THE MARKETING MACHINE

"Every month new products appear for which there is no prior need, but which take their place in the market without much resistance. That is exclusively the result of propaganda. New needs are created from the day a new product appears. After a few months of getting used to a product, its absence will be felt because an effective need will have been created. But the need was created exclusively by advertising. If the product were presented without advertising, nobody would buy it."
—pages 290–291, Propaganda: The Formation of Men's Attitudes by Jacques Ellul

Ah, the marketing machine. I watch little television, other than late-night cartoons, the national nightly news, and Top Chef. In each of these viewing milieus I saw the same advertisements for Miller Chill. In my drinking days of early adulthood, I primarily drank Miller Genuine Draft and Corona with added chunks of lime. I thought I would try Miller Chill since the marketing machine had effectively created my desire to try this beer, and tapped into nostalgia for the days of my youth. Big mistake!

---

Miller Chill, a Pale Lager by Miller Brewing Company

12 ounce bottle. The pour delivers a lager very light in color. It reminds me of a sparkling white wine in color and appearance, with a lot of carbonation. The white head consists of large unstable bubbles that begin to break up immediately. The head lasts a mere half-minute. The aroma is a "clean" deodorant-like scent, with slight floral notes and the faintest hint of lemon or lime.

The flavor is more fleeting and ephemeral than the aroma. Are there really flavors present? Some swallows deliver hints of pretzel, which accounts for bread and salt flavors. Some swallows deliver hint of lime. Some swallows taste like dirty or tainted water. The finish wavers between almost non-existent and a harsh, almost chemical, finish.

Overall, this beer is rather unpleasant, moreso than I could have ever imagined. Half of it was poured down the drain. Even the wife's homemade tacos couldn't redeem this beer.

I definitely will never drink this again.

---

The Miller Chill bottle claims that it is "inspired by a Mexican Recipe with Lime & Salt," elsewhere on the bottle called "Chelada Style." According to Wikipedia, "The Chelada is a beverage that is created by adding the juice of one or two limes to a full glass of ice cubes and then pouring twelve ounces of a dark Mexican beer into the glass. The rim of the glass is typically salted." Therefore, a few things are missing that would make this "Chelada style." Those missing items would include (1) the glass; (2) the ice cubes; (3) the dark Mexican beer, since Miller Chill is neither dark nor Mexican; and (4) the salt rim, unless one counts the slight brine flavor or chemical finish.

[I may have to try authentic Chelada at home with a bottle of Negra Modelo.]

This beer is a perfect example of one of the behemoth macrobreweries flexing its advertising muscle. The sad part is that I bought it, literally and figuratively, even if only until I tasted it.