Style: Pale lager
Brewery: Asmara Brewery
Origin: Eritrea
Size: 33cl
Alcohol: 5%
Price: 42kr
Systembolaget: 85810
Asmara brewery was founded in 1938 (and started production in 1939) by Italian road engineer Luigi Melotti, who came to Eritrea during the Italian colonial period. The brewery operates a football team, which plays in the Eritrean Premier League, and the factory has over 600 employees. The annual production capability exceeds 100,000,000 bottles a year as the beer is extremely popular throughout the country. As I have never tried a beer from Eritrea before, and I presume most people in Sweden haven’t either, it seemed like the perfect place for me to star the tasting!
This was pale golden in colour but with crisp clarity and medium carbonation. It was topped with a fluffy head that held well. The aroma was light but pretty standard for a pale lager of this genre, with crackers and pale malt backed up with a hint of grass, metal and floral notes. The taste was smooth and fresh, with quite a high level of sweetness noted. The cracker note came through again prominently and lingered a little while, but there was nothing that really stood out on the palate. The body was rather light, and the aftertaste disappeared rather quickly.
Easy to drink and refreshing, this was a pretty standard pale lager that didn’t have any major faults except a slightly too heavy metallic note. I feel this could be enjoyed in many situations, and I could easily try another couple of bottles of this in a session. A refreshing and simple way to start the tasting.