Continuing my world tour, from Scotland I am heading south to sunny Barbados, to indulge in a Caribbean lager brewed by Banks Breweries Limited.  Banks is actually an American adjunct lager style of beer, which is what most mass-produced beers are.  The adjunct comes from the use of cereal grains like rice and corn to cut costs and, unfortunately, taste.  Many are good session lagers, which are low alcohol beers that can be drunk anywhere, anytime, with a group of friends and there is no real ado.

Appearance: normally I would enjoy a session lager straight out of the bottle with a light meal but I will sample this one correctly in a glass.  Like most session lagers, I went ahead and enjoyed this one “as cold as the Rockies,” which does normally mute the complexities of most beers, but I want to also let it warm up to compare tastes.  It pours a crystal clear gold like the sun straight from the Bahamas.

Smell: the adjunct corn shows through with a sweet, cob fresh aroma complete with a buttery diacetyl presence. 

Taste: liquid frosted corn flakes comes to mind.  Grainy, thin, lacking structure. 

This proves to be a true session beer and nothing more complex.  It goes great with lying in a lounge chair watching the sunset and letting powder white sand sift between your toes.  Look for Banks and other Carribean lagers like Carib, Kalik, Kalik Gold, and Red Stripe at most ABCs.

In fact, this might be the perfect Florida weekend to do just that.

Beer blogger Adam Shugan is the manager of our Silver Springs Blvd, Ocala store.