Eindhoven Special Reserve
Alfa Bierbrouwerij B.V.

12 oz. bottle poured into a mug.

Appearance: Pours a clear pale straw color. Foamy white head lasts a while

Smell: Typical slightly sweet grainy-malts of a Euro-Lager. Light smell, but nothing bad.

Taste: Very little to the flavor; a bit of sweetness, and a bit of grasses, but that's about it.

Mouthfeel: Light-bodied with rather noticable carbonation.

Drinkability: Not too bad; could drink a few of these for sure, but it wouldn't make for a very exciting time...

An average Euro-Lager. If you consider price (this is very cheap), it would make this a bit higher. I didn't find anything particularly objectionable, but I didn't like the fact that the flavor is so minimal. In fact, it seems like the carbonation tries to fill in some for the absence of flavor. Basically, this is just a beer to get if you're short on cash and don't want to get crap.

Poured from 12oz bottle into stein.

A - Well, its a euro pale lager. Golden pour, slight head disappears almost immediately, leaving only a lingering white ring about the top of the beer.

S - Gasp... how shocking... skunk!! I get it... the old lager in the green bottle trick. How silly of me. I have to agree completely with the reviewer before me that this beer has a distinct "grassy" smell... do they add fresh clippings to their beers in Holland, perhaps?

T - Hmmm... let's call this one "a little bit above average, for a euro pale lager." Nothing classy, nothing awful. Clean, crisp, forgettable. It's like beer flavored water, but with a bit more flavor than we expect from the genre. Here, again, is an odd background flavor of grass... it could be a holdover from the smell, I suppose... not that I've ever eaten grass, but... I guess it just sort of tastes the way I'd expect grass to taste. Hmmm....

Anyways, it's bitter at the start, moving on to a crowd-pleasing sweetness, with a slightly drying finish... and grass throughout.

M - Actually, a bit rougher going down than I was expecting.

D - It's light enough to be a thirst quencher and flavorful enough that I wouldn't be embarassed, per se, to be seen drinking it, but after about 3 of these, I'd start to feel like a lawnmower.

"Brewed in the great Dutch tradition. This special reserve lager uses all natural ingredients. Taste the toast of European brewing excellence, a lager with distinct character and smooth finish."

I don't even really need to comment.... but someone should tell the Belgians and the Germans that they've been displaced...

On a final note, I'd like to comment on the previous reviewer's story about the "Bridge Too Far." He was closer than he thought in relating that story to this brew... however, the primary objective was not the bridge in Nijmegen (not NijEmegen) but at Arnhem. The three primary bridges were at the Dutch villages of Eindhoven (taken first, by the American 101st airborne division), then Nijmegen (taken by the US 82nd airborne), then Arnhem (taken temporarily by the British 1st airborne). The great general Montgomery's fine plan led to the capture of the first two bridges... and the destruction of the 1st airborne by Bittrich's SS panzers.

How does all this relate to Eindhoven Special Reserve Dutch Lager? Well... um.... besides the name of the village... because the Operation Market Garden story is way better and more interesting than this beer.

appearance: pale gold lager, good carbonation and thick pillowy head that hangs about reasonably long for a lager.

aroma: So rare when you can find a lager that doesn't reek of skunk. This isn't it either. Skunkiness prevails over hops and grassy notes. After the beer's had a chance to breathe the skunkiness fades somewhat, so I recommend pouring this into a glass.

taste: Clean, light...almost flavorless. No annoying adjunct flavors, but not much else. Aftertaste is slightly sweet.

mouthfeel: light, smoother than many lagers, with none of the scouring effects so many display.

drinkability: A nice, if forgettable brew. If it's on sale and you need a quaffer, it's a good choice.

Not the worst Euro Lager I have ever had, but there is just not much that interesting about it. This beer looked like your average lagar with a very pale golden color but the beer had a nice head that left some decent lacing.
The smell was pretty grainy out of the bottle, but after it set for a minute it faded into more of a sweet malty scent with light hints of grass. The taste was typical of the style; very sweet and malty, not much hop presence and a light grassy flavor as well. But this one is not nearly as off putting as the other Big Euro Lager in the Green Bottle! A decent buy for $4.99 a 6'er, but don't go out of your way to grab this one.

Pours an ultra clear yellow brew.

Smell is grassy with a faint grain scent.

Taste is very sweet with a mild flavor with a hay flavor to it. Tastes like a Heineken light.

Mouthfeel is thin.

Drinkable? Well this is drinkable, but it is an inferior beer. Buy some if you want the review points but if you want a beer buy something else.