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Terminology or Gimmick? Big Brewers and Fancy Words

By Booze Traveler on 11:52 AM

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Cold Filtered
– Miller Genuine Draft

Many lager beers are filtered. The process is used as an alternative to pasteurization which can greatly alter the flavor of beer. Filtering removes particulate matter, yeast and other bacteria from the beer, therein making pasteurization unnecessary and clarifying the end product. It is best to filter beer in a cool environment in order to ensure that it stays fresh. Changes in temperature can cause beer to skunk, as we all should know.

So, the term “Cold Filtered” is technically true, but it's not special or unique. However, MGD displays the “Cold-Filtered” slogan in a classic way that represents a timeless aspect of the beer. They don’t shout it from the rooftops like its unique, but it once was. That’s why as far as MGD is concerned i say, "use that TERMINOLOGY," as for the rest of you drop the GIMMICK.


Drinkability
– Bud Light

Merriam-Webster defines drinkability as the degree to which a liquid is “suitable for drinking.” By this definition “Drinkability” is a completely subjective concept.
Bud Light has a different prospective on things. They claim:

"Drinkability. It's no gimmick. It's the difference between Bud Light and other light beers. It's the perfect balance of flavor, filling, and refreshment. It's just the right taste that never fills you up and is easy going down."
http://www.budlight.com/m/wap/Drinkability.aspx

This is an attempt by Bud Light to set itself apart from other light beers by claiming to be lighter in body and mouth feel with a simple flavor and unaggressive carbonation. What could be more drinkable than that? Oh yeah I know, water!

Congratulations Bud Light! Your light beer is more comparable to water than that of your competition.

P.S. - If an advertisement proclaims “It's no gimmick,” then it’s probably a GIMMICK.

Frost Brewed
– Coors Light

This isn’t a reference to the “Frost Brew Liner,” which is a questionable concept, but it is a packaging issue not a brewing issue so I’ll ignore it for now. The term “Frost Brewed,” is often used vocally in Coors Light commercials but I’ve rarely found it in writing. It means absolutely nothing. The very nature of brewing requires heat in order to convert starches from grain into sugar (mainly maltose) and to effectively extract the sugars from grain.

A good boil is always necessary in order to sterilize the wort (unfermented beer) and to extract resin from hops. Unlike grain, hops can be added to cold beer through a process known as dry-hopping. However, dry-hopping alone is not sufficient for creating a well rounded beer. Hops must be added during the boil, as stated below (see: “Triple Hops Brewed”).

“Frost Brewed” is merely a marketing buzzword strategy intended to conjure thoughts of cool refreshment on a hot day. GIMMICK.

Triple Hops Brew
– Miller Lite

Hops are one of the four vital components that make beer (the other three being water, malted barley and yeast). It is standard to add hops during the boiling stage of the brewing process. “Triple hops brewed” is used by Miller Lite to refer to the addition of hops three separate times during the boil of the wort. This is standard procedure brewing process. The first addition is added early in the boil and imparts bitterness to the beer but most flavor and aroma are boiled off. The second addition is added later in the boil to impart hops flavor and the third addition is near enough to the end of the boil to retain an aroma. Aside from flavor and aroma, hops can also affect head retention and mouth feel. The basic stages of hops addition are known as bittering, flavor, and aroma/finishing. These basic stages can be altered into more or fewer additions depending on the style of beer but are rarely less than the basic three for a pilsner, which miller light claims to be.

Miller Lite says that their stages of hops addition are flavor, balance, and the ever important lock-in stage. This is just a pumped up marketing versions of the standard process. But at least they are actually using real hops now, unlike in 1982 when the CSPI (Center for Science in the Public Interest) reported that Miller Lite contained only chemically modified hops extracts along with a myriad of other questionable ingredients. So now that they are following standard brewing basics they are braging about it? To brag about something that is standard is like saying, “We don’t pee in it!” or “I can tie my shoe!” What a GIMMICK.





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