Žaibo
Rinkuškiai

ŽaiboŽaibo
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From:
Rinkuškiai
 
Lithuania
Style:
European Strong Lager
ABV:
9.5%
Score:
68
Avg:
2.72 | pDev: 22.43%
Reviews:
42
Ratings:
51
Status:
Active
Rated:
Jan 17, 2016
Added:
Sep 17, 2005
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Photo of barczar
Reviewed by barczar from Kentucky

3.27/5  rDev +20.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
2012 vintage.

Aroma is malty, with big caramel notes and a touch of dates and raisins.

Flavor reveals more dark fruit character. Prunes, plums, dates, accent a fairly sweet caramel malt backbone. The alcohol is still slightly fusel, but has definitely mellowed.
Jan 17, 2016
 
Rated: 3.75 by Duwey from Ohio

Aug 03, 2013
 
Rated: 2.5 by LuckyJohn from Colorado

Jun 17, 2013
 
Rated: 2.75 by craftbeerasian from Florida

May 31, 2013
 
Rated: 2.75 by cliff1066 from Virginia

Jan 04, 2013
 
Rated: 2.5 by nitter from Ohio

Nov 09, 2012
 
Rated: 1.25 by foxyaardvark27 from Washington

Oct 19, 2012
 
Rated: 2.5 by bonz696

Jul 22, 2012
 
Rated: 3 by Mississippi from Virginia

Jun 09, 2012
Photo of stoutman
Reviewed by stoutman from Michigan

2.15/5  rDev -21%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2
Half liter bottle pours out nearly clear copper –gold with thin off white head. The aroma offers up sickly sweet sugary malts, a sweet mead like quality and a cheap maple syrup covered apple and pear slices like sensation. The taste isn’t as sweet like I was expecting. I get a sugary sweetness, a pleasing and trying to be dry yeastiness that cuts the sweetness with a slightly nutty like maltiness, and a strong alcoholic finish, which brings my overall rating of this brew down.
May 28, 2012
Photo of DrainBamage
Reviewed by DrainBamage from Michigan

2.43/5  rDev -10.7%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2
Pours a dark corn color with moderate carbonation and head that thins to a lace. Smells like a standard Euro lager that is slightly sweet and somewhat fruity. Tastes pretty much the same as it's smell except the alcohol is definitely more prominent. Goes down pretty smooth, but somewhat bitter. I don't really recommend this beer. For 9.5% it's pretty bland and the aftertaste is the same as a Bud.
Apr 19, 2012
 
Rated: 3 by Exiled from Texas

Dec 09, 2011
Photo of thekevlarkid
Reviewed by thekevlarkid from Maryland

3.23/5  rDev +18.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Out of a bomber bottle all the way from Lithuania this beer (which I sampled at The Russian House in Washington D.C.) was a dark golden/nearly copper color with an off-white head (lighting?). The retention was so-so; the lacing scattered. The aroma was punchy, lots of booze and dry grains. It was also served to me in a pint glass which did little for the aroma. The flavors were very much like a spiked Lager beer; imagine a Corona spiked with vodka. I tasted dry grains, alcohol heat and little else beyond hints of wood. But otherwise it tasted just as it smelled. It wasn’t unpleasant, and certainly if one wanted to get F’ed up it would be efficient AND superior to most American malt liquors which sport similar percentages. However, I wouldn’t quickly recommend it, especially to beer-lovers who tend to be snobs (what happened to you people?)! But, doubtless, one can give it props for rarity! The mouthfeel was frothy, the body medium and the carbonation light.
Oct 27, 2011
Photo of Stinkypuss
Reviewed by Stinkypuss from Pennsylvania

3.02/5  rDev +11%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Zaibo

Pours a somewhat hazy golden orange color, small white head forms. Smell is clean, mildly sweet, and alittle lager-like. In the taste, lemony twang of spent hops, sweet grains mimicking dirty, raw honey. Theee is an odd somewhat sour twang of hops, and super sweet malt. These factors hide the alcohol well, which is a much needed success. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, somewhat crisp. Overall, an interesting brew, Lithuanian Premium Malt Liquor? Hows that for a new beer style.
Oct 23, 2011
Photo of snaotheus
Reviewed by snaotheus from Washington

2.1/5  rDev -22.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2
Maybe, one pint bottle or something? Poured into a pint glass. Not sure how long I've had this in the fridge, but probably a long time.

