How many genres of film can you name? Go ahead…Thrillers, Comedy,
Musical ummm… Action maybe..and there are many more categories with
names as complex as post modernist, neoclassical and several others.
Now imagine for one little moment that the earth is rattled and all
that's left in our consciousness is one and only just one genre. How
boring it would be. No cinemas. No variety in emotion. No colour.
Listlessness would prevail. Well the situation of beer in India is
really much like the "single-genre" film world. All we got is
Pilsners! Now I know it isn't exactly that bad. We're talking of beer
here - Less variety, more variety, who really cares? But what about
the predicament of someone who has to sit down and painstakingly taste
these similar varieties and come back with their tasting notes – each
different and unique. The pleasure of this predicament is mine and I'm
going to try and do a good job of it.
The beers I tasted are the usual suspects – the ubiquitous Kingfisher,
the international Fosters, the dying London Pilsner, the
whiskey-sounding Royal Challenge and the latest kid on the block
Cobra.
Colour: All the beers are in the straw to golden colour range. Nothing
really much between them. If you do have Dr. Watson's magnifying glass
you might say Fosters and Cobra are slightly darker than the other
suspects. LP, Kingfisher and RC are slightly paler, more yellow and
straw-like in colour comparatively speaking. But this is only just
slightly and only if you've got superior eyesight such as mine.
Carbonation & Head Formation: The Kingfisher and the RC do a good job
as "fizzies." The head stays for long enough for you to request a song
on the juke box and slowly trudge back to find the pretty white
blanket lingering about the top of the glass. The Cobra is good enough
to be third noticeably the bubble size (like the Fosters) is
slightly bigger than the others. The heads of the Fosters and London
Pilsner especially the latter prove great at the disappearing act. The
carbonation too appears to be in the following descending order
Kingfisher, RC, Cobra, Fosters and London Pilsner.
Mouth feel: Very little really to differentiate. However Fosters and
Cobra have slightly heavier bodies. Again this is to a very minute
degree.
Aroma: The London Pilsner lets out a pungent, sharp yeasty aroma. It
is best to not try and sniff at it. You might even get the aroma of a
barnyard on close inspection. The Kingfisher has a hoppy and almost
piney sort of an aroma. Also you might sense the warmth of the alcohol
in the aroma. The Cobra aroma is a lot less intense and at the same
time its balanced. You don't need to cringe while drawing a deep
breath over a glass of Cobra. Hints of fruitiness also emanate.
Fosters has an almost estery/sour aroma with strong hints of yeast.
You may just also register the aroma of red wine perhaps.
Flavour: All the beers seem to balance maltiness with the bitterness
of the hops. London Pilsener is watery bland for the first second or
two and then its slightly sour (like vinegar) and then lots of hoppy
flavour. The aftertaste has a hint of a medicine like/ phenolic taste
and thankfully dissipates quickly. The Kingfisher has a mild maltiness
with sour/estery notes in between (sour notes are in the beginning
only). There are hints of a piney/wooden flavour. Then follows a long,
hoppy, bitter but pleasant finish. Cobra is more full flavoured than
the other beers. It does exercise your taste buds. You may also sense
smoky notes in the middle. The bitterness grows slowly and finishes
with hints of bittersweet fruits (pear perhaps). The finish is
typically long. Lastly the Fosters left me baffled. Its quite full
flavoured not so much as the Cobra but more than the Kingfisher. A
fine balance between the malts and the hops. But there are hints of
burnt toast and a medicine like sourness. Its difficult to put into
perspective but if you will taste any other beer in conjunction with a
Fosters you will know what I'm talking about.
I don't wish to hurt the sentiments of any serious beer brand drinkers
with my thoughts above. Any violent reactions to my opinions are
pointless. Taste is subjective – go exercise your taste buds and you
shall know. Anyways, I always believe in what some great drunk slob
had muttered after a beer too many - "The best beer is the bottle in
your hand". Right on, mate. Right on.
