O'Doul's - Anheuser-Busch

ghostpsalm

4.43/5  rDev +107%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

I enjoy beer of all kinds, really. As far as NA brews go, I find O'Doul's one of the best out there. I love the mouthfeel of it, as well as the taste. Many people have tried this when it was in green bottles. THe taste has since improved when they now package it is a dark brown bottle. (The darker the bottle, the more its taste will remain protected).

When canned, it doesn't have as much flavor to it, and has more of a metallic taste. Bottles are easier to find of this, but since the taste has since improved, I recommend you pick up a bottle of this and give it another try.

Serving type: bottle

07-08-2012 16:40:47 | More by ghostpsalm

nekronos

Mexico

3.9/5  rDev +82.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Well, it is a non alcoholic beer, I can not say much about it, but what it is for sure, is that it was not that bad, I mean, one have to be concerning that it is a low degree alcohol beer and you have to rate as one of it. But the colour was nice, the foam, just present, and the mouthfeel was not that bad, I would drink another one.

Serving type: can

10-20-2005 13:44:13 | More by nekronos

SLOBGOBLIN

New York

3.85/5  rDev +79.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I like this N/A beer,the apperance is of a yellow gold with a light lace of head & froth.
Smells like adjucnt & lite hops.
Tastes good & mouthfeel is good & drinkability is great on a hot summer day when it is ice cold.
overall one of the better n/a's.

Serving type: growler

05-13-2009 21:48:53 | More by SLOBGOBLIN

cheesepuffs

Connecticut

3.83/5  rDev +79%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This was my first non-alcoholic beer, but I'm genuinely impressed with how much it was unlike regular beers in the American Adjunct category. Decent taste and mouthfeel. Not amazing but pretty normal really, which I would assume for this style is very good. I would have another one. Why not? It's not offensive at all.

Serving type: bottle

11-16-2010 08:06:15 | More by cheesepuffs

xtremejammn

Michigan

3.68/5  rDev +72%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

This is probably my favorite N/A beer to date. Smooth, and decent tasting.

A: The beer bottle looks great, the design is beutiful, and the beer has an above average looking beer that pours a nearly crystal clear color and once it has settled it turns a pale yellow, while on the downside it has a short lived head on the downside.

S: Smells great, not too strong not to weak. Smells very real beery-ish.

T: Perfect. Not too sweet, not too bitter and leaves the flavor in your mouth after a drink. You can also taste the yeast and cereal malts. It's also a bit hoppy, and smells of some sort of cooked corn.

M: Not too bubbly, and the great taste makes for a decent mouthfeel.

D: Goes down smooth, with no bitter bite to it after a drink. Very Chugable, although there is no real reason to chug it.

Bottom Line is that this is easily the best near beer I've had to date, I'd reccommend this to any N/A drinker. I'm just reviewing this beer for the taste, not the alcohol level.

Serving type: bottle

07-09-2006 00:41:47 | More by xtremejammn

mynie

Indiana

3.68/5  rDev +72%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

I have sinned.

My friend was doing 10 days in the pokey for DUI. When he got sprung, I decided to play a cruel joke on him by offering him a beer during the carride home. Only it wouldn't be a beer, see, it'd be one of these O'Doul's thingamabobs.

He gets out and we hand him an O'Douls. He don't even look at it, just unscrews it and starts drinking. We're waiting for him to spit it out, you know, since it tastes so hideously unlike beer. But he doesn't. He keeps sipping it. Eventually we get a little anxious and ask him doesn't the beer taste crappy and he says, no, actually, it's not great but it's pretty good.

And you know something? He was right. This might be Anheuser's best-tasting regular offering. It doesn't pour that great, but it smells like a crisp European pils hopped at medium strength. No adjunct nastiness at all. Tastes about on a par with their discontinued World Lager--kinda like Stella only with a less bitter malt profile. There is a certain emptiness on the backend, where the booziness should be, but it's not nearly as pronounced as I had anticipated.

Yes, it doesn't get you drunk. But aside from that there's absolutely nothing wrong with it. I guess this whole time I *have* actually been drinking beer mostly because it tastes good!

Serving type: bottle

09-27-2009 16:01:59 | More by mynie

pweis909

Wisconsin

3.63/5  rDev +69.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

Poured a nice frothy head, which briefly sat on the clear pale yellow beer-stuff before dissapating.

I can honestly say there are malt and hop elements to this brew, more so that many a macro. Lightly sweet and grainy, with a slight hoppy crispness.

Yeah, these NA brews tend to be a little watery, but I don't think this one is worse than the rest of the group. They are easy to drink, maybe a little too easy, because if you are buying at the bar or restaurant because you are driving, they aren't cheap. Spent 7 bucks on two of them last night.

