Jupiler

Can. An average pale lager. For some reason belgians drink this beer a lot instead of good belgium beer which cost about the same.

25 cl bottle. Pours a light gold, with a head that fades quite quickly, Almost no aroma. Nice medium body, with a oily mouth feel. The flavor is mild, and barely noticeable. This is a beer meant for drinking in quantity. Simply a carrier for alcohol. As I travel around the northern Netherlands (most still call it Holland), this is the predominate beer signage. So, it must be the common beer here.

Can in Gent. Ordinary lager with fine lacings. Light/moderate malty/sweet and light hoppy/bitter. Very drinkable.

This one poured like a typical pilsner and looked somewhat clear yellow in appearanced. The aroma didn’t stink of grass and was somewhat malty. The flavor followed suit and was rather sweet with some unknown flavor (maybe some peppered caramel malts) coupled with an only slightly grassy hop(s). Not bad (seemed more flavored than a "pale lager," a classification on beerpal which was surprising upon rating).

Tap in Bruges. Ultra-clear yellow pour with medium, lasting carbonation. Strong malty taste and enough bitterness, but nothing to get excited about. Pretty weak for a Pilsner, though.

Golden amber color with a bubbly fizzy style white head. Smell is very grassy and not very good. Light beer taste with a hoppy flavor.

I happen to genuinely like this beer. But I have a diverse palate. I’ve often called it ’’’’Bud Brewed Correctly’’’’ By that I mean it has some flavor and character and is a good brew on a hot summers day. I think it does what it’s supposed to do. Inexpensive, not heavy, easy to drink, kinda fizzy. All in all a good everyday beer. Hey not every bottle you drink has to be De Dolle Stille Nacht does it?

(Draft. Bottles. Cans. 03/2006) What bad things can be said about a beer you can buy for less than a Coke on certain Belgian railway station platforms? Well .... that’s a good thing, but that about says all there is to say about Jupiler -- it is, indeed, a viable and interesting option and alternative to Coca-Cola. Thin as water and looking like a washed-out piece of straw. There isn’t much flavor to speak of and, well, really not much aroma (other than a hint of DMS for character). Overall, a thoroughly unremarkable beeer that is highly regarded as a subsititute for undrinkable local water supplies.