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Malt Liquors for Delivery or Pickup
The Instacart guide to malt liquors
Malt liquor is a lager or ale made with sugar, rice, corn, or another additive to boost the number of fermentable sugars. This increases the final alcohol concentration without creating a heavier beer. Most beer is made primarily with barley malt, with a significant amount of hops incorporated throughout the brewing process. Malt liquors use less expensive corn and rice instead of barley, sometimes even straight sugar, and just a small amount of hops, which creates a less hoppy beer. Because it only has a small amount of hops, it's not bitter, and it has a fruitier taste. Malt liquor is almost always a lager, and since it has a high concentration of sugar, it tends to be more carbonated than regular beer.
About malt liquors
Malt liquors are often referred to as forties because you'll often find them in large 40-ounce bottles. If you prefer the smaller bottle, you can still find them in regular 12-ounce bottles, but the 40-ounce cans and bottles are widely distributed.
Malt liquors are usually straw to a pale amber color, but this depends on the roasting process of the malts. If the malts are roasted for a long time, it results in a darker, more brown beer. Malt liquors are usually roasted for a short time, which results in a light amber color.
The alcohol content in this beer usually ranges from 5-9%, which is higher than most other beer. If you want to pair it with some food to soak up some of the alcohol, look for hearty dishes such as red meat or spicy food such as spicy grilled shrimp.
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Flavored malt beverages are a different twist on malt liquors. These have been around since the 1990s, but have risen in popularity again in recent years. Flavored malt drinks also use a malt base, but natural or artificial flavors are then added to create a different, often sweeter taste than traditional beer. In the U.S., a malt beverage has to have a base that is 25% malt, and it has to contain at least 7.5 pounds of hops per 100 barrels of the finished product.
Some popular examples include:
- Mike's Hard Lemonade.
- Smirnoff Ice.
- Bud Light Lime.
- Bartles & Jaymes Margarita Flavored Malt Cooler.
Tips for choosing a malt liquor
Choosing a malt liquor comes down to sampling different brands and brews to find what you like. While the brand you prefer all comes down to your taste, some come more highly recommended than others.
- Colt 45: Colt 45 has a straw yellow color and a white fluffy head that disappears quickly. It has an aroma of sweet fruit and a hint of lemon. If you like a tart beer without a bold flavor, Colt 45 is a good choice. It has an alcohol by volume of 5.61%.
- Olde English 800: Olde English has been around since the '60s, but in the '80s, Pabst packaged it into a 40-ounce bottle and marketing it to a broader audience. It's highly carbonated, has a very sweet taste, and a medium golden brown color. The ABV is 5.9%.
- St. Ides: This malt has an amber color, a good foamy head that dissipates quickly, and a fruity aroma. Fans of PBR will enjoy the taste of St. Ides.
- King Cobra: King Cobra has a light yellow color, with a citrus scent and an ABV of 6%.
- Carta Blanca: Carta Blanca has a golden color, lots of bubbles, and tastes similar to Miller High Life, but sweeter. This one has an ABV of 4.5%.
- Steel Reserve 211: Steel Reserve 211 has a clear, light golden color. It smells very sweet with some faint notes of fruit and has a smooth taste. Steel Reserve packs a punch with an ABV of 8.1%.
- Hurricane: Hurricane comes from Anheuser-Busch. It has a sweeter taste than other beer from this mega-brewery, with just a touch of hoppiness from start to finish.
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Malt Liquors Near Me
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FAQs about malt liquor
The most significant difference between beer and malt liquor is the fermentation process. Since malt liquor is a lager, it goes through a bottom fermentation process. This means that brewers use a bottom-fermenting yeast that settles at the bottom of the fermentation container. When brewing ale beer, brewers use a top-fermenting yeast, which floats to the top.
Beer and malt liquor also have different alcohol contents. Malt liquors tend to have much higher alcohol by volume than beer. The average ABV for beer is under 5%, whereas malt liquor ranges from 6-9%.