Review: Brass Monkey

Very few mixed drinks involve beer. There’s the Hooter Shooter with beer, Tabasco and an oyster. There’s the aptly named Red Beer involving a mix of V-8, and then there’s the infamous Brass Monkey. The latter of which, I have never so much as tasted prior to yesterday afternoon, when I realized my New Year’s resolution of drinking one.

For those of you that grew up outside of the South Central, a Brass Monkey is a mix of malt liquor and citrus. You first drink your 40oz of Olde English “800” down to the top of the label. Next, you fill the bottle back up to the top with either orange juice, Sunny Delight or even Tampico Island Punch. I used the Sunny D. After this, it’s ready to drink.

And drink, I did. On to the review..

Appearance: The clear bottle does an excellent job of showcasing the gold and pale orange tones. To sleeve the bottle with a brown bag would not be doing this drink justice, although I would suggest this method of you plan on drinking it at the park or on the street.

Smell: It smelled of grains with a hint of lemon grass. The citrus smell was apparent, but not as much in the forefront as you would expect.

Taste: The taste was very sweet originally. This subsided as time went on. I could easily drink 2 of these, unlike most sweet malt liquors, such as St. Ides or Mad Dog 20/20. The Sunny D masked the skunkyness that OE is known for, without taking away the natural flavors that it is also known for.

Mouthfeel: Full and present! It was a blanket of velvety light carbonation.

Drinkability: Drinks easy as long as you drink quickly. Warm malt liquor can invoke gag reflex, and I assume the Brass Monkey would be no exception. This was also a bit too acidic. I could feel the heartburn coming on half-way through.

I would recommend this drink to anyone, but it does have its time and place. I would be most apt to drink this while playing street craps or dominoes.

As the old saying goes, “I only drink [Brass Monkey] when it’s cold enough to freeze the balls off a brass monkey.” I can’t stress this enough to you people. Don’t let it get warm.