Note: Originally posted--as a guest blog entry--on The Dartmouth Soundsystem, a great little blog that is secretly growing, expanding and pulsating through the world and your brain. Just re-posting here out of vanity, or self-motivation. Fine, it's sloppy seconds. Yes...I was almost tempted to call this an "unsung hero" of foreign beers. Upon further reflection, however, it seemed inappropriate, as Faxe has quite an evident cult following. I recall memories of being down on my luck and low on cash; of seeing others at the NSLC in the same situation, be it university students or senior members of any city's homeless community; a regular of those who simply practice routine efficiency and frugality; that nostalgically bitter gulp here and there while indulging in the very rewarding act of underage drinking.
Faxe comes from Denmark, which is automatically a plus. Not only is this the same country that produces the heavenly Carlsberg Lager, but being that said product is Danish, while pounding back these poignantly decorated tallboys you can pretend you are a viking, like the guy on the label. (Note to mention if you actually are capable of "pounding back" Faxes by the tallboy, you certainly are worthy of being called a viking.)
At 10% alcohol content (for Faxe Extra Strong that is, there are weaker varieties of Faxe out there), I'm going to say this is the most potent beer available in local liquor stores. The price is somewhere around the $2.50/500ml mark, probably making it the best "bang" for the buck. And in terms of "bang", most would shrug this beer off as a cheap-trick kind of beer, I'm sure. But give it a chance, and I'm sure you'll find this beer is more than just an easy route to climaxing--there is a flavour in there, and it has a mark of its own.
Speaking now purely in terms of flavour, I'll say the negative upfront: the high alcohol content is really what drags this one down. The ethanol is apparent immediately--it is that distinct-but-not-pleasant sweetness that rolls down the tongue and stretches the aftertaste to your throat. Now there are plenty of European beers that have the knack of dubiously hiding their high alcohol content--sometimes up to 14%--underneath the taste somewhere (see: ~700 varieties of Belgian beer), but Faxe certainly isn't one of them.
At its heart, the beer has a flavour comparable to any mediocre, trashy Canadian beer... I don't know, say Molson, or Moosehead Dry. Neither of these I find particularly titillating, but they do represent the middle of the line, eh?
Ugh, how can I write more? To be honest, the taste isn't great, and it is a struggle to get the last drop out of the can even after a few... But low price and high consistency? Sounds good to me. Time to crack open my last tallboy...
For my closing statement... Paul Giamatti summarized it best in Sideways: "Quaffable, but uh... far from transcendent."
Bonheur.
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