Kingfisher Strong - United Breweries - UB Group

DarkerTheBetter

Pennsylvania

2.78/5  rDev +29.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Served in a 650 ml bottle with “for sale in Himachal Pradesh only” stamped across the label. Enjoyed at the Hotel Mountain View in McLeod Ganj.

This beer pours a golden color that leans towards copper. The head rises quickly on the pour (by the attentive hostess) but dissipates into just a few bubbles in moments.

Smells of sour, grainy corn, light toasted white bread with a hint of musky honey that steps in to save the day.

Tastes of malt liquor sourness, dirty nameless grains with a sharp CO2 sting that brings out a lime quality. There’s also a touch of fresh baked wheat bread crust and perhaps a dash of malt-o-meal. Overall, these flavors do not seem to get along with each other nor are they all that tasty.

The mouthfeel is an aggressive fizz that is quite a bit to deal with.

Meh; not my cup of tea… or beer. This was a little too pungent and fizzy for me.

Serving type: bottle

06-22-2011 06:52:30 | More by DarkerTheBetter

GMB

Japan

2.38/5  rDev +10.7%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Kingfisher Strong (this bottle says "Extra Strong," but I'm sure it's the same) pours an amber body that separates it from most of the straw-pale lagers that are available on the Indian market. The carbonation is vigorous: an evenly-distributed, massive swarm of bubbles races towards the top to support a head that is dense and more appealing than I expected from a strong adjunct lager. I almost gave it a score of 3.5.

The smell isn't nearly as appealing as the appearance. Sweet grain is there to help make the high ABV more palatable. I'm not sure it'll work.

My first sip is surprisingly more enjoyable than expected. Sweet grains and sugar are up front, but immediately blasted by the taste of ethyl alcohol. Give them credit, they tried their best. In fact, Kingfisher appears to have tried its best to make this beer as sweet as possible: The first four ingredients are Water, malted barley, sugar, and rice/maize/corn syrup. The mouthfeel is a little thin, but a swirl around the tongue manages to produce some nice froth.

If you are looking to get drunk on Kingfisher beer, this one is ideal. Otherwise, unless this is among your only decent choices, why bother?

Serving type: bottle

11-19-2012 13:04:11 | More by GMB

intoxabroad

British Columbia (Canada)

2/5  rDev -7%

10-08-2012 17:09:57 | More by intoxabroad

beerpadawan

California

2.25/5  rDev +4.7%

08-25-2012 20:19:31 | More by beerpadawan

Aussie69

Australia

1.03/5  rDev -52.1%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

I'm not going to review this one as per usual

1. Cracked the top almosted gagged at skunky alcoholic sweet apple juice smell. GROSE

2. Pour in glass, immediatly head went flat, nasty ass smell of skunky apple piss juice remains.

3. Poured in mouth, pure evil in a bottle, fizzy, sickly clouying sweeting, extreme cheap alcohol taste gave me a headache and no doubt I will have one tommorow.

This is just pure filth DONT DO IT...EVER not even for kicks.

If you must drink Haywards 5000 strong beer, its better comparitivly.

Serving type: bottle

07-13-2012 14:15:56 | More by Aussie69

crisis44

New York

2/5  rDev -7%

06-01-2012 23:05:28 | More by crisis44

Kornoms

Texas

2.75/5  rDev +27.9%

05-23-2012 15:26:30 | More by Kornoms

DrinkSlurm

Connecticut

2.95/5  rDev +37.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Ok..a recent post prompted me to review this brew. This is from notes taken a while back while in India.

Poured from 650ml bottle into a stella looking glass...weird that the hotel had one, but I am not complaining. Oh, the bottle was less than 1 USD...you gotta love India.

Looks like a regular ordinary beer, brown golden color...but it did have some head and lacing! Malty bready aroma, slight alcohol.
Taste wasnt as bad as thought. Yea, it was malty, but there were some slight hops and deffinitely alcohol notes. Overall, very drinkable, and not half bad! id say its worth a try if you come across it...but just buy 1 if you can...not a whole 6er. However, im not really sure if its available in the USA.

Maybe my review is a bit biased high because I was in India drinking this and it was the best beer (and pretty much the only beer) had in about 10 days of travelling about India. It was really the only thing you didnt have to worry about drinking!

