This past weekend, I decided to determine what the best ultra light beer was. Miller Genuine Draft 64, with a puny 65 calories and Bud Select 55, with a minuscule 55 calories. I will not delve into how they got the calorie content so low, but I will comment on the effect of these low calories. And it is not a good affect.

MGD 64 and Bud Select 55 ready to duel.

I picked up the beer at Wal-Mart for around five or six dollars for a six pack. Took it home, flipped on the TV to watch a little football, threw the sixers in fridge. About an hour later, I popped the top on the MGD 64, and poured it into my mug. It poured with a slight head, a pea color and a water consistency. I would describe the smell as that of a sink that has not been cleaned in recent days.

When I started drinking, I realized it needed to be a lot colder, so I threw one in the freezer to help out. The taste is unremarkable. It had almost no taste at all. It was like drinking water and about as alcoholic. The alcohol content is just 2.8 percent. Compared to around 4.5 percent for a typically light beer, 6 percent for a darker beer, 12-15 percent for wine and 40 percent for liquor.

I started double fisting the twang into the beer to elicit some flavor. That helped somewhat, but there is no way I would buy this beer again. I give MGD 64 a 1 out of 5.

Twang adds some flavor to MGD 64.

After the MGD 64, I was curious to see how the Bud Select 55 stacked up. I grabbed a bottle from the freezer and poured it out. Immediately, I knew this could be rough. It poured a little darker than MGD 64 and had no head. I would describe the smell as “rubberish”. Not the best adjective when describing beer, but this was not a good beer.

Bud Select 55 had a similarly low alcohol content, with 2.4 percent, but actually had flavor. Now, this was not to say the flavor was good. I would describe the flavor somewhat skunky and reminiscent of trashcans. Drinking it made me feel like I was jogging behind a garbage truck. Not a good time. I could barely finish one of these lightweight beasts. After finishing it, I still had a lingering aftertaste in my mouth. Not a good beer. I give Bud Select 55 a .5 out of 5.

Drinking Bud Select 55 is not an enjoyable experience.

In conclusion, I would not recommend any ultra low calorie beers. MGD 64 is my favorite of the two however, because no flavor is better than bad flavor.

- Bill Bowman