(Courtesy Anheuser-Busch)

Anheuser-Busch is looking to rejuvenate Budweiser’s fortunes with a new beer that takes its lead from Guinness. And no it’s not a stout…but it is nitrogen fueled.

So what is a nitro beer?

To understand nitro beers, one first has too look at beer carbonation itself. Those bubbles in your beer are primarily the result of carbon dioxide gasses in the liquid.

CO2 can result naturally as part of the fermentation process, that’s one of the results of yeast eating sugar in the wort, (the other is alcohol.) One of cask ales’ most defining characteristic is the light fizz or flatter aspect that comes with Natural Carbonation.

But the bubbles you’ll find in most modern beers is the result of Forced Carbonation, a process where carbon dioxide is pumped into the beverage, pressurizing the bottles, cans, or kegs. .

Nitro beers simply change up the gasses used…introducing nitrogen liquid into the beer (which changes into gas under pressure) rather than carbon dioxide. They’re defined by an ultra-creamy mouthfeel, the result of the smaller bubbles produced by nitrogen.

https://youtu.be/UAKHhSbanoM

Now about Budweiser Nitro Reserve Gold….

On March 2, the world’s largest brewer announced a new addition to its Budweiser Reserve line that’s a first-of-its-kind for the company, and maybe for the world, at least when produced at this scale.

Budweiser Nitro Reserve Gold is a 5% ABV nitro-infused lager that’s a departure from the expected in a number of ways…First it’s a lager. The most popular nitro beers are primarily stouts. Guinness, who actually invented the process and in essence created a new technical style in the fifties, was renowned for its Dry Irish Stouts…So a nitro-infused Golden Lager is definitely something unique.

Nitro Gold is available on draft as well as in cans. And while the draft variation is served in a process consistent with leaders such as Guinness, its canned nitro offering is very much a departure.

Until the late 1980’s nitro-beers where only available on draft. Then Guinness revolutionized the industry yet again with the invention of a plastic widget that dispensed nitrogen into cans and bottles under pressure.

Budweiser Nitro Reserve Gold avoids the widget in favor of a special serving technique where the user shakes the beer before hard pouring it into a glass. The ‘hard pour’ technique was originally championed by Longmont, Colorado-based Left Hand Brewing (who interestingly enough now use a widget in their canned nitro beers).

This from Budweiser…

“To hit peak refreshment, Budweiser Nitro drinkers are encouraged to flip the new, sleek 12-ounce can three times to infuse the nitrogen gas bubbles throughout, then pour straight down the middle of a glass for that perfect finish.”

“Shaking a beer and pouring down the middle of a pilsner glass may seem outrageous, but Anheuser-Busch’s Senior Educator and Master Cicerone® Max Bakker, one of only 18 world-renowned beer experts to have earned the illustrious title, confirmed it’s the optimal way to truly appreciate the full-flavored, nitrogen-infused brew.”

Whether Budweiser Nitro Reserve Gold has real staying power remains to be seen….

But we’ve gotta admit it had us at Nitro…just sayin.’