Heileman's Special Export
Pabst Brewing Company

Heileman's Special ExportHeileman's Special Export
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From:
Pabst Brewing Company
 
Texas, United States
Style:
American Adjunct Lager
Ranked #158
ABV:
5%
Score:
67
Ranked #28,196
Avg:
2.81 | pDev: 21.71%
Reviews:
65
Ratings:
129
Status:
Active
Rated:
Jan 15, 2024
Added:
Aug 22, 2002
Wants:
  6
Gots:
  15
Since 2001, contract-brewed for Pabst Brewing (San Antonio), as Pabst no longer owns a brewery of its own. Special Export is brewed to be crisp and smooth with a true European taste profile.
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Ratings by SchaefMan:
Photo of SchaefMan
Reviewed by SchaefMan from Illinois

3.45/5  rDev +22.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
You see, I got a 30-pack of this to keep around, so that I could keep up the tolerance, and not have to spend alot on good beer. I remember drinking this when I started out, and it is still pretty decent. Again, something to keep on hand.

It pours much like any American lager. Clear yellow with a white, disappearing head.

Smell is not strong, but with a hint of hops.

Taste has a sweetness to it, with a nice hoppy finish. Really, had I not begun drinking really good beer, this would be better than Miller or Bud.

Mouthfeel was sort of thin and carbonated.

Drinkability was good, because I could drink a bunch of them. Again, keeps the tolerance up without blowing lots of $$$.
Dec 05, 2006
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 1.63 by Can_if_you_can from Minnesota

Jan 15, 2024
 
Rated: 3.5 by etan420 from Illinois

Feb 05, 2023
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Reviewed by Eriepa76 from Minnesota

3.42/5  rDev +21.7%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Aaah the old green death. Used to come in 16oz suitcases. Go to for a long night if session beers. Could be better but it's not that cheap
Anymore in Minnesota. Better than bud Michelob or Miller lite. Cheers.
Dec 09, 2022
Photo of dannydetox
Reviewed by dannydetox from Ohio

3.08/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
It has been over 2 decades since I saw Special Export until this weekend acquisition in Chicago for the all-around value price of $3.99 for a sixer of 12 oz cans. Falls right into place with other US adjunct lagers. Not much of a nose, but the faintest hint of old world grassy hops. Thin body with minimal white head atop pale yellow color. Goes down easy without any complaint, but without any fanfare. Seems a note more bitter (in a Euro lager fashion) on the finish than label-mate Old Style, but I did not try them concurrently. If only OHLQ would allow this 'export' into this state.
Nov 08, 2022
Photo of Hatchel
Rated by Hatchel from Minnesota

3.31/5  rDev +17.8%
look: 2.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 4
Remember the tall boys from the ‘91 World Series? Good stuff when one was in college @ just scraping by.
Jun 02, 2022
 
Rated: 2.92 by TMoney2591 from Illinois

Dec 10, 2021
 
Rated: 2.37 by LesDewitt4beer from Minnesota

Nov 21, 2021
Photo of Mdog
Reviewed by Mdog from Minnesota

3.34/5  rDev +18.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
From a 16oz can:

Appearance: Clear yellow, good head.

Smell: Bready, hay.

Taste: Mild sweetness, slight corn taste, mild bread, somewhat dry finish. Not bad at all.

Picked up a 6er since I was curious. Special Export hangs with a tough crowd, amongst the malt liquors and cheapo lagers, so I thought it might be pretty crappy. Upon tasting, I was pleasantly surprised, it is a sold lager with decent flavors and no flaws. Tried it alongside a PBR, PBR is a little hoppier but otherwise pretty similar.
Sep 26, 2021
Photo of tonyf315
Reviewed by tonyf315 from Wisconsin

4.63/5  rDev +64.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
Deep gold color, "clean beer" smell, lots of bubbles. Taste has lemon, corn, grain, and grass. Why have I spent so much on Heineken when Special Export is half the price? I wish I could get pint cans but hey a 30 pack of 12s will do!
Sep 24, 2021
 
Rated: 2.4 by Eman17 from Illinois

Mar 04, 2021
 
Rated: 3 by cryptichead from Illinois

Apr 11, 2020
Photo of workingclassbrew
Reviewed by workingclassbrew from Wisconsin

