Mariachi 10, a Belgian brewed Euro strong lager. I was warned about it, virtually a dare to try it. Plastic bottle, twist-off top, smelled and tasted like lighter fluid. Never had SA Triple Bock, but their Cherry Wheat and Cranberry Lambic were pretty ghastly.
I remember way back there was a thread that had the best reviews of the worst beers. Some of the reviews were like, it tastes like sadness feels and it tastes like you just licked a 9v battery.
I would have to probably say Natty Daddy was the worst beer, that wasn't spoiled that I ever had. 2nd up was a Black Currant Sour beer from Dogfish Head. I bought a whole case, and gagged getting the first bottle down. That stuff was horrible. Mich Ultra is on the list too. It's just nasty. I'm sure there's plenty more that can make my list of worst beers.
I did too, the first time I tried it. That was at the 1994 GABF. It was poured out of a small wooden keg, which I'm sure was filled with Triple Bock just for the occasion. My GF and I both thought it was fantastic. So I was looking forward to the bottle release. My impression is that this is simply not a very age worthy beer. The 8.4 ounce bottle had a very loose cork top capping it, so there was no airtight seal. I bought three bottles and was instantly pissed off when I drank the first bottle. It wasn't awful, but it wasn't as good as what I tried at the GABF, and I was pretty sure it wouldn't be age worthy (the loose cork top was obviously very cheaply made). I mostly recall flavors of maple syrup, brown sugar and vanilla. It was a pretty sweet beer for the times. I think I drank the last bottle 3 or 4 years later. It had been refrigerated the entire time, which I suspect helped it quite a bit. I actually thought that last bottle was pretty decent, though hardly extraordinary. If you take a look at the initial BA reviews, most are fairly positive. It's mostly the later reviews that wax poetic over the horrors of this beer. Frankly, I can't imagine trying to drink a 10 year old bottle of Triple bock, especially if it hadn't been stored properly. By that time I wouldn't be at all surprised if the cork had all but dissolved.
I have had a lot of bad beers, but I think the worst was Bud Light & Clamato Chelada. Who thought that was a good idea?
For me: Non-craft: Canadian Ace out of a clear 40oz bottle (roughly 1987). I would swear there was actual piss in it. Craft: Excluding styles I hate (such as pumpkin ales), it would have to be Saison Diego from Green Flash. Tasted like it had metal shards as an adjunct.
For me it was Piels Lager circa 1979. My best friends father and his friend bought it by the pallet, I think, there was always alot of it around. So, we were underage High Life drinkers at the time. It was a Friday night and after standing around near the packy for a few hours trying to find someone to buy for us, we gave up and decided to steal a couple sixers from my buddies father. So myself and my two best buddies went back to Johnny's house and went to the fridge and stuffed four bottles each in our jacket pockets. We then went out back and each promptly opened our first bottle. Each one of us clinked a cheers and took some giant swigs off the bottles. Right from the get go we all in unison spit the beer out and couldn't believe the horrible swill we just put in our mouths. The Moxie (if you remember the original recipe) that my grandmother drank had better flavor. We were so pissed we smashed all twelve bottles on the back wall and spent the first and probably only sober night of our high school years.,
As @jesskidden noted. By the late 70s Oly owned both Hamms (Buckhorn H) and Lone Star (Buckhorn L). It might not have mattered which label was on the beer you were drinking. I can't imagine Buckhorn was much worse than RW&B (Pabst), Old Milwaukee (Schlitz), Milwaukee's Best (Miller), or the other regional "price" beers including Braumeister (Huber), Edelweiss (Pickett/Dubuque Star), and a slew of Heileman brands inherited from Associated.
Non-craft! Eastern Brewing of Hammonton,NJ lasted until 1990. The got the Canadian Ace label from the Mob owned (originally) Manhattan brewery in Chicago when it went out of business in the 60s. I bought a half gallon bottle of the stuff in the late 70s for its historical significance. I didn't have high hopes for the beer, but it failed to meet my expectations in spectacular fashion. It is a worthy worst-beer nominee.
I even used it to make a French style cheesecake. My whole family loved it. The maple and vanilla notes really worked well with the cheesecake. Try that with an IPA. I don't think so.
Besides basic American Lagers I would say worse beer I had was something from Ballast Point. Can’t remember what it was called but it had an octopus on the cover art with Indian stile flavors. It was so bad I actual couldn’t finish it and poured it out. Prob not a bad beer for others but def not my taste
Extra spicy pickle juice by prairie artesian ales. As bad as it sounds. Absolutely undrinkable. My favorite bartender made me try a sample just so she could laugh at the face I made.
The runner up worst beers for me are actually very highly rated beers on BA. But it goes to show, to each his own. (Samichlaus Classic and Revolution Unsessionable). But the worst overall for me, and not as highly rated as the prior 2, was Sierra Nevada Otra Vez. To me, it tasted like I threw up in my mouth.
Fortunately, immemorial time has passed. But the mark they left is indelible. I wish I'd never done it. The mere memory makes me sick. May God save you from this.