Serving type: bottle

02-08-2007 22:07:05 | More by pweis909

DarkerTheBetter

Pennsylvania

3.6/5  rDev +68.2%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Received as a gift...

This one pours a brown golden color that is a little too much on the brown side for its own good. There is no head at all, save for a collar no thicker than two or three bubbles.

Smells of lightly toasted wheat bread backed by a dry and crisp snap of ambiguous hops.

Tastes of light grains, like oats and white bread that picks up a dry numbing sting from the CO2 and hops. This transitions over into a light, woody bite with a touch of chrysanthemum and celery. No booze here? Nice!

The body feels bold and dense with a playful buzz of carbonation. Nice.

Not bad at all. Looks dull, but if you're in the mood for slugging a few brews with zero chance of a buzz, this isn't a bad call.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2009 22:04:34 | More by DarkerTheBetter

BedetheVenerable

Missouri

3.53/5  rDev +65%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Presentation: 12oz green screw top bottle

Appearance: Light/medium gold beer with decent carbonation and a stark white head that soon falls to a thick film

Smell: Very light; cereal grains and actually a tiny bit of hop grassiness in here; a bit sweet for me, but pretty decent actually, esp for a NA beer

Taste: Very light; a touch of grain, medium sweetness, a light metallic twang, and the slightest hop bitterness...it's a bit overly sweet/sugary, but again, for what it is, this isn't any worse than some of the macro lagers I used to drink

Mouthfeel: Ultra light

Drinkability: Highly Quaffable

Conclusion: What began (and failed, after about a month) as a Lenten exercise has now led me to drink NA beer a couple of nights during the week to save calories and money; they are what they are, I'm not going to argue that NA beers are super tasty or anything because even the best are mediocre by normal standards; that being said, this and Busch NA are about the only ones worth drinking.

Serving type: bottle

04-08-2009 05:32:39 | More by BedetheVenerable

JoLight

Georgia

3.5/5  rDev +63.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Pale straw color, and leaves no head.

Malts, green apples, clean water are what this smells like to me.

The taste is slightly sweet, but more bready, with some grainiess, slight bitterness, and lots of carbonation. There's sort of a green apple sour/sweetness to it.

Mouthfeel is obviously thin.

For a low-alcohol beer, this is quite nice.

Serving type: bottle

08-18-2011 00:00:17 | More by JoLight

CaptJackHarkness

New York

3.5/5  rDev +63.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This, and it's amber brother, are my go to quaffs when my missus says "You ain't drinking tonight!" (She who must be obeyed!).

It's a very pale yellow in color, pours a decent but short lived white fizzy head,taste is crisp clean and better than most so called "light" beers. Good for when you've had enough of the real thing, but you have to stay til closing time!

Serving type: bottle

09-22-2011 01:41:13 | More by CaptJackHarkness

Jason

Massachusetts

3.38/5  rDev +57.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

12 oz can with the “Born On Date” on the bottom. The official beer for the confirmed alcoholics of the PGA Tour.

Appearance: One of the palest brews I have ever seen almost the same colour as DC tap water. Minimal lacing ends up holding its ground for a while.

Smell: Good balance between hops and grain, almost smells like a real beer.

Taste & Mouthfeel: Wicked light in flavour, light grain … very watery. Nice crispness within the extremely light body. Did I say light? Yes very light. Not too starchy and very clean in the dry finish.

Notes: I could have confused this with a regular light beer … perhaps one of the most beery NA beers around.

Serving type: can

09-01-2003 13:07:38 | More by Jason

NeroFiddled

Pennsylvania

3.35/5  rDev +56.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I've got to hand it to Anheuser-Busch for brewing one of the most authentic tasting NA's. Of course, it still tastes like a bland American lager, but what do you expect? On the other hand, it doesn't really stand out as not having alcohol. It doesn't have that dull and sticky malt character that many NA's have; or should I say it has it to a lesser extent where it's not continually noticed and distracting. It's got a nice golden appearance with a short and creamy bright-white head that immediately drops to a thin collar. That, of course, also happens with most standard American lagers! The aroma expresses some non-alcohol character with a starchy, semi-sweet, grainy note that's decidedly different than a regular beer. Once you get past that difference, however, it's actually fairly nice. There are no hops present, but again, we are talking American lager here. The body is light with a fine, median carbonation. It's lightly crisp and then mildly creamy in the mouth. The flavor is as might be expected from the aroma with a softly sweet grainy malt that's well-balanced by a mild, underlying hop bitterness. It finishes drying with some residual maltiness. Very nicely done and highly recommended amongst NA's of this style.

