Heineken's tequila-flavored beer comes to America
Facebook/Desperados
Are you a "spontaneous, adventurous" individual in need of an alcoholic beverage that will deliver maximum "excitement and likability" for your night out on the town? Then look no further, because Heineken has your answer with Desperados, a tequila-flavored, barrel-aged lager the company says combines the refreshment of a beer with the "high-energy and nightlife image usually associated with spirits."
With Americans shying away from beer over the past two decades in favor of other alcoholic drinks, companies have tried to keep pace by introducing potent, sugary brews that straddle the line between beer and spirits. Think Four Loko or Budweiser's Lime-a-Rita. Desperados, which has been sold abroad for years and is entering American markets in the Southeast this week, is Heineken's 5.9 percent ABV offering in that same vein.
So how does Desperados taste? Terrible, say the reviewers at Beer Advocate, who give it a 58 out of 100 and describe it as "very hard to drink" and "cheap lager + lemonade."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"I used to find these highly drinkable," writes one reviewer, "but then I grew facial hair."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.
-
How drones have detected a deadly threat to Arctic whalesUnder the radar Monitoring the sea in the air
-
A running list of the US government figures Donald Trump has pardonedin depth Clearing the slate for his favorite elected officials
-
Ski town strikers fight rising cost of livingThe Explainer Telluride is the latest ski resort experiencing an instructor strike
-
TikTok secures deal to remain in USSpeed Read ByteDance will form a US version of the popular video-sharing platform
-
Unemployment rate ticks up amid fall job lossesSpeed Read Data released by the Commerce Department indicates ‘one of the weakest American labor markets in years’
-
US mints final penny after 232-year runSpeed Read Production of the one-cent coin has ended
-
Warner Bros. explores sale amid Paramount bidsSpeed Read The media giant, home to HBO and DC Studios, has received interest from multiple buying parties
-
Gold tops $4K per ounce, signaling financial uneaseSpeed Read Investors are worried about President Donald Trump’s trade war
-
Electronic Arts to go private in record $55B dealspeed read The video game giant is behind ‘The Sims’ and ‘Madden NFL’
-
New York court tosses Trump's $500M fraud fineSpeed Read A divided appeals court threw out a hefty penalty against President Trump for fraudulently inflating his wealth
-
Trump said to seek government stake in IntelSpeed Read The president and Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan reportedly discussed the proposal at a recent meeting
