Thanks for your post. I will seek a 6-12-24 pack brewed in La Crosse, and while I know it won't be fully Krausened, I hope it comes closer to former glory. I found recent versions sweet, as I also noted a change in growing sweetness for Budweiser the past few years, so it's likely a palate change on my end than a significant change on their end. That said, I'm willing to give this another shot. Schlitz and Colt 45 are the only two mass produced beers I enjoy best today, after the changes I detected in Budweiser and to a lesser extent, Old Style.
I had a ice cold 16oz Schlitz this afternoon after cutting the lawn in 90degree heat. It hit the spot! Very good beer. I think if it were in a blind taste test amongst the other big name American beers, it score very high.
I used to drink a shit-ton of Blatz and thought it was the least "refined" out of the bunch, but definitely the cheapest. Let us know how it stands up nowadays.
In college (80's), we used to call Blatz "Splatz" cuz of what it did to you the next morning on the toilet.
I've also heard Schlitz gives you the shi--. Never had it, and so glad I haven't. I'm old and I didn't drink when I was young.
We used to call getting drunk as getting krausened ... You know double brewed.... I like the new OS brewed in La Crosse. Not sure how close it is to the older recipe as it has been awhile since it was brewed and krausend in La Crosse.
in the early 90’s my friends and I were grabbing some Blatz off the shelf. An older guy saw us and said, “I hope you have a lot of toilet paper” - and kept walking… true statement
After a few too many Schlitz we`d used to try to recite the following Fast and Loud.... without saying the word shit. "She Sits in her Slip and Sips Schlitz"
' I just had a Blatz Different from the Milwaukee brewed Blatz. It taste fine, and will still buy it in the future. BUT It`s lighter , and slightly more sweet than the Milwaukee brewed Blatz. The Milwaukee brewed Blatz was more like Schlitz. It had that old time beer flavor from the 60`s and 70`s. '
On the topic of Old Style- I recently found it on tap at a bar attached to my favorite pizza takeout place- $3 pints while I wait is a great thing. Still tastes good to me, but I can’t tell any difference with the new location. I recently introduced my son to it and he took a case back to Michigan- he’s very happy to have saved $2.40 on deposits on a beer a step or two up from their regular choice of Keystone light. $10.99 sale was a plus too!
A New Englander jumping in on this thread. About 12 - 15 years ago I went to a game at Wrigley, sat in the bleachers, and for some reason for the first hour before the game it was $1.00 off all beers, I believe, so I bought an Old Style. The following conversation then happened: Old woman (70+?) drinking a beer: "What are ya drinking?" Me: "Old Style, I'm from Boston so I thought I'd try to fit in with the locals." Older Woman: "Old Style? We don't even drink that shit." And that's one of the ways that Chicago initially won me over. One of the others was Hot Doug's (RIP.)
We'll give you credit on Hot Dougs, but you missed the part of Cubs history with Budweiser- from iconic announcer Harry Carey's ads of "Cubs Fan, Bud Man" to the building across the street from the stadium that formerly had a giant red roof with a massive Budweiser ad on it.
Oh it was followed up with several Bud Heavies, don't you worry. I also had multiple Foie Sausages at Doug's in one week, along with duck fat fries on the Friday I arrived. I should be dead.
Did you ever have Andeker back in the old days...I was a kid growing up in the South Milwaukee/Cudahy area in the early-mid 70's and remember that sign outside many an establishment...
We discovered Andeker in the early 70s in southern CA. To us, it was the best of the domestic premiums (actually tied with Huber Augsburger). I lived in Chicago in the mid 70s, and both Augsburger and Huber's various premiums were available at a lot of the local taps. In fact my wife's West Town apartment was a half block from a miniscule corner tap with draft Andeker. Andeker had a somewhat full body with a complex hop flavor. In the late 70s they changed the beer and packaging, both becoming less distinctive. They moved to an all malt beer that somehow was less full bodied than the adjunct earlier version and lost its characterful hoppiness. They got rid of the imitation Michelob bottle and replaced it with a short export mold. At the time they were probably looking at Henry Weinhard's success and, to a degree, emulated that flavor? They were moving to acquire (or had acquired) Blitz at the time
I’m sharing two Old Style Experiences between Wednesday and the overnight hours of Monday. Had a bottle at a bar. Didn’t look for a date, if it’s even dated, but it tasted sweet to me so I only ordered one. It was OK / drinkable, but not as good as memory. I have a box of Old Style with the cans dated 9/15/25, and the cardboard box dated inside the box nearly a year prior (9/27/24 @ 11:31), which is ridiculous. There is no way for a consumer to know the date of either the can or packaging without opening partially to see the can or fully to see the boxed date and likely canning date. This beer was not as sweet, but also not as fresh, as it was very dull & flat. Disappointed.
