Maxim Beer Reference

The Big Boys: Macros

Michelob Ultra / Pale Lager / St. Louis - Rainwater light.
Heineken / Pale Lager / The Netherlands - Crisp bite.
Miller Lite / Light Lager / Milwaukee - Sugary and clean.
Michelob / Lager / St. Louis - Woody taste, dry classic beer goes down easy without any aftertaste.
Miller Genuine Draft / Pale Lager / Milwaukee - Light with a touch of hops.
Bud Light (aluminum bottle) / Pale Lager / St. Louis - low-cal brew for dieting.
Amstel Light / Pale Lager / Amsterdam - Hoppy lager can be downed for hours.
Stella Artois / Pale Lager / Belgium - Glass-smooth beer.
Harp / Pale Lager / Ireland - Milder in taste than cousins Guinness and Smithwick's.
Michelob Light / Lager / St. Louis - Hints of caramel.
Blue Moon / Belgian Wheat / Toronto - Hints of Bazooka gum.
Miller High Life / Pale Lager / Milwaukee - Champagne of beers, starts mild but ends crisp and sweet.
Budweiser (aluminum bottle) / Pale Lager / St. Louis - Essential beer with snappy bite.

The Crisp Crew: Quenching, Bold Beauties

Peroni / Lager / Italy - Robust Roman.
Carlsberg / Pale Lager / Denmark - Fine, grassy brew with tart finish.
Tennent's of Scotland / Pale Lager / Scotland - Tastes like Miller High Life with a brogue.
Lowenbrau Original / Lager / Germany - Sweet, tangy lager.
Beck's / Pilsner / Germany - Light, bold, and cures the thirsties fast.
St. Pauli Girl / Lager / Germany - Mild and malty with a clean finish.
Warsteiner Light / German Pilsner / Germany - Harsh start, chuggable finish.
Pilsner Urquell / Pilsner / Czech Republic - Refreshingly bitter.
Kirin Ichiban / Pale Lager / Japan - Dry beer.
Fischer Amber / Amber Ale / France - Leaves a sweet taste on the lips.
Modelo Especial / Lager / Mexico - Light, uncomplicated, and goes down easy.
Tiger / Lager / Singapore - Clean and smooth, with a sugary finish.
Staropramen / Pilsner / Czech Republic - Peppery.
Duvel / Pale Ale / Belgium - Citrus notes and smooth despite 8.5% alcohol.

Fun Punch From Paradise: Climb Into A Bottle Instead of Taking a Week Off

Gordon Biersch Blonde Bock / Auburn Lager / San Jose, CA - Malty beer, not for the wimpy of tongue.
Sierra Nevada / Pale Ale / Chico, CA - High notes of citrus and floral, baseline is a hoppy boom.
Carta Blanca / Pale Lager / Mexico - Light and crisp.
Sol / Pale Lager / Mexico - Sweet, lemony brew with wet-hay finish.
Brahma / Pale Lager / Brazil - Thirst-quenching.
Pacifico Clara / Pale Lager / Mexico - Bubbly and bright.
Primo Island Lager / Lager / Lihue, HI - Hints of berry and salt.
Presidente / Pale Lager / Dominican Republic - Tastes limed and salted without adding either.
Red Stripe / Lager / Jamaica - Sweet lager has pleasantly skunky smell.
Corona Extra / Pale Lager / Mexico - Limes are optional but preferred.
Blue Star / Wheat Ale / Mendocino County, CA - Starts with a huge nose of roasted nuts and blueberry, then gives nice bitter finish.

The Redheads: Wild and Mysterious, Will Stalk Your Palate

St. Pauli Girl Special Dark / Dark Lager / Germany - More complex and naughtier than her blonde sibling. Eminently drinkable.
Samuel Adams Boston Lager / Lager / Boston - Mild enough to quell the fire yet hoppy enough to add nuance to the party in your moth.
Brooklyn Lager / Lager / Brooklyn - Loaded with malty, hoppy, slightly spicy flavor.
Newcastle / Brown Ale / UK - Evoking nutty flavors, surprisingly light.
Samuel Smith's Old Brewery Pale Ale / English Pale Ale / UK - Superdrinkable brew with peaty hints of deliciousness.
Michelob Ultra Amber Light / Lager / St. Louis - Light with a rye-toast flavor.
Bass Pale Ale / Pale Ale / UK - Rich, hoppy flavor.
Dos Equis Ambar / Dark Lager / Mexico - Easy, smoky stuff has more guts than most big American beers.
Yuengling Traditional Lager / Pale Lager / Pottsville, PA - Frothier than an Amish beard, complex flavor with hints of caramel.
Michelob Pale Ale / Pale Ale / St. Louis - Mildly bitter.
Great Lakes Eliot Ness / Vienna / Cleveland - Smoth and sexy amber.
Budweiser American Ale / Amber Ale / St. Louis - Malty taste.

