#6. Baltika 7 - Baltika Brewery

I have to admit, I was a little scared about this one. Mother Russia has never been one for quality and a Russian friend of mine thought I was crazy to try it. In the back of my mind I thought maybe blindness or even death, but what the hell.

First off, it is a green bottle which tells me this might be a little skunky. I have to admit though that I don't mind skunkiness all that much. Call me weird. This one has an unusual crown that looks almost like an old fashioned pull-top. It comes off with a nice "pffttt" like you get with a bottle conditioned ale.

As I pour it into a pilsner glass, I am first noticing the very pale, straw color. This one starts to remind me of a typical American lager.

On the nose there is a slight skunky smell, but nothing too offensive. Outside of that there is a smell of sweetness probably coming off adjuncts in the malt. My guess is a lot of rice and corn, yet their website makes no mention of anything but pale malt.

Drinking it, I am amazed to find that this beer has no flavor whatsoever. The only thing that gives me a hint that I am drinking beer is the slight bitterness of hops and carbonation. I might as well be drinking water. This is probably the lightest bodied, lightest flavored beer I have ever had. If you go to their website and get past the initial load, there is an ocean scene which is appropriate - this is my new "canoe beer." A special shout out to the honey once the website completely loads - I'd buy beer from her.

They describe the beer as one with "special mildness" which is probably putting it lightly. I can't give this one a score.