Heineken Premium Light Lager - Heineken Nederland B.V.

Stinkypuss

Pennsylvania

1.9/5  rDev -18.5%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

appearance is less than average. Very light almost white lager.
Smells of cooked corn, dms and slight skunk.
Tastes like the nose, watery corn water with grains. Very light hops that are euro style but not fresh and starting to skunk.
Mouthfeel is light and watery.
Drinkability suffers due to the lack of taste, and whatever taste is there is bad. Stay away from this one.

Serving type: bottle

12-27-2008 18:02:17 | More by Stinkypuss

NiceTaps

New Jersey

1.9/5  rDev -18.5%
look: 3 | smell: 1.25 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

12oz green bottle into an Italian style pilsner glass.

A- Bright and clean yellowy-gold color, 1+ finger head, no lacing. Lots and lots of big bubbles.

S- It has the Heineken standard issue dirty cat box skunkiness. Very, very unpleasant.

T- It tasted to me like nothing more than wet undecooked white bread.

M- A bit light and crisp, nothing really. It's just so hard to get past the nose.

O- This was my only choice at a friend's house today. Otherwise, I may never have drank this beer. I did not finish the entire serving but it was easy to read.

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2013 23:17:55 | More by NiceTaps

BeerBob

Nebraska

1.95/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2

Heineken “Premium” Light Lager Beer pours a peaked amber from its 12oz light green glass bottle.

Nose is of fizz water and fizz water...
Palate is...??? FIZZ WATER!!!

What gives? What will it take? For a Major Brewer to come up with a “Light Lager” That really really tastes like real BEER!

Serving type: bottle

04-11-2006 08:43:01 | More by BeerBob

Suds

Pennsylvania

1.95/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2

I had this one with a group of guys following a round of golf. It wouldn’t have been my choice, but it was all that was being served. It serves up about what is expected from a light beer. It sports a pale straw color with a fizzy head. The aroma is almost nonexistent, with only a faint whiff of grassiness and hops. There’s virtually no flavor, and the beer is exceptionally dry. Watery body and empty finish. This beer is simply forgettable.

Serving type: bottle

08-12-2006 23:45:54 | More by Suds

Hoppington

New York

1.95/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 1 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Pure marketing crap. I think the difference in calories (last time I checked) between regular Heineken and Heinenken Light is a whopping 11 calories!

This beer is just watered down Heineken. I wouldn't even use this for cooking or beer batter. Get real Heineken or a Stella instead. Don't fall for the marketing jive.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2008 00:04:34 | More by Hoppington

sluggermatt15

Pennsylvania

1.95/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3.5

A- Pours a pale yellow with a super foamy head and off white lacing. Nothing to write home about, just like your typical light beer.

S- Grainy, bready, not overwhelming; just unattractive in general. The smell doesn't invite me to want to drink this one, but I did anyway. You can also smell that there will be some bitterness in this beer.

T- Pretty watery, just look at the alcohol content. Also kind of bittery and some mustiness to it. Yuck.

M- The carbonation makes this beer score low here.

D- Drinkable. I could see anyone having maybe a six pack of this in a couple hours. Nothing really could hold one back from drinking a lot of these because the alcohol content is low.

Serving type: bottle

06-29-2010 15:55:01 | More by sluggermatt15

Sudsy89

Florida

1.95/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2.5

standard 12oz bottle

This is the first Heineken I've tried, and I'm not impressed. I don't like the appearance, looks like fizzy, pale soda. Had a slight skunky smell to it, very little flavor. No aroma to speak of, and very little hop taste. Feels watery and a bit acidic in the mouth. I guess since it's so bland and watery you could down a bunch of them, but why bother with this stuff?
Better than an American light beer maybe, but still not one I'd want to try again.

Serving type: bottle

07-12-2010 04:22:05 | More by Sudsy89

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

1.95/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

This brew was one of my early beers I had, I actually stole a bottom from a friends parents fridge hoping they wouldn't notice. As far as I know they never noticed. Anyway the beer was decent at the time but since then I've had much better. The beer looks much like regular Heineken and smells the too. the taste is just a little more watered down.

Serving type: bottle

03-21-2011 03:25:50 | More by Knapp85

OWSLEY069

Pennsylvania

1.98/5  rDev -15%
look: 3.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Pours a clean, pale yellow color, with a white head. In the aroma, sweet and small skunky malt. In the taste, small sweet malt, but quite bland. A small bite, but mostly smooth mouthfeel, with a clean, small dry aftertaste. Kind of skunky, but a clean, small sweet malt.

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2007 13:42:01 | More by OWSLEY069

jwhawkins81

Ohio

1.98/5  rDev -15%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

This Heineken Light out of the bottle poured an unimpressive light yellow with very little head. The aroma is of a slight graininess and maybe some hops but not a lot. The usual green bottle skunky aroma was also in effect. Taste wise there was nothing redeemable about this beer. My first impression was of a grainy wet cardboard taste, but not in a good way. The beer did end rather dry without much fuss though. Drinkability wise while I could drink a few of these I would wonder why anyone would want to.

