The best beer in India. Review on Heinekin

I had heard a lot about the quality of Heineken beer from my friends who have settled/visited abroad. It was not retailed in India freely till last year or so. Some people are crazy about another imported beer Corona, but I did not like it at all! Heineken was only available at select bars/pubs that imported it. It is now brewed in India and so can be found easily at most liquor shops and bars.

A little bit of knowledge about its market entry is of use. Heineken was supposed to be available in India much earlier (in 2010 or so). But apparently they had to work hard with the local raw material providers (barley, hops etc.) to achieve the desired quality and also redesign their brewing equipments to suit the Indian produce. I received this information from the barman who was happy that some customer (yours truly) cared to inquire.

This beer is the best beer available in the Indian market; so far, that it. Before this, I was a fan of Carlsberg, but this surpassed it. Here goes the review:

Taste

Crisp. That’s exactly how a beer ought to be! Right from first sip to the last, the only thing that changed was the temperature of the beer. This is where it scores way over Carlsberg. Carlsberg fizzles out in 10 minutes or so and then tastes like colored water. About the other brands, the less said the better!

Alcohol Content

If you want to get drunk, you should not be drinking beer in the first place! So forget about asking how the ‘kick’ and all is. This is a mild category beer where the alcohol content is less than 5%. And because it is made from quality ingredients and processed well, the smell is not so bad.

Packaging

It is packaged in a green colored glass bottle for the 650 ml SKU (direct competition to Carlsberg). The bottle looks good and it has no cheap-looking glossy stickers unlike the Kingfisher and Haywards. I think the company makes it clear to the vendors that the beer has to be stored at sub-zero temperature before serving. I don’t know how many Indian vendors will give heed to this. The bar where I had it did, so it tasted well.

Price

In Mumbai, the MRP for a 650 ml bottle is Rs. 170. Just to give a perspective, Kingfisher is priced at Rs. 95 in Mumbai. This makes it the costliest ‘made in India’ beer available in the market. But I think that this premium is justified given the taste and quality of this beer.

Final Verdict

The best beer available in India; move over Carlsberg! Go for it.