Elephant Beer - Carlsberg Danmark A/S

Magery

Kentucky

1/5  rDev -64%
look: 1 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

I picked this up rather randomly. A lot of people would probably shy away from anything labeled Elephant Malt Liquor, and those people are smart.

The first thing I noticed when I opened the bottle was the strong odor. It is best described as a skunk-like smell, the most unpleasent I have ever encountered from a beer.

The taste is almost unfathomable. I have had some nasty beers before this, but nothing has measured up to Elephant. I actually could not finish the bottle, and I usually try to at least give a beer a full serving to make judgement.

I honestly cannot think of a positive thing about this beer, unless you are into pain. The only positive is that it will be a nice addition to my bottle collection.

Serving type: bottle

12-25-2004 04:26:34 | More by Magery

kajerm

Illinois

1.05/5  rDev -62.2%
look: 2 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

This review is from a taste over two years ago, but there are mitigating circumstances:
1.) That taste traumatized me for life.
2.) This is the beer equivalent of dropping the soap, then being drawn and quartered.
3.) They sell this vile substance at fancy grocery stores and ritzy liquor stores as a "premium import."

With that out of the way, the review:

Pours fizzy and yellow, basically looks like what most of the world considers to be beer. Surprisingly, it does not look like pure evil.

Then I smell it. Oh god. The ugliest lager aroma in the entire world, an ammonia-like smell that (and I NEVER make this analogy about beer) just like piss. This godawful smell plagued the beer for the years of torture spent drinking it.

Tastes like it smells. I don't think I need to say more about this.

Looking back, it was probably a little adjuncty, but I didn't have much of a palate back then, so it'd be an educated guess at best.

Mouthfeel is light and heavily carbonated, and suffers somewhat from the fact that I'm trying to swallow this beer in massive gulps to make it go away faster.

Drinkability? I'd rather take this beer as a suppository.

NOTE: I've entertained the idea that maybe this beer was lightstruck; it is imported and the bottles are green. If someone wants to send me a bottle of Elephant to prove that it really is Denmark's greatest gift to the world, that's fine, but I sure as hell won't pay money for this stuff.

Serving type: bottle

05-07-2007 07:07:39 | More by kajerm

ZekemusMaximus

New York

1.05/5  rDev -62.2%
look: 1 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1

A - Very little head, very yellow and average. Typical beer look to it.

S - Very Malty, almost sulfury.

T - Metallic, reminds me of the sulfur again. Not much to it.

M - Super carbonated watery mouthfeel. Nothing to really say here.

O - Pretty terrible. Will never have this beer again. Upset my stomach.

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2012 07:01:01 | More by ZekemusMaximus

biegaman

Ontario (Canada)

1.15/5  rDev -58.6%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

Poured with an awful tarnished colour. No head. Aroma badly skunked (green bottle) but like no other skunk sensation before! Harsh alcohol is the first feature that sticks out. Skunking has removed any dimension of malt so you're left with a mouthfeel of rubbing alcohol. Low carbonation doesn't help. Gross really. This was quickest drain pour (and drain pours are very rare for me). Simply one of - if not the - worst beer I've ever tried. Do not recommend what so ever.

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2006 15:55:47 | More by biegaman

MarcGetty

Pennsylvania

1.3/5  rDev -53.2%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.5

Elephant is one of the worst beers I have ever had. Unfortunately I bought an entire case of it and was stuck with 24 bottles of it.

The best way to describe the taste is "strong skunk". It comes off as if was intended to be a mediocre beer but it was over fermented and left stitting around for a while.

Of the 6-8 people I tried to pawn my 24 bottles of Elephant off to, nobody liked it.

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2004 15:54:50 | More by MarcGetty

psugrad98

Pennsylvania

1.33/5  rDev -52.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.5

Medium straw with slighlty foamy head. Kind of syrupy sweet with rich malt and adjunct flavor. Slight hop bitterness more of an afterthought. Very alcoholic, and that is too distracting. Almost undrinkable cold, very undrinkable as it warms.