Serving type: bottle

01-18-2003 12:39:57 | More by NeroFiddled

Gambrinus1184

Connecticut

3.35/5  rDev +56.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Poured from an amber, 12-oz. twist-off bottle into a plain, tumbler pint glass.

A: Poured a completely clear, ultra-clean looking light yellow color with a one-finger head of frothy, white carbonation which actually maintained pretty well, but left zero lacing.

S: Crisp, metallic grain and lightly toasted rice.

T: A sharp, crisp bitterness grips the palate almost immediately, giving way to some cooked rice and corn flavors before washing back clean and dry with almost no aftertaste.

M: Exteremly light-bodied, crisp, clean and dry with a pretty grainy, almost sharp mouthfeel.

O: Honestly, not half as bad as some terrible macro light beers I've had. Could have fooled me as a macro light lager of some kind. That said, I'd never reach for it and only accept it as a courtesy to the host. If I couldn't drink at a party, I guess I could find worse things than an O'Doul's.

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2012 14:28:22 | More by Gambrinus1184

akorsak

Pennsylvania

3.28/5  rDev +53.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A six pack for my father in law. It's been staring at me in the fridge, so why not?

A: The beer is pale, like a pale lager or pils. Clear as day, the ale gets points for translucence. A white head conjured up on pour. Where did it go, though? Disappeared crazy fast.

S: Light cereal grains and that's about it. Sweet creamed corn malt aromas follow a little while later.

T: The beer is surprisingly dry. Underneath that dryness, light biscuity malts and caramel are present. The breadiness takes the place of any alcohol. Corn sweetness is late to the party but it makes an appearance. A surprising amount of flavor for not alcohol. It's not my favorite but in a pinch it would work.

M: The mouthfeel is malty clean, sweet at times. A malted drink, water with some heft.

Serving type: bottle

07-03-2011 21:22:15 | More by akorsak

Pegasus

Texas

3.25/5  rDev +51.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Light golden color with sparkling clarity, a small white head, lively streams of carbonation, excellent lace. The appearance is absolutely correct for a light American lager. Solid malt aroma with moderate hop notes. Taste begins with solid grain flavors and much less of the sticky sweetness often found in NA beers, carbonation stings slightly to good effect. The hops that are present in the aroma are largely absent from the taste, save for perhaps a whisper. Finish is clean and dry. The mouth feel is fairly good. Considering that this is a non-alcoholic beer, it’s a remarkably good effort.

Serving type: bottle

03-27-2003 18:58:50 | More by Pegasus

PBRstreetgang

Ohio

3.25/5  rDev +51.9%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pours a crystal clear straw, with a 1/2 finger of fizzy head that is totally devoid of retention or lacing. Clean nose, faint grainy adjunct and corn smell. The sweet taste of corn adjunct dominates the overall flavor. The aftertaste has a pleasent euro-hop skunk that fades before it become annoying and gives some degree of character to the beer. It's boring and extra light, but I'm sure thats how the brewers intended a NA beer to be; so I'd have to say it has a good balance. Surprisingly smooth mouthfeel as well. Medium carbonation and a thin body that finishes mostly clean with a touch of dry euro-hops. Highly drinkable and nails the style.

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2006 01:06:09 | More by PBRstreetgang

vishneda

Illinois

3.25/5  rDev +51.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle

The taste and smell really give the impression that this is a wanna-be pilsner. Like a nine year old trying to be Tony Hawk, it fails to meet the mark but you certainly appreciate the attempt. Maybe my expectations were unrealistically low, but I was somewhat impressed. Some bitter hop notes and grains were in the mix. It was predictably watered down, but not so that they could not be enjoyed.

There is a lot of air in this beer and the carbonation dominates the mouth feel. The beer is very light as you would expect. Overall its pretty drinkable (but then again, so is water).

I'm no expert on near beer by any means, but this beer met my expectations and served as a fair stand-in for the real thing. I probably will buy it again in the future.

Serving type: bottle

05-25-2009 15:37:20 | More by vishneda

Arborescence

Finland

3.25/5  rDev +51.9%
look: 1.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: Pale, clear yellow, piss colour really. Pours a very airy head that recedes immediately, looks carbonated.

Aroma: Quite typical, fresh lager/pilsner aroma. Doesn't smell as sweet as many low alcohol beers, so this one manages to mimic the real thing quite well.

Taste: More malty sweetness than in normal lagers, but not overwhelming. There are some floral aspects to the taste as well, it's surprisingly drinkable.

Mouthfeel: light bodied, medium to high carbonation.