Serving type: bottle

11-13-2008 22:33:06 | More by jwhawkins81

smakawhat

Maryland

1.98/5  rDev -15%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Poured from the green bottle into a... a... umm... does it really matter? Let's give a Pokal glass a go!

A solid looking lager. Nice white head, perhaps two fingers, some good retention and keeping a solid cap. Body is a nice gold amber, not piss looking, with some nice slow rising carbonation. Actually looks refreshing.

Here's where it falls apart so far. Nose smells of pure cooked corn. Sweet and stinky. No hop aroma, not even a grainy malt presence. Just ugh. Some slight strange burnt sensations mix in, almost like a burnt match, giving some "variety". Overall though the olfactory experience is not that great, even for a lager. Luckily not skunked either.

Palate is.. Palate is ... where exactly? Not here that's what I can say. One of the most inoffensive but also neutral beers I've had. Mouthfeel is fine, but it's noticeably watery, but I'll cut some slack since the abv is so low and it's a "light" lager. Luckily not fizzy either or seltzery like most lagers. Flavor? I would write something but I can't even pick up anything.

Overall, let's move on, nothing to see here. Much better out there even in this style for sure!

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2012 04:00:38 | More by smakawhat

danielharper

Michigan

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 1.5

Purchased from Target on University, Huntsville, AL.

A: Pours a very light straw-yellow color with a thick white head. Constant carbonation from the bottom of the glass. I'd give it lower than a three for the color, but the head sticks around for a bit and is really fairly impressive.

S: A bit off-putting at first, strongly grassy aroma with some malt undertone. No skunk present in the nose on this bottle.

T: Only giving it a two due to style. Tastes just like a low-carb beer should -- really awful. Dry maltiness up front, some sweetness as the beer swirls around the palate, with a highly astringent finish and a wickedly off-putting aftertaste. Doesn't even seem like beer to me.

M: Thin, watery. Foams up well enough.

D: Drain-pour for me. Not quite as bad as Ed's Chili Beer, but bad enough to never want another.

Serving type: bottle

08-27-2006 22:25:21 | More by danielharper

DoubleJ

California

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2

Surprise! I mixed this into the Unorganized Invitational as the fourth of six entries. Why you ask? I'll explain later, but let's see what this "Premium Light" has to offer:

Poured into a stange glass, it pours and looks like a pilsner with its clear yellow body. Seeing an average head on it brought some hopes about this offering, but that was its high tide. It shares it's skunky scent with its brother. Taste wise, it's certainly watered down, Malt flavor is light and astringent, sour cereal-like taste balances it all out with a watery feel.

If you've been following the Unorganized Invitational, you don't need me to tell you this won't make the cut...

...which brings us to why I chose this beer in the first place. Well, this is my 100th review, and after drinking all those brews, I wanted something lighter in calories and tasting like water. Yeah, right! Anyone watching their chick-flick ads knows who this is targeted to. There's nothing "premium" about this except the price tag.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2007 05:56:44 | More by DoubleJ

NJpadreFan

New Jersey

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Heineken- Premium Light

Appearance- Light yellow almost clear with a quick fizzy head.
Smell- Very sugary sweet syrupy malt. Rice and corn adjunct.
Taste- Sweet rice and corn flavors. Very watery very little flavor here.
Mouthfeel- Watery up front followed by a quick burst of sweet adjunct flavoring and finishing off watery and lifeless.

Overall- Practically no flavor. Don't waste your time.

Someone left a few in my fridge so I figured I'd review it. I'm going back onto my,"don't drink and review macro's" ban!!!

Serving type: can

09-16-2007 19:57:38 | More by NJpadreFan

khiasmus

South Carolina

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

Ah yes, the exotic import in the odd-shaped green bottle. Scored some of this for a hard day's work at the WBF, figured it's high time I toss a review up.
And there you are, surprisingly little skunk aroma upon the hissy-pop, as a suspiciously water-esque liquid plops down into this undeserving glass. Not even a bubble to be seen floating upwards, and the nice pillow of head that formed from the hard pour dissipated very quickly, leaving a less than modest dappling upon the walls of the glass.
A hint of skunk (just a tinge), some light cracker notes and morning breath make up the nose, with a cardboard hop and very faint grain.
Very little changes in the flavour, other than the addition of a faint hop in the very back.
Watery, carbonation too low for the style, and a lightly dry finish.

This is not what beer is supposed to taste like. it's a shame that so many think it is. This is headache material, and hardly merits scrutiny. Time to invite some macro fans over to finish it off...

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2009 04:03:28 | More by khiasmus

rodney45

New York

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Well it has one saving quality. its pretty easy going down. That is about all that makes this beer still exist. It smells and tastes like a skunky nightmare. This is the antithesis of a good beer. A very subtle malt and hop character, but honestly i dont get anything from this beer. I wonder who goes out and purchases this beer to keep in their home. I wouldn't want to be their friend, and you shouldn't either. It is really heineken light, and i mean heineken is light and terrible to begin with. Why make it worse. This is the most terrible eurotrash macro i have come across.