Serving type: bottle

07-24-2002 07:58:31 | More by psugrad98

Beastdog75

New Jersey

1.35/5  rDev -51.4%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 1 | feel: 2 | overall: 1

The Carlsberg Elephant. Truth be known, I have dreaded trying this beer for quite some time, but I figured I'd might as well get it out of the way. Plus, not many people I know of have had a malt liquor from Denmark (ok, this is actually brewed in Canada, but you know what I mean), so there is somewhat of a novelty about it. Well, most of my fears were justified as this turned out to be one pretty nasty, undrinkable, and unenjoyable beverage.

Elephant pours a typical beer color: medium straw with some gold hints. A one finger foam forms and disappears in under 30 seconds. The smell is of alcohol, plain and simple. Some mild grain sweetness and some malt liquor aromas arise underneath that. The mouthfeel is thin and fizzy. The taste quite simply is of paint thinner (or some other alcohol based solvent). The taste of alcohol is way too overpowering. There are some very light fruity notes and some very light graininess. There is an alcoholic bitterness present in the finish, with no detectable hops. This stuff kind of burns on the way down too. The aftertaste? ALCOHOL! There is some light corniness and fruitiness, which are nothing compared to the alcohol presence. And oh yes, this finishes off with a hearty amount of alcohol warmth.

I don't see how anyone can drink this and enjoy it. After you and your buddies drink a few of these, you'll be galloping around the house making elephant sounds (arrroooh!). I usually don't trash a beer that much but this is bad, bad stuff.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2003 07:01:41 | More by Beastdog75

ipogios

Cyprus

1.4/5  rDev -49.6%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1

This beer has a light golden color, it's smooth and NO carbonation (water has more carbonation than this beer). Just like the original version of Carlsberg beer... Look for an alternative

Serving type: bottle

11-18-2002 05:07:07 | More by ipogios

Bitterbill

Wyoming

1.43/5  rDev -48.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 1 | feel: 2 | overall: 1

This one pours a pale gold with a large but quickly shrinking head of foam. Very bubbly looking.

The smell is of sweet malt and grain.

The taste is very sweet with a lot of grain going with it and, the way this one goes, it doesn't even come close to tasting good. There's some bitterness there as well mostly in the finish but... Wow. This is a very rough brew and I'm going to find it hard to finish the bottle and not *just* because of the abv. This is a ghastly beer. Ok, I can't take it any more....down the drain.

Serving type: bottle

04-12-2008 19:12:44 | More by Bitterbill

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

1.45/5  rDev -47.8%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1 | overall: 1.5

First had: bottle in a gift set.

I thought this was a Canadian beer. Maybe I've got this wrong. All I remember is that it had an Elephant on the label and was 11%ABV. And again, that's all I remember. Other than that, just a typical pale lager with extra alcohol for getting cheapos drunk faster.

Serving type: bottle

12-14-2010 16:51:46 | More by Rifugium

jdhilt

New Hampshire

1.48/5  rDev -46.8%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1.5

I had high hopes for this beer but after the first taste it just went down the tubes. Good head and carbonation but that didn't do much good as the high ABV came through and not any maltiness. Good thing I bought only two (my wife has to suffer too) and only 11.5oz.

Serving type: bottle

07-18-2002 15:22:26 | More by jdhilt

kunzbrew

Massachusetts

1.48/5  rDev -46.8%
look: 2.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

This brew pours a clear straw color with a large bubble white head that leaves in a hurry, leaving a lace behind. Corn aroma is all that comes out of the glass, you almost have to whaft it like in chemistry class it is that bad. No hop aroma, or flavor a buttery flavor is noticed on the tongue. This is not all that great.

Prost

Serving type: bottle

10-23-2003 19:13:22 | More by kunzbrew

mithrascruor

California

1.48/5  rDev -46.8%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 1 | feel: 3 | overall: 1

330 mL bottle poured into a mug.

Appearance: Pours a slightly hazy straw-gold color. Head is a fluffy white one, but is reduced to a white film within a minute. Wait another minute and there's nothing whatsoever.