Pours clear yellow with almost no head. Smell is a spicy lager smell that, for some reason, made me think of fruit loops. Smells a little lemony. Taste is sweet, not terribly exciting, somewhat lemony, at first impression it's not as bad as I was expecting (but also definitely not very good). However, the aftertaste evens out into something rather bad. Gym socks and lemon tea, maybe.

Mouthfeel is flat, thick and sticky. Overall, I think I'm not finishing this beer.
Apr 23, 2011
Photo of Nerudamann
Reviewed by Nerudamann from Oregon

3.89/5  rDev +43%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Poured from a bottle into a Pilsener glass.

Look - somewhat dark golden in color, a little murky, with about a finger's worth of off-white colored foam that dissipates quickly.

Smell - very spicy smelling, as in herbs and spices. Very interesting smell. It smells like a type of Mexican candy I've had before.

Taste and Mouthfeel - very interesting taste too! It also tastes like the Mexican candy that I've had before. I don't particularly love it, but it's very interesting. Not much to be noticed at the beginning, but the middle has a dulling sensation at the back of the palate, and then the finish is a bit musky. Texture is pretty well and even balanced.

Overall - again, I don't love the taste, but maybe just because it's different, but because it's different is why I like it as a beer.
Apr 07, 2011
Photo of nukem5
Reviewed by nukem5 from Pennsylvania

3.12/5  rDev +14.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
A: Slightly copper cloudy with virtually no head. Not what I expected for an extra stout.

S: Slightly boozey smell and a bit of fruitiness in there as well.

T: Malts and fruity tastes are everywhere.Slightly skunky taste.

M: Thich and rich a bit chewy with some clensing action on the bubbles.

D: Decent allthough not what I expected from the labelExtra Stout...And at 9 % could not do many of these. but the taste is not a bad one if I wanted to get pissed drunk could drink about 4 and would be very much on my way.
Feb 03, 2011
Photo of akorsak
Reviewed by akorsak from Pennsylvania

2.83/5  rDev +4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2
A 500 mL bottle. A portion went into the chili and the remainder into my glass.

A: The lager has a fortified color, looking more like a hefeweizen than a pale lager. A thin white head never amounted to much.

S: The nose is strong, full of alcohol. Sweetness, including apples and creamed corn, is equally strong. The sweetness gradually evolves into a tropical aroma, interesting do doubt.

T: Sickly sweet with cinnamon sweetness alongside candied apples. Plenty of booze to go around. Definitely in line with a Euro strong lager, so much so that I'd call it a hangover in a bottle.

M: The mouthfeel is sweet and fusel, boozy with lots of fruit. That's not the good kind of fruit though.

D: The lager has an alcoholic flavor, like mouthwash without the peppermint. On the upside, it's cheap and provides a near-instant buzz.
Jan 23, 2011
Photo of Schneic8
Reviewed by Schneic8 from Ohio

1.81/5  rDev -33.5%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 1.5
Appearance: Poured from a bottle into a beer mug. It has an amber red tint with a small white foamy head.

Smell: Slightly sweet with an alcohol smell. Doesn't smell like a great beer. Smell is not very appealing.

Taste: Strong fruity taste. I can taste apple and honey. Alcohol is strong and beer is not complex. I do not like the taste, it is hard to drink.

Mouthfeel: Medium carbonation that seems kind of syrupy. Seems smooth and easy.

Taste: I bought it because it was a Lithuanian beer, thought it would be interesting to try. It is unbalanced and seems too sweet for a beer. Not what I was expecting. It is kind of boring and not complex. Not very good and probably won't try again.
Oct 30, 2010
Photo of Cannoneer
Reviewed by Cannoneer from Ohio

2.13/5  rDev -21.7%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2.5
This beer makes sense if you want to get drunk on anything other than cheap wine that you can also drink out of a glass or a mug. It does not represent a good accompaniment to any food, other than, perhaps, a heavily salted dried fish.
It is cloyingly sweet and smells/tastes of burnt rubber. Goes down somewhat easy, though, for its alcohol content. The aftertaste it leaves in one's mouth is quite nasty, however - enough to make you nauseous.
The only quality of this beer that makes it worth trying once is that it captures the spirit of post-Soviet Eastern Europe of the 1990's quite well: rogue, rough, anything-goes, highly alcoholic with the smell of industrial decay (burning factory nearby?).
Oct 17, 2010
Žaibo from Rinkuškiai
Beer rating: 68 out of 100 with 51 ratings