2.64/5  rDev -6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.25 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.75
Poured into a small 25 cent tap glass, darker gold, maybe its the room Im in? Lotta carbonation to start, little lace clinging to the glass. This was a spur of the moment 4th of July buy from a 30pk of cans. Not cheap as Hamms, and more than PBR. This was a big seller in Wis in the early 90's with the "Special EX" promotionals.
Sweet aroma, and sweet, heavy mouthfeel. I like it. If I remember the light version wasn't much different than the regular. Lots of carbonation on the tongue that fades quick, and turns heavy, and sugary. Might not be the greatest session beer, but we went through most of em sitting in deep ice on the 4th. As it warms the sweetness doesnt become overwhelming, maybe just adds a grassy, dry flavour. Not the beer I want to contemplate too much about, but interesting enough to keep the old stories flowing amongst the fellas drinking it. I dont know if I'll ever go for the full 30 again, but its nice reminiscing. My buddy who went to UW LaCrosse said he enjoyed Spec Export dark back in the late 70s...."you can travel the world over, and never find a better beer" I always liked their slogan. Might not believe it, but its a fine working class brew to chew on.
Jul 27, 2019
Photo of Buckeye55
Reviewed by Buckeye55 from North Carolina

2.75/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75
Had a fling with this one several years ago. Had a more interesting flavor than mist in the group, sweet and kinda bitter at the same time. Haven't seen it around in a while.
May 08, 2019
Photo of wl2bill
Reviewed by wl2bill from Wisconsin

3.09/5  rDev +10%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
A beer from my youth, hard to find where I live, not what it once was. Back in the day this was Heilmann's answer to Michelob from A B and Andeker from Pabst. This is not that beer it has been cheapened over the years and is only a shadow of it's former self. Still, it is a better than average cheap beer with a unique flavor profile.
Feb 05, 2019
Photo of cardfan212
Reviewed by cardfan212 from Minnesota

3.43/5  rDev +22.1%
look: 3.25 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
Drank from a 12 ounce can.

Look - The can is attractive enough. The green catches the eye, and the sailing ship makes you feel like you're going on a journey.

Smell - Very sweet grains pummel your nostrils. Toffee and candy corn notes if I had to put a name to the sweetness.

Taste - The sweetness greets you at the door but quickly gets out of the way for some dry sour/bitter earthy flavor. Nothing mind-boggling, but it's a pleasant development and more interesting than a lot of other beers in its price range.

Feel - Medium body with light carbonation makes for a pleasant and cozy drink.

Overall - For a cheap beer, this is a nice sipper. I can definitely get behind this beer.
Sep 21, 2018
Photo of pat61
Reviewed by pat61 from Minnesota

2.77/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 3 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75
L: brilliant straw gold pour produces streams of rapidly rising bubbles under a 2" white foam blanket with fair to good retention

S: light grain, cracker and light corn sweetness smell with traces of DMS (canned corn) and low floral hop aromas

T: light grainy corn sweetness starts the flavors joined by a trace of apple on the finish

F: The body is a little less than medium light and the carbonation is medium high

O: I would drink this instead of bottled water but I would not go out of my way to drink it
Jul 27, 2018
 
Rated: 3.02 by Rollmeaway2loadout from Illinois

Dec 17, 2017
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Rated by Jugs_McGhee from Colorado

2.64/5  rDev -6%
look: 3 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.75
C- / BELOW AVERAGE
Aug 06, 2017
Photo of ChopperSmith
Reviewed by ChopperSmith from Minnesota

2.1/5  rDev -25.3%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.25 | feel: 2 | overall: 2
I grabbed one at a friends house, for old times sake. So, here goes...

Appearance: Pours a pale yellow color with a thin white head that fades fast. Little or no lacing.

Smell: Mainly whiffs of corn, grains and alcohol. Slight stale beer smell and slight skunk.

Taste: Sweet and thin with corn and alcohol the main flavors. The carbonation masks the bite of the alcohol a bit, and leaves a crisp dry and acidic corn flavor on the tongue.

Mouthfeel: Thin and heavily carbonated, especially from the bottle. A little less carbonated if you pour into a glass and let it breathe for a few minutes. Leaves an acidic alcohol tang on the tongue on the finish.

Overall: It has been a long time since I've had this beer. We used to drink it when I was young (16-18) to get buzzed fast. It's around 6.7% ABV, much stronger than the usual 4% Miller High Life, Bud, or PBR we used to drink back then. It also has that strong acidic alcohol taste, which I don't like now. Back in the day it was the best "bang for the buck" besides the really awful tasting malt liquor stuff. But, with all the decent beers out there now, I never need to drink this crap again.
Mar 15, 2017
Heileman's Special Export from Pabst Brewing Company
Beer rating: 67 out of 100 with 129 ratings