Prowell Springs Pre-Prohibition Pilsner
Crux Fermentation Project

16oz can

Pours two fingers of pillowy white head into my willi becher. Retention is average. Initial lacing looks decent. Body is a light yellow, crystal clear, with surprisingly almost no bubbles coming up. Looks ok so far.

Nose is noticeably hoppy - a touch of grass and a little spicy. Sweet but smooth corn. Not blown away here, but the generous hop additions are a nice touch, and it smells very clean.

Flavor is interesting. Malt is a little more post prohibition, pun intended. That is to say, it’s much drier and neutral than sweet, not that corn sweetness I recognize. Apparently this is not uncommon in the style, but not what I have come to distinguish the style by, it is after all supposed to be different. Bitterness starts off modest and becomes more pronounced as it warms; not getting too much hop character. This is fine, but the nose certainly had a little more going on.

Mouthfeel is appropriate for the style, even with the sugars being the lesser of two options imo. I enjoy the bitterness, but would appreciate more hop flavors, if only a smidge. Carbonation is very high. Body is quite light. Fine, nothing wrong here.

Drinkability is high, it’s very clean and goes down easy. Still, a little more character would make me come back for a lot more.

Appearance turned out poor, zero lacing. I’m starting to think the warm summer room temp is affecting head retention?

Overall not bad, very strait forward. It drinks more like a hoppy macro than it does a pre prohibition style. Which is ok but a little more malt and hop depth would go a long way.

scored a four pack of pint cans at costco, pretty good pricing and a cool beer that i have never seen from these guys before. it really is excellent, and with the red white and blue cans in july, probably is selling well for them. its exactly the kind of lager i am loving these days, a little bit old worldy on the grain side with yeast i can taste, but also with some hop characteristics that make it very modern. this is incredibly well refined, patiently lagered, and professionally brewed, of very fine quality, consistent with what i know from these guys, the quality is always there! the golden brew holds over an inch of rising white head that puffs well above the rim of the glass, bubbly and shiny, a pretty beer to look at, but i did drink a few of these right from the can as well! this is crisp and fast drinking but not without flavor, some citrus to the hops, fresh lemon to me, a slightly crackery thing to the yeast, and a nice clean and fresh pils malt base with just a light body to it. the carbonation blasts off which i love in the style, the hops have just enough bitterness but plenty of flavor too, more than just noble varietals it seems to me, past grassy and herbal, but the beer is still delicate. awesome balance, i taste everything all at once from start to finish, its enormously refreshing without being dumbed down at all, and is among the best lagers i have had to date from crux. i hope this is a new full timer for them, not just a one off, its awfully well done and a great summer ripper.

1L howler from Sherbrooke Liquor store - utilizing a mix of grains (including corn), this is what American lagers were apparently supposed to be like, well, pre-Prohibition, as per the name, which also references Bend, Oregon's drinking water source.

This beer pours a slightly hazy, pale golden yellow colour, with one skinny-ass finger of weakly puffy, broadly foamy, and somewhat bubbly dirty white head, which leaves a bit of awkward webbed lace around the glass as things slowly sink away.

It smells of gritty and grainy pale malt, a bit of indistinct kids' breakfast cereal (so, corn, then), a subtle earthy yeastiness, and some prominent earthy, grassy, and dried hay-like hop bitters. The taste is bready and crackery pale malt, red apple skins, wet Cheerios (believe me, I know), an ephemeral yeasty character, and more understated leafy, grassy, and herbal verdant hoppiness.

The carbonation is fairly meek in its quotidian frothiness, the body an adequate medium weight, and generally smooth, with nothing else of merit really making a fuss here. It finishes off-dry, in a nice mixed malty manner.

Overall - this is a pleasant and engaging lager, the complex malt bill illuminating the concept that American versions of the style weren't always a bunch of watery bullshit. Easy to drink, and just bitter enough to keep this hophead's attention duly focused.

On tap at PreFunk. Pours out a sharp pale golden with a small white foamy head. Aroma is meadow and hay, some hops pepper, some savory spice. Taste adds some nice grains and cereal malts to the mix, medium weight body, and hops bite on the finish.