Your guide to Indian beer

Predictability. That's always been my problem. Anyone who knows me well enough knew this was coming.

Lets face it, when it comes to beer in India, we are not spoiled for choice. For most people, the buck stops at Kingfisher, or maybe even Haywards or Royal Challenge. Other "imported" brands do co-exist in the market, Fosters, Carslberg, Tuborg and more recently Budweiser, but not many of these cater to a picky palate. Personally, after having experienced craft beers, seasonal beers, ales, porter, craft beers and the like over the last two years, coming back home opened up a huge void in beer drinking. So huge a void that for a few months, I hardly indulged in a spontaneous 'kick back with a beer' hour. But again, what are we if we do not learn to overcome (Oh great. Now I have the "We shall overcome" hymn stuck in my head)? So I decided to go about this scientifically. I decided to scour the market and list my options. I decided to stay off the imported list (oh yeah, we do get many of those. Leffe, Stella, Corona, Peroni and what not) since they were all priced at Rs.160 a pint. And yay! Here are the results. 

     1.        Kingfisher

Beer in India is mostly synonymous with Kingfisher, "The King of Good Times".  All versions of KF as it is popularly known, is light tasting, easily drinkable with plenty of malt. KF Strong is easily the flagship, with about 8% alcohol and a full bodied taste. KF Premium is about 5% alcohol, and is considered "light beer" around these areas. KF Blue is purportedly aimed at the youth, but is real watery and quite a bummer, tastes almost like Fosters. More recently, KF has come out with KF Draught and KF Strong "Fresh". These are true winners. Draught in a can is a fantabulous idea. KF Strong "Fresh" also comes in a 500 ml can, and is my pick of the lot. Strong and heady, and yet tastes like draught. 
Ram's verdict: KF Strong "Fresh", KF Draught. Truly worth it.

  
    2.        Haywards

Back in the day, this was our most preferred beer. Apparently, its a premium lager. But true to how its advertised, its just a super strong beer and almost tastes medicinal! Its great for someone who's just looking for a good fast buzz, but not so great for self proclaimed connoisseurs (yeah, me). 
Ram's verdict: Pick up this one only if you have no other option or you want to get high fast. Be prepared for a strong medicinal aftertaste!




    3.        Carlsberg, Fosters, Heineken, Budweiser

    Classified as pale lager, these are watery, and have got no personality whatsoever. Whoever feels otherwise can go write their own blog. 
Ram's verdict: Strict no-no



   4.        Tuborg:

For a long time, I was associating Tuborg with Carlsberg. The green lager bottle even looked similar to Carlsberg. If I had written this post last week, I'd have put Tuborg in Category 3. But then, I picked up this "Tuborg Gold" Strong Lager over the weekend. This one was completely different! This one was full bodied, strong, flavorsome and enjoyable. A truly strong pilsner.
Ram's verdict: Go for it!

5.        Indus Pride

   Indus Pride is the surprise of the year, as far as I'm concerned. I'd shelved the idea of picking up one until my 'scientific approach' forced me to. Its marketed as 100% malt beer and is true to its suo moto. Its really "rich" tasting, with a slight sweetish after taste.      

Ram's verdict: Extremely refreshing beer, I'd recommend Indus Pride to anyone who likes beer with a flavor.

    6.        Kalyani Black Label

I know what you're thinking. Cheap ass Indian beer which would definitely make you puke/give you a hangover right? You've got this one completely wrong. As a learned, Kalyani is actually quite smooth and mellow. True, owing to its 8% alcohol content, its got quite a bite, but hey, too much of any beer is bound to give you a hangover! Like the Indus Pride, Kalyani's got a sweet after-taste as well, must be all the malt.

Ram's verdict: Go for it if you like beer with character.

Well, that's it folks. I'd have liked to add King's to the list, but unfortunately, King's is available only in Goa. And Goa was so long ago lost in oblivion, I don't even remember what it tasted like. In India, with such few options, you've got to mix it up. I usually don't pick up KF too often, that just encourages "lazy beer drinking", where you just stick to the known. I highly recommend Tuborg Gold and Indus Pride, to me they've been quite the revelation. There's UB Export, Royal Challenge and Hayward's Black, the last one being some kind of stout beer. These might make it to my list too, lets wait and watch.