Overall: Above average when it comes to low alcohol beers.

Serving type: bottle

02-21-2012 02:12:12 | More by Arborescence

HalfFull

California

3.18/5  rDev +48.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I remember having O'Douls's Amber and heading for the hills. This lighter version seems much less obtrusive.

From a 12 oz. bottle and poured into a pilsner glass, this 'beer' pours a clear straw and offers a thick and soapy head of foam. Retention is miraculously brief however, surrendering to a surface cap in a minute or so. Nonetheless I enjoyed the albeit brief ride.

Typical nose of raw grain and with no negative influences. Touch of nondescript vegetal flavors don't deter. Flavor follows suit and is light and grainy without being too thin. Feel and drink are slightly better than average for the style though there seems to be little variation in that regard in my experience. Like many of the style this is best consumed directly from the bottle or added in short increments to a glass so as to maintain a crisp carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

09-23-2009 04:45:50 | More by HalfFull

Dubblebock

Texas

3.15/5  rDev +47.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 4

So here's the story...I went to see my in-laws over the Thanksgiving holiday. My father-in-law has cancer, in remission right now, but he takes a lot of maintenance medications that don't interact well with alcohol. But he likes his beer. Before he was diagnosed, he and I spent a lot of time together throwin' 'em back. Long story short, he keeps a few of these O'Douls in the fridge for when he wants to get a little malt on
. So I'm there, and the turkey is long gone, and I didn't take any beer with me...and that nice, cold O'Douls is starting to look kinda inviting.

Poured surprisingly well. Decent head, lots of carbonation. I expected a weak nose, but was pleasantly surprised by the crisp, malty smell. Extremely clear, pale appearance.

Tasted just fine. If I hadn't been aware that it was a non-alcoholic beer, I would have sworn that it was Bud Light or Busch. A bit of a watery mouthfeel, but it was very drinkable. The malt definitely came through in the taste. Little bit of hops on the back of the tongue.

Much, much better than I expected. If I were out and didn't want to drink alcohol, this would be my choice. It looked, tasted, and drank as good as any full-alcohol macro-light-lager. Good show.

Serving type: can

12-01-2003 18:24:38 | More by Dubblebock

Spikester

Oregon

3.13/5  rDev +46.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Appearance is clear gold with two fingers of white head. The head lasts about two minutes then becomes a ring of foam most of the way down. It even left a few spots of lacing.

Smell is corny with some light grains.

Taste is sweet corn, rice, and a nice hop bitterness.

Mouthfeel is very much like most US macro lagers. That is to say much better than anticipated.

From the green and silver can. I would rather drink this than the two "bigger brothers" from the same company. What a surprise.

Serving type: can

01-03-2013 05:16:32 | More by Spikester

jwc215

New Jersey

3.05/5  rDev +42.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured light yellow - fast carbonation with a fluffy white head that almost immediately vanished to nothing.
In the smell, there were some hints of hops and malt. They were very light, but clean - no worse than most light beers.
The taste was watery, but had hints of some hops, especially in the aftertaste. It was clean, but weak.
It leaves a clean, but rather flat feel. I can see how someone who can't have alcohol for some reason might be refreshed by it. Considering its style, it's not bad. Actually, it's probably at least as good as most macro lights. Not something that I personally would go for though. (If I can't have a beer, I most likely won't. I based the scores on the style - not so much personal preference.)

Serving type: can

07-13-2006 17:37:44 | More by jwc215

RBorsato

Virginia

3/5  rDev +40.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

So begins my quest for a nice N/A....

Clear straw color with a nice white head at first and very active carbonation pretty much throughout. Prominent corn adjunct aroma and flavor but not any more so than the standard A-B offerings. Very light bodied. Crisp and clean and not much different than other alcoholic macros which would make it diff to distinguish blind I would think.

Per label:
-65 cal., 13.3 g carb., 0.7g carb, 0 fat

Born On: 11/30/05
Tasted: 01/08/06

($4.56 / 6-pack)

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2006 19:00:35 | More by RBorsato

tdm168

North Carolina

2.99/5  rDev +39.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

A - clear yellow with a large, thick, dense, white head that has good retention

S - grainy, husk

T - grainy, husk, a bit sweet; very very faint flavor

M - light bodied, well carbonated

For those that are avoiding alcohol but still like to have a beer, I"m glad that there are offerings out there for them. This is probably one of the better ones (small sampling as it is) that I've had. Due to the nature of the style, it is incredibly light and has a very weak flavor profile. There is enough flavor however to give those that choose this style an inkling that they're drinking a beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-14-2013 01:17:08 | More by tdm168