Pickled Eggs & Cold Beer: Episode 3: Busch with Mike Mason and Guest Co-Host Brendan Roche

Friday, July 20, 2018

Episode 3: Busch with Mike Mason and Guest Co-Host Brendan Roche

The Home of French Broad Onion Soup

I. Introduction

Originally intended as a beer for those who loved classic Bavarian-style pilsners, and once sold in bottles designed to look like beer steins, these days today’s beer is more likely to be found attired in blaze orange, camouflage, NASCAR emblems, or fishing-inspired images. Despite its apparent market changes, it nonetheless remains a beer for the out-of-doors, once hanging its hat on the slogan, “clear and bright as mountain air,” today leaning on the shorter, but no less image-charged “head for the mountains.” This is a beer that has caused men in their sixties to raise arms against one another, a beer that cheerfully revels in its own hooliganish reputation, a beer that maintains the best damn Twitter account of any big corporate entity in the United States.

Today on Pickled Eggs & Cold Beer we climb out of our deer stands, head back to our dorm rooms, and settle into our orange couch we bought for $50 at the flea market that one Saturday.

Today we’re talking Busch beer.

Today's theme is Count Basie and His Orchestra's 1938 "Stop Beatin' 'Round the Mulberry Bush"

II. Our Superb Guest, Smilin' Mike Mason

Squire Roche, Dr. Smith, and Smilin' Mike Mason.
Squire Roche is on Twitter at @beroche and you can hit up Mr. Mason at @jmichaelmason on the same.

III. Rubric

BeerAdvocate: 2.02 of 5

RateBeer: 1.29 of 5

Untappd: 2.35 of 5

ABV: 4.3%

Origin: American lager created originally to try and grab part of the premium market in the mid-1950s; macrobrew without excuses, brewed at 12 different A-B breweries

Ingredients: Hops, water, malted barley, and rice.

Cost: $, around $9 for a 12-pack of cans at Wal-Mart

IV. Our Reviews and Talking Points

Appearance: Yellow, lemony, nearly translucent. Relatively few bubbles, rapidly receding head upon pouring.

Aroma: Very neutral.

Flavor: On the front-end some mild, fruity flavors, maybe bananas or plantains. Fairly neutral lager flavor throughout. Dry, the flavor rapidly receding after drinking. Light - probably great for outdoor drinking as advertised.

Mouthfeel: Even, watery, easy down, not overly carbonated. Again, dry with a receding flavor and feeling after drinking.

Authenticity, Marketing, and Other Factors:

Overall: Smilin' Mike Mason gave 2.25 stars, Squire Roche 2.25 as well, and Dr. Smith 2.5 stars, for an average of 2.33.

V. Plugs

As always, please support local breweries and live music - in particular, please check out :