Serving type: bottle

01-05-2012 19:57:35 | More by DrinkSlurm

lumpy1126

Ohio

2/5  rDev -7%

12-14-2011 02:02:12 | More by lumpy1126

kornkid8600

California

2/5  rDev -7%

12-08-2011 10:15:08 | More by kornkid8600

sprucetip

Alaska

3/5  rDev +39.5%

11-20-2011 15:27:33 | More by sprucetip

Thehuntmaster

South Africa

2/5  rDev -7%

11-15-2011 09:31:19 | More by Thehuntmaster

WoodBrew

Illinois

1.73/5  rDev -19.5%
look: 3 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Tried Kingfisher Strong Lager at a beer tasting soiree and for me it was not good. The beer pour golden clear with white head that did not lace. Over time the head dissappeared. The smell included grain, alcohol, and weak hops. The taste was pretty much the same. Mouthfeel....it had decent carbonation, but the alcohol was so present that it just wasnt good. Overall....not great.

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2011 12:55:23 | More by WoodBrew

xylophonica

Australia

2.9/5  rDev +34.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Poured from a 650ml bottle into a tulip.

A - Pale amber colour with a good finger of head.

S - Crisp cereal and wheat at first. Some sweet grass and wood as well with just a hint of red berries.

T - Quite soft on the palate at first. Big malt hit is somewhat subdued so it takes a while to come to the surface. Definitely a lot sweeter and maltier than it's weaker sister. That crisp cereal/wheat taste is hiding underneath too...

M - Sweetness offset with a truckload of malt.

O - It's ok but it's incredibly sweet. The high malt level goes someway to rectifying the level of sweetness but it's just not enough. I could've given this beer a better rating if not for the overwhelming sweetness.

Serving type: bottle

03-26-2011 09:10:29 | More by xylophonica

warlord

New Zealand (Aotearoa)

2.88/5  rDev +34%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

While not expecting much after reading other reviews, this beer wasn't as bad as I expected.

Certainly better than some beers I've tasted, but nothing special.

It's an easy drinking beer (too easy considering the ABV).

Seving type: 650ml bottle poured into a wheat beer glass

Poured pale/mid gold with a low rocky white head that has dissappeared very quickly leaving no lacing.

Taste is average, nothing really stands out, traces of malt and possibly syrup ?

Smell - again, average. Nothing really stood out, hints of malt and golden syrup mainly.

Mouthfeel - thin to medium, didn't really notice much mouth carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

07-03-2010 04:03:41 | More by warlord

jarmby1711

Australia

3.28/5  rDev +52.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

I appear to be the od man out as I enjoyed this beer.
Whilst very much in the run of the mill category it had a slight sourness to it that gave it a distinctive and enjoyable edge.
Normally high alcohol beers are readily apparent to me but this was particularly well disguised.
I would try again for sure

Serving type: bottle

05-01-2010 04:26:05 | More by jarmby1711

lacqueredmouse

Australia

1.25/5  rDev -41.9%
look: 3 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.5

Pours a bright slightly dark golden colour, with an initially big and frothy head of white foam. The head dissipates after a while, but stays pretty rigid around the edges as a solid collar, leaving some pretty good lacing. Carbonation is fervent but large-bubbled, and there's even enough body to leave some static bubbling when it's swirled. Overall, it's not a bad looking brew.

Ooh, unfortunately, all the good points it has been earning go out the window with the first whiff. Phenolic booze notes like white spirits, with a cloying sweet maize and DMS aroma, somewhere between overcooked spinach and creamed corn. The booze is definitely noticeable, even though it weighs in at a fairly moderate 7.1%. To be honest, the nose gives me a huge sense of trepidation before taking a sip.

Oh yeah, I was right. Initial round sweetness is smashed into submission by a huge welling of phenolic bitterness, that tastes more like some sort of caustic cleaning product than anything you're actually meant to imbibe. Finish is harsh and raw, with any malt disappearing, leaving just the harsh poor-quality booze note. For all this, the feel is thin and dry - despite the fact the ABV is relatively low, it comes across with a harsh malt-liquor quality.

There is very little to enjoy in this beer. The alcohol is harsh, the flavour profile is minimal besides this. It's like the precursor to low-grade homemade vodka.

This is a really awful beer - one that has few redeeming features.

