Howdy Beer
The Post Brewing Co.

 

Found a can of this beer at the local Total Wine. Poured into a tall pilsner glass. Slightly hazy pale yellow color with with a decent initial head and lacing. Slightly lemon grassy smell. Crisp and refreshing taste. Overall not bad even if a bit boring.

 

Anybody rating this as a genuine pilsner is missing the point: it's right there on the label, Western Pilsner. So this is an American take, a corny old-school lager, cribbing some recipe notes from a true pilsner but doing it on the cheap - along the lines of Champagne Velvet, which in my book is the one to beat.

And this one comes pretty close. Poured into my old Schlitz goblet, it has a nice, pure-white head, really frothy, lots of small bubbles that linger as it settles down; the beer itself is a clear gold, quite effervescent. Smell is very mild, just some notes of corn and malt, with something a little mineral at the end. Taste is similar, but much fuller - pretty big, actually, corn up front, then sweetish malts, with a dry, tannic finish. It's a little more syrupy in the mouth than you'd expect, which detracts a little from the experience: best to drink this one bone-cold.

All in all, a classic American lager, old-school stuff. It'll be in the rotation, if on ice.

Might be just that I really like Czech pils, but this one is solid and refreshing without the flavor aspect that I so enjoy.
Still, it’s good, refreshing and light enough to drink a 6 pack if you are so inclined.

 

 

Looks semi clear, huge fluffy white head. Good retention. Lacing.
Smells mostly of pine.
Taste like pine, almost nothing but pine. It’s not awful but it could have been so much better if they’d actually tried to make a real Pilsner. Maybe if they’d used mostly Liberty hops instead of cascade. Like I said, it’s ok but it’s not a refreshing satisfying German Pilsner.

 

 

 

What comes across here is something like Cascade, which has no business being in a beer that pretends to be a Pilsner. No trace flavor of noble hops. And, If you like Cascade there a hundreds of thousands of nice American ales to choose from that are far more palatable than Howdy. Bottom line this stuff doesn't taste anything like a Pilsner nor any Pilsner resembling, other notable Lager, either. Small Brewers: Please. If you can't come any closer to Pilsner than this don't call it Pilsner. Even when in the mood for a good lager, I'd rather drink a decent golden ale than this. And, having grown up in a German household loving a good lagers. Generically, Howdy doesn't taste very good. Most of my sixer went to the kitchen sink. - regards from Colorado, V.O.E.

 

 

 

This stuff smells and looks great poured out of its container, but the moment it passes your lips..oof.

Don't get me wrong I love a good hoppy pilsner, particularly good Czech pilsners that have that initial bite of hop, but this stuff tastes like someone spilled Pine Sol in it. Its like an amateur brewer's idea of what pilsner should taste like after their tastebuds have been burnt to nubs by over-hopped craft IPA.

Buy it for your IPA-addicted friends that think all beer should taste like a combination of cilantro and draino, otherwise grab a nice Avery anything.

 

 

 

On-draught @ Post Brewing paired with fried cluckers:

Whoa, I expected a hum-ho pale lager, not a crisp clean pilsner of ludicrous drinkability. Who knew a friend chicken joint could brew a pilsner as well as, say, Live Oak Brewing?

Holds a candle to traditional German expressions of the style. An ideal brew to pair with grub.

High B- / WORTHY

***
04/18/20 can from a 12 pack delivered during COVID-19 quarantine...unfortunately it was canned in August so I won't adjust my rating but I figured I'd add some notes on how this drinks 8 months old (and it probaby sat out at room temperature).

A starchy shadow of its former self when fresh on-draught, drinking balanced but lacking fresh flavours and crisp clean malts.

Lacks the grassy hop character I remembered it boasting when fresh.

C / AVERAGE

 

a really refreshing beer, hoppy for a pilsener type, americanized, but in a good way. i think this is one of the better beers the post makes on a regular basis, and its perfect with their hot chicken, which is definitely some of the best in town. a golden beer thats super well carbonated and fizzy, i like this one best from the can though, its a nice one to slug back in just a few pulls for maximum refreshment or as a respite from the heat of the chicken, just keep them coming! it has a light citrus hoppiness to the nose, a clean and strikingly fresh pils malt base, less dusty and classically european than a lot of them, its minimalist but very well balanced. some nice hop flavor in here too, meyer lemon, tangerine, soft grass and vegetal greenness, and enough bitterness to make it crisp and snappy in the finish. the grain is delicate here, light bodied and clean. the yeast is almost flavorless, which makes it a little less traditional in my opinion, but also makes it absurdly drinkable, no limit to how many of these i can put back on a hot day. very dry, fast finishing, and refreshing. nobody talks much about their beers, but this one deserves more credit than it seems to get. flavorful but crushable, a nice boat or bbq beer, mighty affordable too!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Soft, Bready, Herbal, Clean

Love the clarity on this beer. Brilliant pale yellow with a fluffy, foamy white lace. Herbal, soft breadiness, grainy sweet, but not too sweet, some zest and rind in a mild bitterness with floral notes. Creamy mouthfeel. A clean, bready finish ends with a dry, herbal linger. Artfully balanced, insanely crushable and now in cans, which by the way, have great texture for gripping. Howdy Beer is a damn fine American Pils. Embrace lagers, friends. We need more like this.

As reviewed in BeerAdvocate magazine #109 (February 2016).

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Previous review from Aug 30, 2014. Rated it a 4.

Had this ontap at Lucky Pie Lodo last night. Clarity on this beer is truly awesome. Pale gold, creamy white foam head. Ultra clean, light, bready malts, foral bitterness. Balanced. A damn fine lager.

 

I may be suffering from reverse sticker shock (picked this up on sale for $4.50!) But this was a pleasant suprise . Everything I want from a pilsner. Delicate sweat bready malt, delightful graininess with some grassy, herbal and peppery hops. Has a great amount of bitterness (american esque) which keeps thing interesting and crisp. Also loving where it's ABV landed and the flavor packed into such a "small" beer is a real accomplishment. If you like SN Nooner you will likely enjoy this pale Pils!

Cheers!

Classic German pilsner look in the glass: pale, straw yellow body, fluffy, lasting, white head. Mild grain aroma with an herbal, grassy component. Gentle biscuit-like malt flavor with a deftly bold hop bitterness. Medium body; crisp, clean; dry finish.

This beer presents a solid representation of the pilsner style. Well-balanced with plenty of depth and complexity makes for a delicious and easy drinking brew.