I rarely mention anything other than craft beer on this site, but this is just getting ridiculous. Seriously, is this what it is coming down to for the big boys to sell beer these days? Are consumers really that focused on their calorie count that they’d rather drink something that resembles tap water more than a real beer?
Anheuser-Busch is advertising the new Bud Select 55 as “the lightest beer in the world”. Miller tells consumers that the MGD 64 is “As Light As It Gets”. How often do people really go out to a bar and say, “Can you please bring me the drink with the least amount of calories, regardless of how awful it tastes?” I’d like to think that people are smarter than this. Beer is supposed to be enjoyed, not endured. If you are that focused on calories, just drink a little less of your usual beers (even if it is the “regular” Miller/Bud Light….) then go for a freaking walk or something.
The regular Bud/Miller Light beers are often consumed by people that could care less about what the beer tastes like in the first place and they are just looking to catch a buzz. With MGD 64 weighing in 3% ABV, and Bud Select 55 weighing in at a whopping 2.4% ABV….it’s going to take a few more bottles to catch that buzz anyways. I’m all for session beers, but I don’t think that was the point here…
No, I haven’t tried these beers. I wouldn’t spend my money on them, but I’d gladly try a free sample. And, no, these beers are definitely not marketed toward the craft beer drinker market. But, just for fun here are some of the highlight reviews from Ratebeer.com:
Bud Light Select 55 – Aroma: Severely skunky. Appearance: Very pale golden; off-white head. Flavor: VERY, very light, water with beer flavor (barely). Palate: Very, light-bodied, dry and fizzy. Overall: This isn’t a drain pour, but it is severely lacking aroma, flavor, and body! This has to be as close to beer-flavored water as it can get without being just water! Even NA beers have more flavor and character than this “beer” does! – Review from shigadeyo (2,111 total ratings) on Ratebeer.com
MGD 64 – Really pale straw colour. Smells like cud, pee and other animal effluvia. The taste is watery, grassy…kind of like urine but without the ammonia. Truly noxious stuff. – Review from Oakes (7,924 total ratings) on Ratebeer.com
MGD 64 – This would be pretty vile stuff if it wasn’t watered down so much. Very pale yellow with a short lived bubbly head, it smelled of mineral water and gym socks. It tasted like watery creamed corn with sugar. The finish was wet. Not too offensive, since there’s so little to it. This is a true waste of water. Review from Cornfield (4,812 total ratings) on Ratebeer.com.
My driving goal in a beer when I’m out is just that…DRIVING! Keep in mind that with a blood alcohol level of .08 being legally drunk in WI, 64 and 55 are a good option. Using an online blood alcohol calculator gives you a good idea of how much you can have and still be legal.
MGD64: The beer brewed for driving!
I drink Bud55 because it doesn’t effect my blood sugar level. It reminds me moe of real beer than the other extra-lights. Giving up real beer sucks!!
I’m sorry, but 64 does taste good if your taste buds haven’t been destroyed by other things. Bud products are “headache” products. How can you comment on things you have not tried.
64 is a good “coasting” beer.
Started drinking Miller High Life about 19 yrs old. Best beer on the planet. Tiny bubbles, great taste. mighty nice buzz Started getting fat around 45 yrs old, switched to Miller Lite. excellent beer. Tiny bubbles, great taste, got many great buzzes from it. kept getting fat so I tried Miller 64 a few years back. absolutely great tasting beer. it takes quite a few to get a buzz, but that’s a good thing in a way, especially if you really like the taste enough to drink a lot. tried the Select 55 once and found it tasteless. so, for 49 yrs of drinking miller, I’ve drinken enough to voice in. by the way, anyone who trashes something without trying it, is probably a dropout.
They work for peeps counting points n Weight Watchers a social thing when out….
49 years of drinking Miller beer, huh? I wonder if at 50 years they bring for a new liver.
Can you actually get either of these beers anymore? Did this message board discussing Bud Select and MGD 64 last longer than the beers themselves?
