Wiseacre "Irusu" Rice Lager

I've never had a rice lager. Not sure what it is. Not sure if it has something to do with rice wine. The display on the can features what appears to be a Japanese fishing village. Honestly, the only way I could tell it was Japanese was from the word "tsundoku" written out on one of the buildings (I don't know what Irusu means, and I'm not looking it up). Nevertheless, this is from Tennessee. Maybe they should use corn instead of rice.

The clear, pale yellow beer produces an okay-sized white head that, counter to my expectations, does not fully dissipate. Instead, there is a thin layer of bubbles that almost completely covers the top of the beer with a thick clump on one side for no reason in particular. The aroma is a very nice, light malt with gentle spice adjacent. This is a hot day, and this is a nice, cold beer. 

First sip is ... kinda watery. It's not bad, but it lacks any kind of punch. Instead, the sweet malt is a bit bland, and the spices aren't really doing much to improve upon things. I expect, based on the prominent display of "99 calories" that this is targeted at people looking for a low calorie beer, and so the standards for what a beer should taste like are a lot lower. The sip isn't terrible, but it isn't great.

Tip-in is sweet corn and rice with gentle carbonation tingle. The middle rises into a whole ton of carbonation burn at the roof and back of the mouth while the light spices are nearly an undetectable addition to the sweet malt. The finish is a wave of more moderate carbonation across the tongue with the rice and corn holding on for the trail-off. Subsequent swigs reveal a noticeably toned-down carbonation in the middle for a more relaxed beer. 

Bottom Line: A crushable beer at 99 calories.

3.25/5