Serving type: bottle

12-26-2009 02:29:33 | More by lacqueredmouse

Jayli

Massachusetts

1.93/5  rDev -10.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 1 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Had in Pune, India 9/3
This beer pours the standard clear golden carbonated hue, a 2 finger of sudsy head that sits on top. Head recedes rapidly, not much lacing to speak of with this brew. Nose is god awful. It smelled like a band-aid with a hint of malt. Taste isn't all that much better, muted not well balance of malt and grains. Lighter bodied, high carbonation, light crisp feel. This beer did not go down smooth or easy. Given the limited beer selection that I have here, I'll be going for KF regular in the future.

Serving type: bottle

09-04-2009 07:34:55 | More by Jayli

BeerSingh

India

2.4/5  rDev +11.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

Ok, this is another from the 'Super Strong' stable from India. Another more alcohol for your money in a beer concept, which is why every base lager in India has a strong or a super strong variant. Nothing much to write about - dark yellow in appearance with an alcoholic smell, you know the one that is very spirited. Smell is acidic with faint maltiness. Taste is sweet without any hint of hops. Mouthfeel is light, fizzy - one is enough to push you back.

Serving type: bottle

08-11-2009 17:55:15 | More by BeerSingh

benmiliron

Ohio

1.63/5  rDev -24.2%
look: 2 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 1.5

Paid 20 malaysian ringgit (about $6 US) for a 500 mL can at the Palace of India, Penang, Malaysia.

This is pretty nasty stuff. Like all of the terrible things about US ice beer have been isolated and concentrated in this one crappy beverage. Syrupy alcohol. Its just awful.

Serving type: can

02-23-2009 14:13:51 | More by benmiliron

Mebuzzard

Colorado

1.1/5  rDev -48.8%
look: 1 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1.5

Well, the regular "fisher" was not good to me, I thought this would be the same, but stronger.
I was right. Thin pour, soapy head that stayed for the length of a sneeze. Wet rice and grainy smell, a bit of rye I think. Didn't really want to smell too much of this.
It was a hot day so I wanted a cold beer. This wasn't the one I should have drank. Because the day was hot did save this beer on the drinkability factor. It was cold and wet. It had a hint of beerness.
Not good.
I miss hops

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2008 06:26:47 | More by Mebuzzard

splat215

Pennsylvania

2.45/5  rDev +14%
look: 3.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

650ml bottle

a - 3.5 - good head, carbonation, straw yellow
s - 1.5 - onion, malt, alcohol
t - 2.5 - overpowering alcohol kills off all the flavor
m - 3.5 - full bodied, smooth
d - 2.5 - strength pretty much ruins this one - way too strong to drink

Serving type: bottle

12-25-2007 20:06:59 | More by splat215

JanM

Sweden

3.03/5  rDev +40.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

The label says "Alcohol content not exceeding 8%". The real content is far from that, at least in the bottle I drank. The foam disappeared quickly and it didn't look very inviting although it did have a nice golden color. The taste was round and more bitter than the regular Kingfisher Premium. Making a strong Kingfisher is an accomodation to the demand of the Indian market with most beer guzzlers preferring strong beer for the kick. But contrary to my negative expectations Kingfisher Strong turned out to tase pretty good. It's not just a regular Kingfisher with more alcohol but a beer with its own distinct taste. It has the power to match hot Indian dishes better then most other doemstic beers.

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2005 08:38:14 | More by JanM

diablo14

Australia

1.05/5  rDev -51.2%
look: 2 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

one of the worst beers ive ever tried, this was dead set chunder down under stuff. i was thinking as i drank it that it was like a VB with a couple of tablespoons of sugar in it. then i thought even VB has more flavor than this! ok its not a good flavor, but still more than what was on offer here.

it was the regulation gold color, but pretty much poured with no head whatsoever. what smell there was reeked of sugar. the flavor was just sweet to the point of heaving, with no malt and no hops discernable to back it up. i should have used it as an ashtray because it would have given it some balance and texture.

ive always felt that strong lagers are a bit of a waste of time, even the good ones arent that crash hot. but this set a new low for the style. there was one good thing about it tho. it made me thank the lord CUB dont brew a strong lager. avoid at all costs!!!!

Serving type: bottle

10-27-2003 11:49:19 | More by diablo14

rastaman

United Kingdom (England)

1/5  rDev -53.5%
look: 1 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

Horribly sweet and syruppy, this is close to the worst beer i have ever tried, and the only reason people drink it, is to get as smashed as they possibly can, you couldn't possibly appreciate this beer, bleauuuugh.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2002 16:36:23 | More by rastaman