With the rate that people still hit this thread, I figure at least one of them must still be available….it’s crazy.
I just bought Bud Select in the tall black cans this past weekend, drank all three and felt fine, then i switched to vodka, that’s where things started going downhill. This thread is hilarious and I’d love to party with Gary! And by the way, anal sex isn’t all that bad! Haha!
Michelle – Please PM contact info.
I pour it into a glass and nobody knows that I’m not having a real beer. I can drink them all afternoon at Buffalo Wild Wings while playing Buzztime Trivia and watching football. Then I can drive home sober.
I’d rather have an Old Nick, but a driver’s license is a must where I live. Besides, BWW doesn’t have Old Nick and never will.
LOL!!!!
“The regular Bud/Miller Light beers are often consumed by people that could care less about what the beer tastes like in the first place and they are just looking to catch a buzz.”
So if these light beers are consumed by people who could care less about taste it means that they prefer these beers over some others. Or did you mean to say “couldn’t” care less?
You are contradicting yourself.
Fuck off
I love that Ambrose found a grammatical error in this post…..8 years after it went live. I think I’ll leave it as is.
I wanted to revisit this page over 6 years after my original comment to see how my tastes have changed. Interestingly, I have a lot more respect for the lighter beers. As I have aged, my body just can’t handle the heavier beers. I used to drink Plinys like they were water. I’d suck those things down like a sorority girl with a dick-flavored Tootsie Pop. Now, I can barely handle 1 before I just feel bloated. The lite beers are not as flavorful and barely get the job done but don’t make me feel I just ate a Thanksgiving dinner.
I’m over the pretentiousness of “craft beer ,”and I’ve successfully avoided the IPA craze. I’ll Happily enjoy my Guinness, with an occasional foray into the world of light beers.
I don’t understand why the price of MGD64 is higher than Miller Lite. When Miller is on sale the MGD64 is not. Walmart told me that Miller sets the price. So come on cut us MGD 64 lovers a break!
I love select 55 and miller 64. I enjoy the beer and can drink several without getting buzzed. My beer of choice.
We go out and drink for hours at a time. I drink 64 and I call Miller Lite hitting the hard stuff. Not everyone can handle a lot of alcohol, and if I want to throw in a shot of tequila or something here and there – I am still doing okay on a day or night of 64. I especially like it when I play poker for long hours at a time – enjoy the beer and can continue to think straight. If I want to meet out friends and be able to drive home – it is a great go to option, as it is more about the alcohol content – but the low calories are a plus.
Quit being so judgmental -to each their own.
Sittin’ here having a few Bud Select 55’s and noticed the “new can”. Comparing the old can text to the “new” I find the ABV to be 2.6 % on the old (the main reason I drink it) and 4.3 % on the new, WTH? The taste is still great but I’m diabetic and the alcohol can play hell with my blood sugar. “Why fix something that ain’t broke”?
Heineken Light is a winner with absolute best taste at 99 cals and 3.3ABV!!!
I’m a lot like other people who posted. I am in my mid-60s and have/had been drinking craft beer since my 20s. At that time only Sierra Nevada, Bass Ale, Anchor Steam, and Guinness were about the only craft beers available. FF 40 years and health, weight, and diet become issues. Sorry kids, you can’t drink craft beer like you did in your 20s anymore. I now drink my M64 and Busch Light without the bloat, and enjoy a nice craft beer a few times a week. My advice: get used to it, you might end up in the same boat some day. And then you might be less critical of these beers and the people who drink them, and appreciate that they are even available.
Owning a restaurant with 41 taps gets me samples of everything imaginable. My personal favorite is Delerium Tremens but the beer I drink most is Bud 55 because I usually don’t want much alcohol in my system. Bud 55 is bland but has OK flavor. This article seemed much more like someone trying to prove they are cool by cuckolding to the pretentious beer crowd than a mental foray into why people are buying lighter beers. Seems more of a judgemental attack on other beer drinkers with different tastes than an objective evaluation.
Needed to get a post on this thread for 2022. Merry Christmas everyone! Cheers!