Alpen Lager
Barbarian Brewing

loved this one, recent lagers have been on point at barbarian. they call this a french lager, and i love the ingredients here, french malt and french hops, not something we see enough of, these ingredients deserve more attention. clean and bright looking pour, a little darker than golden toned but near there, with an average white head and some soapy lacing as it drinks, good carbonation, and a little sparkle. the hops have berry and spicy notes both, and i am sort of immediately surprised by some of this hop nuance, earthy but a faint red berry fruitiness along with green tea, hay, and subtle pepper, really cool on a fuller feeling slightly nutty pale malt base that lands on the dry side. a light tinny mineral aspect to this that seems to extend it even though its clean overall, some crisping hop bitterness late too, and just a little bit of lager yeast character coming through, but less european in that regard. cool balance to this, lots of flavor, and while it will drink familiar to the pale lager fans, its also subtly different enough with these french ingredients to stand out, agreeable but informative at the same time, and i really enjoyed this overall. for all the cereal and candy and ice cream beers these guys are becoming known for, it also rules that they have their lager game so dialed right now. i found this refined, innovative, and rather polished.

Draft at Barbarian GC. Rich golden body, wispy white head. Light bready, grainy aroma. Taste is biscuity, bready, light lemon notes, and a quite noticable bite at the finish.