Canned Heat: Embraced By Elite Brewers For Its Preservation Power

Busch Light / Lager / St. Louis - Tasty lager whose nose evokes late fall, rotting leaves and all.
Sapporo / Pale Lager / Japan - Light, wispy head, strong finish.
Rainier / Light Lager / Irwindale, CA - Malty minx goes down fast.
Gordon Ale (Oskar Blues) / Ale / Lyons, CO - Lighter and cleaner than its cousin, Dale, drinkable spicy powerhouse.
Kokanee / Pale Lager / BC - Full-flavored light beer.
Dale's Pale Ale (Oskar Blues) / Pale Ale / Lyons, CO - Bitter, fun punch to the palate.
Coors Light / Lager / Golden, CO - Easy-to-drink, low-cal.
Old Milwaukee / Pale Lager / Milwaukee - Malt flavor.
Milwaukee's Best / Pale Lager / Milwaukee - Musty cereal nose, smoky taste, yet still superlight.
Lucky / Lager / Toronto - Smooth with a heavy blast of sour grain.
Natural Light / Pilsner / St. Louis - Mild brew is ideal for el cheapo partying.
King Cobra / Malt Liquor / St. Louis - Grainy, light-beer-like taste but finishes harshly in the back of your throat.
Genesee Cream Ale / Cream Ale / Rochester, NY - Creamy, dry-like-gasoline beer is supper slammable.
Blatz Light / Pale Lager / Milwaukee - Diet drink has tinges of white toast and butter.
Pabst Blue Ribbon / Pale Lager / Milwaukee - Hipster cachet, peaty finish, chain-saw hangover.
Stroh's / Macro Lager / Milwaukee - Hints of mesquite.
Budweiser Tallboys / Pale Lager / St. Louis - Perfectly oversize cans.
Schaefer / Pale Lager / San Antonio - Beer to have when you are broke and need a mind vacation from your nagging wife.
OB Lager / Pale Lager / South Korea - Crisp beer is Korean Bud.
Guinness Draught / Stout / Dublin - Black, smoky brew, sometimes knocked for being too dense or too bitter, but it's actually remarkably light and superdrinkable despite its color and breadbasket head.
Foster's (oil can) / Pale Lager / Australia - Evokes Bud, but with more alcohol-infused aftertaste.
Foster's Premium Ale (oil can) / Ale / Australia - Just as smooth as the regular (blue can), but with more roasted nose and nutty body.
Tecate / Pale Lager / Mexico - Goes down quick.
Boddingtons / Ale / UK - One-pint can comes with nitrogen widget and pours beautiful, long-lasting head. Has butter mouthfeel and is slightly bitter.

Best of the Bottom Shelf: Remove Shame and Drink These

Labatt Blue / Pilsner / Ontario - Rich and nuanced, smoother than many of its skunkier Great White North brethren.
Rolling Rock / Pale Lager / St. Louis - Watery with a subtle bite.
Ballantine Ale / Ale / Milwaukee - Fruity bouquet.
St. Ides / Malt Liquor / Eden, NC - Watered-down anti-freeze.
Old Style Light / Pale Lager / Milwaukee - Golden brew tastes a little like heaven.
Olde English 800 / Malt Liquor / Milwaukee - One of the greatest cheap buzzes in the world.
Colt 45 / Malt Liquor / Milwaukee - Grainy flavor. After a 40 of this, it's fightin' time.
Dixie / Pale Lager / New Orleans - Tasty blend of leather, smoke, and cantaloupe notes.
Kronenbourg 1664 / Pale Lager / France - Cheap, spry, pleasantly bitter beer.
Schlitz / Pale Lager / Milwaukee - The new-old beer, bitter and watery.
Lone Star / Pale Lager / San Antonio - Light, no-frills beer.

Bad Name, Good Beer

Leffe Blond / Pale Ale / Belgium - Like a wheat beer without that annoying wax-paper aftertaste. Hay-hued ale is super-fruity.
Scrimshaw / Pilsner / Mendocino County, CA - Crisp beer with buttery notes.
Tsingtao / Pale Lager / China - China's #1 export, thin-headed, light beer with slightly hoppy floral character.
Bohemia / Pilsner / Mexico - Melon-tinged.
Harbin / Pale Lager / China - Sweet.
Smithwick's / Red Ale / Ireland - Called "Smiddicks" in Ireland. Nutty, silky.
Asahi / Lager / Tokyo - Sharp on the tongue.
Leinenkugel Sunset Wheat / Wheat Ale / Chippewa Falls, WI - Citrussy.
Kingfisher / Lager / India - Mellow.
McSorley's Ale / Ale / Wilkes-Barre, PA - Gulpable amber ale.
Hoegaarden / Belgian White / Belgium - Velvety with hints of corlander and orange.
Chimay Rouge / Pilsner / Belgium - Reddish body and honey-sweet aroma.
Saison Dupont / Farmhouse Ale / Belgium - Bursting with notes of almond and grapefruit.