Mad3 '92 Dream Team
Mikkeller ApS

Pretty unremarkable beer from two highly remarkable names in beer and food – disappointing. Lightly hazed golden body with a soap-sudsy white head. Malt-forward aroma with hints of clove-like spice, which made me think this was meant to be some kind of Belgian wheat beer. But nope, it's a pilsner... apparently? Lots more of that yeasty (?) presence in the flavor as well, with medicinal phenols, clove, cellar funk... and a decent snap of hop bitterness to finish. Overly frothy yet somehow heavy at the same time, this is a weird one, but not weird in that good way Mikkeller usually is. It just seems a bit confused. But maybe that's the point. Possible food pairings: buttery cheese, Cantonese, fish pie, roast pork, mussels.

 

Bottled beer seved in a pint glass.

Appearance -
Thick 3cm, foamy head, off-white in colour and long lasting. Lots of thick lacing. Opaque golden colour. Lightly carbonated.

Smell -
A strong aroma, pleasant that jumps out of the bottle. Mostly standard pilsner territory here - hops, citrus and floral aromas balanced with malt and caramel.

Taste -
A smooth flavour, starting out as an earthy, nut flavour, before the hops and citrus kick in. The aftertaste is grassy with a hint of brandy.

Appearance -
Moderate body. Mild effervescence leaving a bit of bite not overdone. A clean crisp feel.

Overall -
A very drinkable beer. Light and refreshing, but full of flavour - more than other pilsners I've had. Very sessionable (apart from the price). A great blend of earthy flavours.

330ml bottle, a pilsener brewed for Mission Chinese Food in San Francisco, it would appear, and strangely named after the 1992 US Olympic basketball team, even more so when the label depicts a soccer ball as well.

This beer pours a rather hazy medium golden amber hue, with a fistful of puffy, frothy, and overly ambitious eggshell white head, which leaves some layered striated cloud lace around the glass as it lazily abates.

It smells of crisp, biscuity pale malt, white saltine crackers, dry lemon and lime citrus, a certain hard water flintiness, and peppy grassy, leafy hops. The taste is more bready, grainy pale malt, supplemented by a crisp English muffin graininess, semi-sweet orange, lemon, and lime fruity notes, a bit of black tea astringency, and further herbal, leafy hops.

The bubbles are fairly used up and inert after their initial outburst, the body medium-light in weight, and generally quite smooth, the hops ceding a certain gentleman's agreement. It finishes mostly dry, the biscuity malt and lemongrass bitterness working well together through the end.

A decently hoppy Pils, sort of a bridge-gapper between the German and Czech styles. Full-flavoured, and worthy, but at 6 bucks a bottle, not really something one might want to enjoy in large amounts, unfortunately.