Drew Tries Stuff: A White Claw Power Hour
If I’m being honest, this one was about 50% curiosity, 50% trying to ride those sizzling hot search terms only slightly after the fervor has begun to die down. White Claws have been around for several years, although if you thought they came out in 2019, that would be a fair assumption. They were just sort of a thing on the shelves for a long time; one I actually tried back when I first saw them. For anyone who has yet to hop on the band wagon, a White Claw (and all other brands I’m too lazy to list) is effectively an alcoholic La Croix, seltzer with a wisp of flavor.
Now there’s definitely a market for that (as sales have proven) but since I’m not a La Croix fan, I wasn’t part of it. Then this year came around, along with the sudden explosion in White Claw which I do not understand. Like, what happened, what magic trip got switched, who made a Faustian deal? One moment these things are a weird entry in the beer aisle, then they’re just fucking everywhere. Anyway, with the uptick in popularity, I had the chance to try a few knock-off Claws that added a bit more flavor, even picking up a few I actually liked.
But to truly test a new booze like this, we must put it through the greatest of trials. The drinking marathon, the pregame ritual, why am I teasing this out when it was given away in the title: I decided to do a White Claw Power Hour.
The Setup
With Ruby no longer in the same town, I haven’t really been able to produce Power Hours as content for a while now, but I wanted this one to be recorded in case it turned out to be truly horrific. Luckily, I found exactly the premise I needed in the Thanksgiving episode of High & Mighty (a podcast by comedian Jon Gabrus). Since he does an on-stage power hour with friends every year, that made it a perfect candidate for the Authors & Dragon Mimic Chest, where we do the format of other podcasts for an episode.
After rounding up the crew, we figured out the tech aspect, thanks in large part to our practice with A&D At the Movies, and were even able to have our Discord Patreons listen in live, joining the chat to add their own thoughts, questions, comments, etc. With an outlet ready, all that was left was to grab a 12-pack of cold White Claws, clean out a shot glass, and see how things went.
The Power Hour
If you’d like to hear how the whole experience actually went, you can listen to it on the A&D Patreon if you’re reading this the day of release, or on our general A&D feed if it’s past mid-January 2020. That said, you won’t get much of a sense of how the White Claws are going, as most of the episode’s focus is on us having fun, rather than critiquing our drinks. Not saying that doesn’t happen, only that it isn’t in the spotlight.
I’ve said for a while now that the secret to surviving a Power Hour is to avoid flavor wherever possible. The lighter the beer, the better off you are pounding 60 shots of it. Trust me, no matter how much you like your drink, you won’t feel the same at minute 45. Ciders, soda beers, even stouts, I have seen many a person fall into this trap, often with stomach freeing consequences. White Claw, turning what was a weakness into a strength, might very well be one of the top candidates for a Power Hour beer I’ve ever had.
That’s the beauty of something with barely any taste, it’s a lot easier to ignore entirely. Well, with some flavors than others (I went variety pack). Black Cherry was hands down the best, the rest sort of run together in memory. In terms of effectiveness, they’ve still got an alcohol content, so by the end of the Power Hour you’ll be sure to have at least a buzz, possibly quite a bit more, depending on respective tolerances.
Honestly, there isn’t a whole lot to say about the act of the Power Hour itself, largely because the White Claws performed so well. They slid into the background, to the point where I almost forgot about them a few times, resulting in some surprised taste buds. If you like Power Hours and White Claws, you’ve probably already discovered this on your own, but just in case: these two make a great combination.
In the moment, that is. But a Power Hour is more than just the act itself. To evaluate a Power Hour, one must also take into consideration what happens once all the beers have been downed and slept off.
The Aftermath
Nowhere near the worst hangover I’ve had, I’ll say that upfront. Not even the worst from a Power Hour. Minimal nausea and no real headache were certainly nice, however there was definitely a trade-off. The aspects I did experience felt weirdly dialed up. My mouth had the persistent taste of a much worse hangover, and my stomach was less than thrilled about the sudden drop of booze-seltzer into it’s depths.
That said, it wasn’t one that stayed with me for an ungodly long time. After a greasy breakfast, I was feeling way better, and by afternoon I was pretty much back to normal. Experiences will vary, of course, but based on that highly limited sample size White Claws are at least in contention for a lesser-hangover Power Hour option.
The Verdict
When I came up with this idea, I expected the blog to go a very different direction. Thought it would be horrific, or at least bad, leading to a lot of comedy riffing on the newly popular beverage. But there is no point in Drew Tries Stuff if my mind is made up going in, I have to be open to being surprised, and this entry ended up proving the point extremely well.
Skeptical though I was, White Claw makes a really great Power Hour choice. The light tastes means slamming shots of them is easier, they’re at least no worse than beer in terms of hangover, and multiple flavors means you can mix things up when one does wear out your tongue. If you’re already on the Claw train and are looking for something new to try, this might be up your alley.
Whatever your Power Hour beverage of choice, just don’t forget lots of water before and after. That’s an old pro tip that works regardless of your choice of hooch.