Smell: Generic malty aroma with some sweetness and grains. Odd aroma to it as well, which I realize is alcohol.

Taste: Boring malt flavor, relatively generic, with a bit of florals and alcohol. Malty, alcoholic aftertaste. After a bit, all you can taste is alcohol with a malty body.

Mouthfeel: Light-bodied, yet with a bit of viscosity. Generally smooth, though with a bit of grainyness. Light, tingly carbonation.

Drinkability: Too much alcohol, and too little taste, for a lager of this calibre. I can hardly bear to drink this.

Why is this the only Carlsberg I can find in the store? I just want some of the original stuff... Rest assured that I won't get this again. One of the worst beers I've ever hard.

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2007 01:20:28 | More by mithrascruor

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

1.48/5  rDev -46.8%
look: 2.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Probably one of the first beers I had after turning 21 and haven't had it since. I was told that this beer was good from a friend of mine and I took his word on it. I picked up a 6 pack and found this to be rather gross. I asked him what he liked about it and he just said that he liked it because it was strong. On the Strong side is correct especially for someone who's just getting into beers. This brew was yellow in color, it looked like a Becks, Smelled and Tasted like one too. The only thing this beer has going for it is the 7% ABV. Other than that you can leave this one on the shelf.

Serving type: bottle

03-20-2011 16:10:23 | More by Knapp85

kosmoraios

Washington

1.5/5  rDev -46%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Upon opening and pouring the first bit of this beer, my immediate thought was that this is the Euro version of Schlitz Malt Liquor. I was right.

Pours a sickly pee-yellow colour into my pint glass with absolutely no head whatsoever. Aroma is immediately of skunk and corn. Smells like an Old English 800. Taste is no better - absolutely dominated by corn and who knows what other adjuncts. Ethanol smell was prevalent. In all fairness, I think the bottle may have been a bit old.

Mouthfeel was extremely carbonated and unpleasantly greasy. Not a drinkable beer, simply because of the poor taste.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2007 22:15:55 | More by kosmoraios

beertaster13

Washington

1.55/5  rDev -44.2%
look: 2 | smell: 1 | taste: 2 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1

The beer pours a light orange hue with a little cream head. The smell is very skunky at first, the green bottle just dissapoints once again. Once you get past the skunk you can smell slight wheat and buttered toast. The taste is heavy on the malts, a hint of buttered yeast will float around. Light and overall awful. Stay away from this.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2005 07:02:38 | More by beertaster13

sk8russ

Utah

1.6/5  rDev -42.4%
look: 3 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1 | feel: 4 | overall: 1.5

I've been on a beer tasting kick for the last few months or so and so far I have tried about fifty beers and this is the worst one yet. It doesn't ever really taste like beer honestly. It tasted like it was rotten. I don't recommend it. Cool bottle though...

Serving type: bottle

03-03-2010 02:20:08 | More by sk8russ

Zorro

California

1.65/5  rDev -40.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 1 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 1

Pours a standard clear gold brew.

Smell is grainy and mildly sweet smelling.

Taste is alcohol and a bit of bitterness, sort of sweet. Tastes like Malt Liquor.

Mouthfeel is OK.

Not real drinkable, worst thing I have tasted yet. Elephant must be Danish for Mad Dog 20/20

Serving type: bottle

02-23-2004 01:05:39 | More by Zorro

Bowdoinbeerboy

Maine

1.68/5  rDev -39.6%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Appearance- Pours with absolutely no head. Lots of carbonation though and a sickly yellow-brown color. Seems to be a tiny bit of sediment in it too.

Smell- Whoa! Did I just sniff rubbing alcohol or beer? Alcohol notes not hidden but right up front and awful. Very metallic.

Taste- Bitter, with some sour grain notes, the alcohol, as in the nose, dominates and leaves your throat feeling like you just drank something very hard indeed.

Mouthfeel- Actually fairly full bodied, its just too bad the body is accompanied by such a horrid taste.

Drinkability- The bottle says malt liquor, thats what this is Im pretty sure. Do not buy it.

