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As an experienced consumer of fine beer, I am more than abundantly qualified to educate beginners on the merits of such, with the topic of alcoholic content being a favorite of mine. This is due to the numerous debates I've been privileged to engage in with various associates while seated at the local tavern, with the subject consistently drifting to this topic whenever some innocent newcomer would wander in and place an order for an Amstel Light. Our small yet hearty group is, for the most part, made up of Samuel Adams drinkers with the exception of Leonard, who is a Guiness man. The poor, unsuspecting rapscallion who dares to order an Amstel is bound to be the recipient of merciless teasing for assorted reasons such as the rather bland taste of the product and the lack of creativity in the labeling, but mostly for the slight alcoholic content of 3.5 for which Amstel Light is famous.

On this day, I have ironically decided to abstain from my usual tavern session and pick up a 12-pack of Samuel Adams Boston Lager for home consumption. No sooner had I twisted the top off my first libation of the evening and logged on, did I find this chance to write on a topic that familiarity holds out in front of my face to taunt me, as one would taunt a dog with a pork chop. This is not a chance to be passed up, as I'm in the unique position to consume the beer as I write and, having decided to do so already, I've taken the liberty of finishing off the first one just after completion of the first paragraph and shall now break to complete the second of many yet to come. As a personal investigation for the sake of journalistic integrity and accuracy, I shall consume one Samuel Adams per paragraph, making this a virtual measurement of the alcoholic content of beer and the effects thereof.

That is some NICE beer, that Samuel Adams! I've just completed the second and can hardly notice the alcoholic content of 4.8 like the label says, but it's a smooth beer with a great finish meaning that the after taste is lingering, yet not harsh in any way. The label also says there are 160 calories per serving and, although I didn't see any in the bottle, I'm sure I'm still going to have to run an extra 20 minutes on the treadmill tomorrow to burn that off. Granted, I wouldn't have to be concerned with the caloric content of the Amstel light but you'd be hard pressed to find me buying any of that stuff to bring home. I shall examine the label further now as I consume the next one.

The label says

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