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Colt 45                                       Colt 45 was born in 1963 by National Brewing Company and is today owned by Pabst Brewing Company. Prior to that the only major national brand of malt liquor was Country Club. Contrary to popular belief, Colt 45 was named after running back #45 Jerry Hill of the 1963 Baltimore Colts, not the .45 caliber handgun. Originally available at 4.8% ABV, Colt 45 now weighs in at 5.61% ABV in the U.S., and has been produced in 7%, 8%, and 9% varieties in Canada, as well as 7.2% in the Philippines via Asia Brewery. Colt 45 was the first to introduce the 45oz bottle, giving 40 drinkers an obvious reason to choose their brand over the others. It was a brilliant idea and one that's long overdue for a comeback. Colt 45 also has the most famous slogan in malt liquor history courtesy of spokesman Billy Dee Williams' famous catchphrase "It works every time!" Another famous spokesman for Colt 45 was Snoop Dogg. On 10/18/11 Pabst threw Snoop a birthday party for his 40th birthday called Snoop Dogg's Funky 40th and produced special Colt 45 40s with his image on the label. These 40s were limited to only 40 bottles and the fine folks at Pabst were awesome enough to send me #1/40, full and signed by Snoop, for my collection (pictured above). The Snoop and Pabst parties didn't stop there, nor did Pabst's generosity to myself. On 10/19/12 Pabst hosted a Colt 45 party featuring Snoop at the Playboy Mansion and invited me to attend. Snoop Dogg Presents: Works Every Time Mansion Party was a night to remember. The American version of Colt 45 is the quintessential malt liquor. The 40 by which all others are judged. The creme de la creme of malt liquor. Colt 45 has that classic malt liquor taste but a style and history that allows it to stand above the rest. Is it the best tasting? No, that mantle belongs to Private Stock, another Pabst brand which has since been retired. Does Colt 45 have the best bang for your buck? Definitely not if all you're concerned about is alcohol content, however the 5.61% is indeed respectable. What Colt 45 does have, however, is history, character, and integrity. They never changed the logo drastically in an attempt to boost sales because they never needed to. And they certainly never put their beer in plastic 40s like Olde English 800. MillerCoors brews and bottles Pabst's beers for them so if Pabst wanted to go plastic they probably could have. They chose not to sell out for cheaper shipping costs. They know 40 drinkers want glass 40s. 90s rap may have glorified OE800 and St. Ides, but Colt has withstood the test of time and remains one of the most classic and iconic 40oz malt liquors ever. I bestow upon them a prestigious 10/10 swills for their American brand. The Canadian version of Colt 45, however, doesn't get quite as high praise from me. It tastes completely different and has more of that strong dry Canadian beer flavor that always makes their "biere fortes" (strong beers) taste a bit different from our malt liquors. The higher alcohol content makes up for the lesser taste a bit, but not enough. Overall 7/10 swills. Canadian Colt 45 just does not have the same appeal or flavor of its older American brother. I need the last 13 variants pictured above. If you can help, please email me. Reviews | Return |