InBev UK - InBev)
Style: Pale Lager
Preston, England

Imagine a pussification of Stella Artois. Bingo, this is it. Has the same basic feel of Stella, which doesn’t need describing, though the bitter aftertaste is less pleasant and it lacks the crispness of the regular stuff. Not a bad attempt at a light lager, though I can’t imagine why you’d switch from the regular stuff to this.

Canned. A golden coloured lager going on orange with no head. The aroma is of sweet malt and a bit of vomit. The taste is similar and the texture is greasy. Industrially industrial.

Aroma of corn and grass, straw yellow, short lived finger of white foam, smidge of lace. Taste is a milder grass than the nose hinted, a trace of malt (where the heck did that come from?) Very light bodied, carbonation and bitterness are sadly lacking. Boring.

Can. Golden with a medium head.Slightly dry and reasonably refreshing but nothing else. Will appeal to those who thing regular Stella is a classy beer. Enough said!

bottle. Poured clear gold with diminishing white head. Faint skunky hop aroma. Moderate carbonated fizzy mouthfeel. Tastes like regular Stella but a bit litter. Not worth it unless you really like Stella and are watching your calorie intake.

Bottle from the LCBO. First of all, I should note that I don’t mind regular Stella, as my 2.9 review of that beer indicates. Not something I drink every day, but a decent mainstream macro-lager when fresh on tap or in cans. I avoid the green bottles like a plague, though, and this bottle of the Légère reminds me why, as the aroma is skunky as hell when first opened. Once it airs out a bit, it doesn’t get much better - very sweet on the nose and tongue, with notes of corn syrup, completely lacking the "subtle, elegant" character that I describe in my review of the regular version. There’s perhaps a hint of grassy hops in the finish, but it doesn’t save this from being a cloying and unpleasant beer.

a weak but interesting aroma, kind of citrusy, and grassy. taste has the expected amount of water, but it lacks any harsh or deterring tastes. a touch bitter, slightly sweet. not an interesting beer, but it’s better than i expected out of this premium light beer.

500ml can. Typical lager look, pale straw with a thin white head that rapidly disappears leaving a flat looking drink despite the remaining carbonation; sweet corn syrup aroma; slightly sour, sweet corn syrup flavour, with nothing in the way of a finish. Not good.