Serving type: bottle

05-02-2009 07:33:16 | More by rodney45

onix1agr

Pennsylvania

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 3 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Drank from a can found in my sister's fridge, i figured what the hell.

A- I drank this from the can but poured a bit into a small glass. Light straw yellow with a fizzy minimal white cap that left before i got to know it. no lace.

S- HL smells like Pepé Le Pew, very skunky just like the regular version. Maybe some malts in here and very faded hops. All I really get is the skunked smell.

T- Well, the taste is slightly skunked as well but not as much as the regular version, hence, this being the light version. Grains and just a notion of hop presence. Some bready malts as well.

M- Thin and light but alot of active carbonation is heard and felt. Goes down very easy and would be better without pepe.

D- Not really, I finished my can because I was parched and needed some liquid but I would not willingly buy this for myself, or bring it to a party. I need to try a heineken in amsterdam to see if there is a difference, because I get the feeling they just send the U.S. the dregs of the heineken line-up.

Serving type: can

05-07-2009 02:25:37 | More by onix1agr

ExtraStout

Massachusetts

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Among light beers, this is no worse than average, and perhaps a bit better, but then, this is a low standard to start with. Overall, the flavor profile seemed true to the standard Heineken lager, only watered-down. I suspect you could achieve the same effect by letting a couple of ice cubes melt in a glass of Heineken. Neither offensive nor enjoyable. Just wet.

Serving type: bottle

07-07-2009 03:27:40 | More by ExtraStout

jag0007

Alabama

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Never had heineken light until now. everyones reviews were spot on, so i wont waste my time typing something that doesnt deserve a critical review, and at 3% abv, i feel like im drinking skunk smelling water. basically, i drank it to add it to my bottle collection and the remaining will be used for beer pong when the buddies come over

Serving type: bottle

10-15-2010 21:09:53 | More by jag0007

HosP

Indiana

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Again had this at a cocktail hour last night with little to choose from. Hey, why not try it and give it a chance.

Yellow and fizzy for sure. Not much nose, other than a bitter smell coming from it. Hard to detect much when you don't like the smell.

Taste was just about as bad. Bitter, grainy taste with little else. Light mouthfeel with lots of carbonation.

This is a good dollar beer night beer. Couldn't wait to get home and get something hoppy with a little flavor to it!

Serving type: bottle

03-03-2011 01:49:05 | More by HosP

Wasatch

Utah

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Pours a pale yellow color, some carbonation, little fizzy white head, with some minimal sticky lacing left behind. The nose is grainy/ricy. The taste is the same as the nose. Light Body. Again another lame attempt for a beer. What a waste of a bottle.

Serving type: bottle

03-26-2011 21:38:41 | More by Wasatch

tigg924

Massachusetts

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.5

Appearance: 1 inch head, pale yellow in color, clear, moderate carbonation

Smell: weak combo of straw and adjunct malt

Taste: light straw and grain..maybe some bark

Mouthfeel: medium carbonation, watery,sweet but the taste is really faint

Overall: I have nothing against light beers, but this one really does taste like water. Refreshing yes, but not what I am going to go for when I want a beer. Still sadly better then the original version.

Serving type: nitro-can

05-31-2011 13:30:37 | More by tigg924

Beerandraiderfan

Nevada

2/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

So why does Henie need a light version? I dunno. This is basically Heineken cut with (more) water. Everything is diluted. Appearance, even more straw yellow, more white head, disappears even faster. Aroma, less skunky, but I liked the skunk.

Taste, less skunky, but I buy Heineken when I wants me some skunk. In the words of the Circle Jerks, "I just want some skunk." Well, close enough. Anyways, the water downplays the zestiness, even the carbonation. I can imagine the making of a Heineken light 12 pack.

Take Heineken 6 pack. Add equal parts water to the beer. Voila! 12 pack of Heinecken light.

Serving type: bottle

12-08-2011 01:45:57 | More by Beerandraiderfan

jvdineen

Massachusetts

2.03/5  rDev -12.9%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2.5

I am not sure if it is lighter in color than regular Heineken because I had it in a bottle. It is bland with a very watery almost club soda type mouthfeel. I would call this a "n/h" beer for non-hopped. There would be no suprise to find out that they removed the hop flavor from this beer after brewing in the way non-alcoholic beers are made. Yet this is one of the few "light" beers that tastes very close to its non-light offering. A true swill nonetheless.

Serving type: bottle

04-10-2006 16:32:14 | More by jvdineen

bigremy

North Carolina

2.03/5  rDev -12.9%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

This beer for me was essentially Heineken with less a bit less taste. Very light on the color and aroma. Color was pale straw yellow with a faint hint of hops in the aroma. The body was weak, typical of Heineken, and the Light had even less of a finish to it. On the positive note, I think this was pretty close taste wise for me to full out Heineken so if they were going for that they got it right. So if you like Heineken, but for some reason crave a light beer experience, this should work for you.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2007 06:39:07 | More by bigremy