Alfa Eindhoven Special Reserve

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

A very refreshing, well-balanced summertime beer from the Netherlands. Not overpowering, not dry, a clean taste with little bite. Not the best from the region by any means, but better than most crap they marked from that area (see Heineken & Oranjeboom).

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 5 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 5

You ever hear the story about the whole "A Bridge Too Far" affair? "Operation: Market Garden" was the British and American's attempt to shorten the war with German in WWII by 6+ months, with a daring and overly-complex campaign combining the joint U.S./Commonwealth airborne and land forces. The whole deal was for airborne troops to hold onto at least one major bridge that spanned the River Rhine long enough to get relieved by the ground forces fighting their way through elite SS units. Well, it didn't work out that way. A lot of Allied troops were killed or captured trying to hold a single bridge -- the bridge at the town of Nijemegen. It was (to the ground forces trying to relieve the airborne guys) literally a "bridge too far".

What does all that have to do with Eindhoven Special Reserve Dutch Lager? Well, only the fact that both Nijemegen and Eindhoven are both in The Netherlands. And while the "Operation: Market Garden" campaign might be interesting to some history buffs, Eindhoven (the beer) can't be considered interesting by anybody.

Complete with a fancy label and green bottle, this looks OK, but then goes downhill from there. Sub-par aroma, flavor, mouthfell, and overall drinkability.

Not very interesting to drink while studying Western Eurpean late-WWII military history -- or any other activity, for that matter.
//TB