Posted by Greg Clow in beer, beverages on December 19, 2007 at 12:25 pm
It's no secret that the popularity of many mainstream beers is due more to massive marketing budgets than the relative quality and uniqueness (or lack thereof) of the brews themselves. As documented in the books Lager Heads by Paul Brent and Beer Blast by Philip Van Munching, the big breweries have spent billions of dollars on advertising, consumer focus groups, brand extensions, and plenty of other strategies in order to capture market share. Most of the beers they're trying to sell are essentially indistinguishable from each other, so the emphasis is more and more on selling brands and labels and "lifestyles", less and less on selling the beer inside the bottle.
And even when the brew is something a bit different from the norm, you can rest assured that there will be plenty of big business hoohah going on behind the scenes before the beer finally hits the shelves. Case in point: Stella Artois Nobilis, a 7.2% "sparkling" beer that recently appeared on LCBO shelves in champagne-style bottles (LCBO 61655, $9.95/750 mL).
Ontario is the first market in the world to receive this Belgian-brewed beer, and was also the location of a focus group back in February where the beer and the brand was put to the test. The label hauls out the old "640 years of brewing tradition" chestnut that is always used in conjunction with Stella, even though it's technically a load of hooey. And let's not forget the meaningless marketing-speak like "brewed with finer bubbles for a unique taste experience" and "to help enjoy life's spontaneous celebratory moments".
Looking past the fluff, it's time to actually drink the beer and see if it lives up to the hype. To fully appreciate the "celebratory" nature of the Nobilis, I brought it to beer tasting party and shared it with a few friends. It looked nice when poured, a bright golden with a good sized white head that left some pretty lacing on the glass. The aroma is quite sweet, with notes of icing sugar and lightly toasted malt, and a hint of cut grass. The promised "finer bubbles" weren't really that noticeable on the palate - in fact, I found the mouthfeel to be a bit sticky, although it finished light. The flavour had more of the icing sugar from the aroma, along with some buttery notes, and a quick, faintly hopped finish that did little to cut the sweetness. At least it had less of an alcohol burn that I had expected based on the fairly warm aroma.
So, is this a beer is worthy of all the pomp and circumstance? Well, in comparison to the other strong golden lagers and malt liquors available in Ontario, it's certainly a step up. But the real test would be to put it beside other champagne-styled beers like Deus, or high-end strong lagers like Dogfish Head Golden Era or Samuel Adams Imperial Pilsner. Those comparisons expose the lack of complexity and overly sweet flavour of Nobilis, and prove that it is essentially a tarted-up mainstream lager that doesn't really warrant the special package and premium price tag.
