Helles Lager
Buoy Beer Company

Pours a clear amber brew with enthusiastic foam in the Tuborg Pilsner glass. Pleasant aroma of grain, alfalfa, and bread. The flavor is quite nicely hopped without an excess of bitterness. Some sweet bread. This is actually less malty and more hoppy than typical for the Helles style, but this is a happy combination. There is enough malty taste and warmth without being sweet, and the hops are more restrained than in a lot of PIlsners. Overall this is an excellent quaff. From the 12 oz can purchased at Elizabeth Station.

This beer pours a clear golden/orange with a medium to small white head. It has a fair amount of carbonation which helps bring out the hop flavor, which is lemongrass, the aroma is the same with light malts. Overall is a nice light beer with a good taste. Rated 7-1-2023 19 IBUs

On tap at Buoy. Poured a clear, golden yellow color with a small, off-white head of foam. It left sudsy trails of lace. It smelled of bread crust, caramel and floral notes. Sweet malty taste with caramel, toffee and a mild bitterness.

Draft at Buoy

A- clear golden color, one finger foamy white head, good lacing

S- grainy malt, slightly bready, a hint of floral hops

T- sweet bready doughy malt, honey, light floral hops. The finish gives some toasted cracker malt

M- light body with medium carbonation around, foamy mouthfeel and crisp finish

a flavorful yet still exceedingly easy drinking lager, less german than some of these from domestic brewers, but also true enough to style to read authentic, simple in a good way, understated even, and decidedly grain driven, fuller grain flavor and a bit more body than a lot of these have, but it doesnt make it heavy in any way, it just adds a little more character, toast rather than cereal, still dry, aroma and flavor are about the same in this one, with the yeast all on the back end and the hops are slight. this is a little less than perfectly clear from the tap, which in a beer called helles presents as a little unrefined, but even with that, this is a drinker, the lagering is patient and this is crisp and fast finishing which makes it a hard glass to put down. nice mineral profile and water chemistry, a softness to the texture, and some late grain hull tannic character that i dont think is out of place in the style, at least at this level. buoy has a solid lineup of core beers, i think they do a nice job with their lagers especially, and i am glad to have their stuff available in idaho now, this is a good year rounder.

Sampling a cellar temp 16 oz can poured into my .5L dimple mug. Date stamp is 12/15/2022 Batch #55.
The beer pours a bright clear golden color, with a bleached white densely packed head of 2 cm foaming up on the pour. This foam fades to a wispy surface covering and I get some scattered lattice when I swirl the glass.
the aroma is grainy malt and a bit of bready note mixing with grassy hops and a bit of spicy note as well. No hint of the ABV.
First sip reveals a light body with crisp texture and very fine, gentle carbonation. Beer dries out on the swallow and leaves my mouth feeling empty.

Flavor is grainy malts and a bit of sweeter cereal type flavor. I also get grassy and spicy hops on the finish that leaves a slight bite on the finish. Never any hint of booziness.

The beer is a fine drinker and easy sessionable with a decent amount of flavor. I would think this makes a perfect beach beer.

 

12 oz can

Pours two big fingers of creamy white head into my Heineken glass. Retention is great, largely due to the amount of nucleation. Body is golden yellow, clear, with an absurd amount of bubbles coming up.

Nose has a light bready sweetness, some grass, and a touch of lemon. Generally seems pretty crisp and clean, but that sweetness is a touch higher than I would expect for the style. Overall it still smells very nice and inviting.

Small malt backbone here on the flavor, not quite bready. Some faint noble hops. This is pretty neutral, all thing considered. Not bad, serviceable, but underwhelming.

Carbonation is on the higher side. Body is surprisingly sturdy, medium in weight. Sweetness is certainly apparent, though it is immediately balanced by a pretty elevated bitterness; definitely higher than the style would call for. The mouthfeel does a fair amount of work here, and adds some much-needed character.

Quite drinkable. The neutral flavor doesn’t add much to excite, but it makes for an easy drinking beer.

Appearance turned out pretty nice. Lacing was good for the most part, and the head never disappointed.

Over time there is an almost caramel maltiness that comes out. Definitely some uncharacteristic qualities to this beer. It works as a solid enough brew, but definitely not within the spectrum of a Helles.

 

Look: Clear pale yellow with a nice, frothy head that recedes quickly, leaving behind good lacing
Aroma: Fresh baked bread, wet grains, cut grass, hay, earthiness, a little white pepper, and some lemongrass
Taste: Grass and bread hit first, then earthy hop notes, grains and lemongrass intermingle and join the fun. Pilsner malt through and through with frequent pop-ins from the grassy and earthy hop notes. Clean finish
Mouthfeel: Light and crisp but highly flavorful. Medium to high carbonation with a soft finish and no detectable dryness
Overall: This is some tasty stuff here. A solid and respectable American-made Helles that I am glad to have fairly easy access to. This will be a frequent fridge-mate for me this summer. A winner

Canned 24Feb, purchased at ABV.

A clear light yellow with a dense, white head with good retention and decent lacing, this looks solid. The nose is soft and smooth, a touch buttery and creamy, falling on the grainier, doughier end of the helles spectrum. Moderate earthy and leafy hops. The palate opens a touch bitter with earth and lemon, along with some mint before the prominent grain character takes over. Lightly sweet dough, a rather rustic grain note is present along with a touch of pretzel. The mouthfeel is a little strange, with a strangely light, watery yet silky smooth, all in a way that doesn't entirely work together. Lightly, firmly hoppy on the finish with a lingering bitterness to go with the prominent doughy flavor, this is decent.

12 oz single purchased at Fred Meyer in N.Salem.
$1.59
Canned a month ago.
Pours a golden colored body with a good sized thick and frothy off white head.
Aromas as expected from a trad Helles..malty, biscuity goodness..faintest sliver of grassy hops underneath.
Taste mainly the bread like malts and with some bitter hopping right at the end. Quite well within style.
Mouth feel is medium ..and carbonation medium..nice on the tongue..finishes well.
A nice Helles ..very well done.

Had this on 2019-06-01 in Astoria, OR at the brewery on tap.

Apple, white grape aroma and flavor.

 

Canned 30 days ago, fresh from a can. A classic lager pour- crystal clear, sparkling light golden lager. Steady streams of bubbles drift up to a fine-grained head. Pleasant beer-y aroma of fresh bread. The German malts provide a tasty base with the right amount of hops. This is a very-well made beer. Seek it out if you want to appreciate a no-nonsense lager out in the land of the big, bold, IPAs.

Great looking beer. Golden body, nice clarity, but a slightly disappointing head, retention, and lacing.

A seem less transition of aromas to taste with freshly crushed cereal grains and some nice herbal and spicy hops finish. A little buttery aspect is a bit of a bummer though.

Same thing in the feel. Perhaps it's that buttery flavor, but it has a slick ess to it. Other than that, very clean and balanced.

Another winner from Buoy in the classic styles. Not my favorite from the fine folks in Astoria, but still an easy drinker with great qualities.

Cheers.

 

At the brewery, over the water, it is poured with a modest head and clear golden color with a bit of lace. A bit of bread in the nose. Bready and pleasantly lightly malty in the mouth. Nice!

On tap at Belmont Station the other day.

The beer pours a dark yellow gold color with pretty decent head retention and lacing. On the nose I get some light honey, fresh bread dough and a hint of black pepper. The flavor profile replicates the nose pretty close, with a lightly sweet finish. The finish is quite clean, and the beer delivers a decent amount of flavor on a light frame. Drinkability is quite good.

Nothing spectacular here, but this is an easy to enjoy, sessionable lager from the folks at Buoy.