Mamma Mia’s Pizza Beer (16 oz.)
Item Purchased: Mamma Mia’s Pizza Beer (16 oz.)
Location Purchased: Woodman’s Market / 2919 N. Lexington Dr. / Janesville, WI 53646
Price: $1.89 + tax
Purchased on: 05/18/08
Review: Staring at me from a ledge near the checkout counter, Pizza Beer screamed “dorm room invention” at me. Brewed with all of the components of a Margarita pizza, Pizza beer could be nothing but disgusting. All of the hype on the label, such as “beer so good it deserves a wine glass,” had to be tongue in cheek. Most of all, this oddity had to be mine.
I’ll be honest, the dorm-room college kid in me came out after making this purchase, because Pizza Beer sat in my refrigerator for quite a few days before I decided to actually try it. I only removed it to show it to friends with a toothy goofy grin on my face. I am, however, always up for new culinary experiences, so eventually I cracked the seal and pulled out my best wine glass (from an Ikea variety set, if you were wondering).
Pizza Beer pours with a deep urine color, virtually no head at all and looks more like a ginger ale than beer. Before I even tipped the glass to my lips, I caught a mighty whiff of carbonated garlic.
Eww…
When I finally got over my initial trepidation and tilted the glass to my lips, the sensation that drifted over my disgusted tongue was… was… one of surprising pleasure.
Yes, Pizza Beer is actually an interesting and surprisingly refreshing beer that tastes like… well… beer. The sensitive palate will sense a bit of tomato, a bit more garlic and maybe a few other herbs here and there, but to say that the beer tastes like pizza is more expectation than reality. There was no gagging, no puckered faces and the bottle kept tipping into my glass until the bottle was empty. The worst of the experience was the final sip straight from the bottle which punished me with a strong mouthful of garlic flavor. Maybe that last sip is why the wine glass is suggested in the first place?
All in all, I’m glad I tried pizza beer. In the end when there is nothing left but a belch, it all tastes the same as if you had eaten a pizza and drank a couple of Budweisers. I wouldn’t pick up a sixer of this beer after work, but I wouldn’t turn it down if offered to me either.
To read more about the Pizza Beer story (and it’s shameless self-promoting creator), check out PizzaBeer.net.
Rating: 3 / 5
Leave a Comment