Corona Cero

The non-alcoholic version of one of the world's most literally tasteless beers - I wonder what lies beyond 'tasteless', so I bought a bottle of this from a local supermarket just for science. Colourless cheap longneck bottle with the familiar pale yellow fluid inside and the equally recognizable blue and white label, only pale blue this time instead of the dark blue reserved for the regular version. Thick, very frothy, irregularly lacing, snow white, pillowy and stable head, crystal clear pale 'metallic' yellow-golden robe with lots of visible sparkling. Aroma initially a little bit lightstruck ('cat pee') but only very limitedly so and when this fades, lovely impressions of plaster, masa, the water from a can of corn, freshly steamed kitchen towels, vague sourish armpit sweat and wet white paper show up, topped with a very faint and brief touch of lemon (and no, I am not drinking this from the bottle with a lime slice jammed into the bottle neck). Neutral onset, medium fizz (even on the soft side for this type of beer), thin and watery body; thin sweetish graininess, clearly corn-like, with a weak sweetish cereally aspect as well, next to more expressive notes of wallpaper glue, plaster and wet papier maché. The light sourish aspect continues well into the finish, like corn soaked in water which has spoiled after a few days in the sun - meeting with only the most elementary and volatile form of bitter, a grassy touch appearing and vanishing again in the blink of an eye. Ends altogether very weakly, with the same 'thinness' as water. Indeed this alcohol-free version of the original Corona is even more watery than its already watery predecessor; the flavour is so thin, volatile and 'diluted' that apart from this corn-like sourish-sweetish touch, there is very little of it to be described here. Inoffensive like tap water - and completely unnecessary even from a marketing perspective, at least here in Western Europe. AB InBev has always worked in mysterious ways.

330 ml clear bottle, from Coop Extra Sauda. Clear and pale golden colour, moderate to low white head. Sweetish aroma of maize, malts and newmown grass. Tastes like sparkling water with a little maize, malts and sugar added, a hint of citrus. Minimal hops. Gets a couple points for not tasting awful. An alternative to water when you have to drive.

0.33 l bottle from 'Craft Bier Bude', best before September 2022. Clear, golden with a thin, fluffy, quickly diminishing, white head. Sweetish, slightly malty aroma of grains and light corn flakes. Gently sweet, slightly malty taste of grains and some corn flakes, followed by a short, slightly bitter finish. Thin body, slightly effervescent mouthfeel, soft carbonation. Bland but drinkable.

Milder herber Beginn, wässriger Hintergrund, geringe Bitterkeit. Süffig, zum Mittelteil kaum noch Aroma. Kein Nachgeschmack. 7/5/9/5/7/6

Okay refresher after the ride.

Bottle 33 cl. Pours a clear golden with a white head. Malty, skunky, light struck aroma. Surprisingly decent malt feel considering the alcohol - or lack thereof. A little generic hop flavor and no bitterness. Some cardboard notes. But surprisingly drinkable and inoffensive. 040722

Frothy white fair mostly diminishing head. Yellow colour. Light malty and hoppy aroma. Light bitter flavor. Short light bitter finish. Watery palate.

Bottle @Ulfborg. Clear light golden, white head. Heavy grainy aroma, cardboard. Medium sweet flavour, grain and cardboard.

Bottle @ fonefan tasting. Medium head with medium duration. Color is golden. Aroma and taste are malt, bread, notes of hops and lots of water.