Serving type: bottle

09-23-2008 03:54:27 | More by Bowdoinbeerboy

rastaman

United Kingdom (England)

1.7/5  rDev -38.8%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2.5

Kind of oily alcohol flavour. Really thin, but its easy to drink and you can get drunk quick off it, which in my opinion isn't a good thing, i'd rather like what i'm drinking and get pissed off that, than this tasteless oily crap.

Serving type: bottle

04-03-2002 23:43:22 | More by rastaman

IrishRedRock

Pennsylvania

1.7/5  rDev -38.8%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 1

Well. After so so many nasty malt liquors, this one could be the worst. And yes, I have had OE 800. I dont know which is worse. At first, I didnt think it was so bad. My first sip was OK. Then, the aftertaste started tasting like wine. Then it revealed it's true taste, a mixture of rubbing alcohol and Popov vodka. Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. I would rather have a whole lot of the Steel Reserve than this crap. Steel is gourmet compared to licking the elephant's ass.

Serving type: bottle

07-07-2002 19:52:15 | More by IrishRedRock

CrazyDavros

Australia

1.7/5  rDev -38.8%
look: 2.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 1.5

Amber pour, mid-sized head fades to a thin layer.
Aroma is quite weak, there's some grassy European hops, boring grainy malt and cardboard.
Flavours show the same grassy hops before the alcohol and metallic bitterness take over in a horrible finish.
Prickly mild carbonation takes away some of the flavour (thank god).

Serving type: bottle

07-29-2009 08:49:49 | More by CrazyDavros

kangarooAdam59

Pennsylvania

1.8/5  rDev -35.3%
look: 2.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

I have to review European beers every now and again just so how others can see how they compare (read my other reviews on European beers, if you don't like this):

The picture shows a dark bottle, however I have a green bottle, no date. This oughta be interesting:

Into a pilsener (also tested in a pint glass, nonic, snifter and chalice, no change whatsoever):

A: clear golden yellow body that gives a large one and a half finger white foamy head and the whole thing dies to the width of a peanut shell within forty seconds. Slowly rising carbonation is seen rising. Minimal spotty foamy lacing is seen around the sides of the glass

S: centered around some light, bland rice and corn grains, not much else to note.

T: a lot of the same graininess that leads to a blandness that pretty much dulls my tastebuds

M: super light but really has nothing that stands out or has anything that is bad, carbonation seems right

O: I'm really not into this beer. The best thing it has going for it is its mouthfeel and that really isn't much. I really don't think I'd have this again, period, and am glad I have no more of these. I tried to be as fair as I could by waiting until I had the last one to offer a review and literally, as each beer I consumed it gradually got worse. I think this is not a good beer.

Serving type: bottle

07-28-2012 16:57:04 | More by kangarooAdam59

wahhmaster

Virginia

1.83/5  rDev -34.2%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a Pilsner Urquell pilsner glass.

Appearance: Pours a light straw color with a large, foamy, white head. The head dissipates quickly and leaves some spotty lacing.

Smell: Sweet and grainy, not unlike an American macro lager.

Taste: Starts slightly bitter and grainy. Develops into a sweet, grainy flavor towards the end. Has a very noticeable alcohol kick to it. This beer makes almost no effort to mask its high alcohol content. Honestly, this tastes like slightly maltier American malt liquor.

Mouthfeel: Thin, watery, and over-carbonated.

Drinkability: This is little more than a slightly-tweaked malt liquor in a European label. Don't be fooled.

Serving type: bottle

06-13-2010 12:48:53 | More by wahhmaster

yesyouam

New York

1.83/5  rDev -34.2%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 1.5

Carlsberg Elephant is a very clear, very sparkling, light golden beer. It has a thin, white head that vanishes quickly. It has an aroma of light grain, malt extract and skunk. It's medium bodied, pretty smooth and pretty sparkling with a reasonably clean finish. It's quite sweet. It tastes like malt extract and fusel oil with an aftertaste of burnt rubber. This is pretty unpleasant. Is this malt liquor?

Serving type: bottle

01-17-2012 19:10:31 | More by yesyouam