WCOW: Spain VS. The Netherlands

To celebrate the 2010 World Cup of Soccer in South Africa we are hosting a few nation VS. nation competitions of our own whenever two major wine producing countries meet. However, the final features only one wine powerhouse, Spain. Therefore, the theme is Beer.


Match 8 The Final. Spain takes on The Netherlands in a battle of lager. For the first time we'll make tasting notes on beer:

Spain's Beer: Estrella Damm
Cost: $2.25 (500ml can)
Alcohol: 4.6%
Notes: Light straw in colour. Light nose of hops, light texture with a touch of tangerine and lemon citrus flavours.

Holland's Beer: Grolsch Premium Lager
Cost: $2.25 (500ml can)
Alcohol: 5%
Notes: Medium intense nose. Bit of a bitter bite on the palate. Peat and forest floor flavours.

The Conclusion: (other than we're more beer drinkers than beer reviewers)

Complexity (Nose): Grolsch
Complexity (Palate): Estrella
Food Friendly: Grolsch
Concentration: Estrella
Expression of Terroir: Toss-up
Value: Toss-up
Winner: Estrella

The Estrella wins, edging out the Dutch Grolsch completely based on personal taste - sorry, we aren't beer reviewers. The Estrella is a nice, light beer that should match well with a wide variety of game time snacks. But who will win the game?
- Liam Carrier