You may recall that 7-Eleven decided to launch its own private label beer and it came out last month. Well I had to hunt around a bit but I finally found some in West Virginia.

Craft beer aficionados scoffed, as you might expect, but 7-Eleven looks like they know their target demographic. I said that I’d try it before I made any judgments, so that’s what I’m going to do.

I opted for the 24 ounce tallboys from the cooler and passed on the six-packs. There was no signage or other indication that this was a store-brand beer. The cans even say they’re from Game Day Brewing in La Crosse, Wisconsin, which is, of course, the location of City Brewing which is contract brewing this. Anyway, if I hadn’t known better, I probably would have just figured it was an off-brand that I hadn’t heard of.

The company doesn’t say anything about the things beer geeks care about, like IBUs, hop varieties, or grain bill. The press release for it did say, however,

Brewed with the highest quality malts and hops, Game Day Light (110 calories per 12 ounces, 3.9 percent alcohol by volume) has a clean, crisp taste with a smooth malt finish while the hops flavor is bolder in Game Day Ice (155 calories per 12 ounces, 5.5 percent alcohol by volume).

So, let’s start with the Light.

Very light straw color with a white fizzy head that drops quickly. Aroma is nearly non-existent, but I detect a bit of fruitiness. After it warms a bit I get a bit of rotten vegetables. (Or, as my wife terms it: “pond water”.)  There is little to no taste, but what is there follows the aroma. This is a beer that needs to be drunk ice cold. If at all.