Labatt Blue Citra

When I first saw Labatt Blue Citra on the shelf, I knew it was only a matter of time until I tried it. Normally, Labatt is a brand I tend to shy away from. My reason for this has little to do with how it tastes, but more because of the memories associated with it. It was the beer from my early days of drinking that I not only lost some battles to, I lost the war.

To this day, I can’t look at Labatt Blue, Jack Daniels or Absolut Citron without feeling my stomach turn. Perhaps, one day that will change, but I have been thinking that for well over a decade and nothing has changed. However, when I first saw Labatt Blue Citra, a light, hoppy session lager, I surprisingly did not feel my stomach turn. I thought it had potential to be a nice, sessionable, reasonably priced summer beer. So for the first time in a very long time, I purchased a beer with the Labatt name on it.

The Citra & Mosaic hops featured in Labatt Blue Citra are light and most noticeable in the aroma. Zesty grapefruit, along with tropical fruit(particularly pineapple) come through along with bread dough, floral notes, herbal spice and grass. Once it hit my palate, the unfortunate memories of drinking Labatt Blue came flooding back. The familiar bready, grain malt sweetness comes through, and combined with the grassy, spicy finish should have made me nauseous. What was different though were the subtle notes of grapefruit & tropical fruit. They were a welcome addition to this familiar beer and I found myself enjoying them. I want to reinforce that the hops here are light but I do not feel like I needed more from a beer that was clearly brewed for a broader audience. The hops were just enough to make a familiar beer just different enough.

Labatt Blue Citra is not going to blow your mind. It is just a simple, easy drinking lager with a touch of hops. If you are a fan of Labatt Blue, I think you will like this beer. From the point of view of someone who typically avoids Labatt products at all costs, I found it to be a surprisingly enjoyable beer I would not mind drinking again when the weather gets warmer. I found that to be a pleasant surprise.


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Thanks for reading. Sláinte!