Stranded in a hotel in Paris and all this beer talk made me change my mind about dinner. There is a restaurant just up the street from the Luxembourg gardens that specializes in german & Belgian beer. I just had a liter of Leffe draft, that was wonderful!
But since the topic is worst beers, I thought I would weigh in with my story. On the display shelf of the aforementioned restaurant was a bottle of Rodenbach. Unlike Zima and some of the other swill mentioned earlier in this thread, Rodenbach really is beer. And unlike the various fruit lambics that are made mostly or completely with some non-grain mash, it really is made from barley. But, it is also made with Juniper berries. Think mixing a shot or two of Beefeaters into a pint of Falstaff.
I first ran into this affront to the brewing arts when traveling in Belgium severl years ago. I started with Chimay, but quickly branched out into the likes of Leffe (excellent), Westmalle Trippel (even better), Maredsous, Corsendonk, Kasteel and many others. True, I did run onto the occaisonal lambic by mistake, but those were merely "bad", and I found that I could recover by ordering a known brand as a follow-up. Then I wandered into some place near the Grand Place in Brussels and ordered a Rodenbach. Un-drink-able. I could *not* believe how bad it was. Thinking back on my illustration above, I may have done a disservice to both gin and Falstaff. It may have been more like Mr. Clean mixed with paint thinner. At least my teeth got two shades whiter!
After failing in my attempt to swallow a second sip, I summoned the waiter and asked him to dispose of the rest of the glass with care and bring me something intended for human consumption.
I *promise* you ... this is the worst beer ever.
And before you ask, *yes*, I am even including the German Rauchbier style in that assessment. Much better beer that tastes like it has been used to rinse out the ashtrays in the Gasthauß, than Rodenbach!
