Helles Lager
Ardent Craft Ales

Pours a deep golden with soapy white head. Honey, toast, and biscuit on the nose. It's toasty, malty nutty and that becomes more evident as it warms but there's still a nice floral hop bittering. There's a touch of white grape on the finish that I thoroughly enjoy in my favorite helles. Ardent, if you didn't know, is another Richmond brewery. They don't get talked about a lot amongst the haze bros, the fruity fireworks manufacturers, and the IP theft, but they make really good beer and phenomenal lagers. Their Pilsner has been a mainstay since I moved to Virginia and I've enjoyed many of their other offerings. This is another hit from their lager program.

 

From the pint can, it pours a clear amber color with a modest white head that reduces and leaves a bit of lacing. The nose gets light malt and some grassy hops. The mouth follows with a pleasant bit of malt and a light zing of hops.

This is a damn tasty easy drinking Helles Lager. Nuff said!

Pours a hazy amber golden color with a slight head and lacing
Aroma has malt and floral hints
The taste follows the nose with a malt and floral flavor
A medium bodied well carbonated beer
A good Helles Lager

My Homer Simpson review:

Looks. Like. Beer.
Smells. Like. Beer.
Tastes. Like. Beer. Ummmmm. Good!

Another solid offering on the lager side, personally I prefer the Franconian Lager, but that's a slightly different style. Have to admit that the Helles style has typically been a "Plan B" for me, but I've bought this one as a first choice in the beer garden. Cannot overemphasize how enjoyable it is to get genuine flavor combined with low ABV, and this beer nails that.