Shiner Bock

I recently had my first bottle of Shiner Bock and have to say it wasn’t all bad. Yes, it was light bodied and relatively bland, but what flavor was there was decent and it reminded me a bit of Newcastle. For its price, I can think of far worse beers than Shiner Bock and wouldn’t hesitate to pick a sixer up when introducing light beer fans to what they call "dark beer". This one is proof that a darker hue doesn’t always mean stronger flavor.

In the Lone Star State, Shiner Bock is as common as Budweiser, and I drank my weight in this stuff when I lived in Fort Worth and didn’t know any better. After I left the state, I had it a few more times and moved onto other "transitional" brews. I don’t think I’ve had this for at least five years now, and after sampling hundreds of craft brews, I’m curious to see how this holds up to my memory of it.

It pours a light caramel brown with an audibly fizzy, beige head that diminishes quite quickly. I certainly don’t remember this beer looking so flat. The nose is pretty muted with just a hint of dark, caramel malt and a bit of plastic and seltzer. The palate is light-bodied with aggressive carbonation and an astringent, metallic finish. Eh. The flavor is a somewhat burnt, dark caramel with significant carbonation keeping little else from developing. I’m really amazed at just how "fizzy" this is, especially given the fact that it retains absolutely no head whatsoever. While this isn’t awful and still stands above the standard pale lager, it certainly doesn’t hold up to how I remember it. This beer will always hold a place my heart as well as a significant position on the timeline of my development as a beer geek. Like, many of the people who have passed into and out of my life, this beer will best be served as just a happy memory of my earlier years, rather than an old friend that I make a point of visiting every now and again.

Poured it from the bottle, it didn’t have much head. Tasted much better then it looks and smells. Expected less and got more from it. Very impressed Texas!

Poured from a bottle. Medium head with a light aroma and not overpowering hops. Not a bad Bock but I have had better. Goes down smooth and finishes very clean. A bit of a caramelized flavor with slight hops. Overall very good to drink with food or by itself.

What can I say, it’s way better than Lone Star! (Ahahahaha!) Way to kick it up a notch Texas. Could do better though. I wouldn’t buy this beer again though. You could get used to this beer though.

Not as bad as I thought it would be! A big step up from Lonestar! Good job, Texas. This is best enjoyed with a burger and not by itself.

Good beer to drink a lot of. Little bit of an empty taste. Good with a burger.

Tastes like soy sauce. I just can’t figure it out. It’s not terrible, just not my style.