Welcome to the 8th edition of The Midweek Drink and hurrah! To those who have been with us and served by us these past four months since we first opened!
Wow! Four months! It’s fantastic to see you guys visit us: the regulars and new customers. So, from the team and myself: Thank-you! And how happy we are to be serving everyone of you as you make those choices of either knocking alcoholic beverages on the head or if you have picked the short straw of being the designated driver for the night, but still like to enjoy the taste of a Beer, G ’n’ T or Wine without the worry of being ‘over the limit’. As this year comes to a close - not forgetting Christmas of-course - we look forward to serving you again in the new year!
This week, I shall be introducing to you an alcohol-free beer brewed by San Miguel known as San Miguel Alcohol Free 0.0%. It comes in a 330ml bottle and contains only four ingredients: water, barley malt, hops, flavourings.
A brief history on San Miguel
The name, San Miguel, may possibly make you think “Oh, it must’ve been brewed in Spain or brewed in another country that belonged to a Spanish colony because it sounds Spanish”. Well, you are right in thinking that it does originate from a Spanish colony (so top marks for that!), but where it was brewed was not in Spain (I was surprised when I found out); in-fact, we would have to travel over 7,000 miles away towards the Philippines to see its origin.
In 1890, a group of Spaniards traveled to the Philippine capital, Manila - which at the time still belonged to the Spanish until 1898 - and opened the first brewery in Southeast Asia. By 1903, they fixed their gaze on Hong Kong, which proved successful and of-course in New York, as-well in 1953.
In 1957, they returned back to their homeland of Spain and opened a factory in Lleida. For the next 40 years, they continued to produce great-tasting beer and the name San Miguel would be recognised right across Europe, Africa and America!
Then in 2001, they introduced San Miguel 0.0%. The first alcohol-free beer in Spain.
Three senses and a beverage
It has a clear gold colour; soft carbonation compared to other beers that have bubbles whizzing up rapidly like rockets to the surface, a very thin white head and a light body.
Very crisp, slightly sweet, grainy and bready is the best way that I can describe the taste; for the aftertaste, it leaves a pleasant bitterness at the back of the tongue. For its aroma, I can notice the malt and hops without a doubt.