Northern Connection
Trap Door Brewing

still kind of discovering these guys, but this is one of their best ive had so far, a really clean and bright take on this style, quite authentic, spunded apparently which i love, the texture is great as a result, three different pils malts they say too which is neat, noble hops and a good dose of them, this checks all the boxes for the style but also stands as somewhat distinctive without them taking any liberties, not easy to do, impressive. pretty clear, light looking, and holding nearly an inch of white head tightly packed in a shaker pint that is almost always unflattering to beer like this. its got a tidy aroma, grainy, crackery, european yes, but also some unique mineral forward terroir in it to me, zesty lightly spicy hops with subtle tea leaf and dried lemon zest character, very well lagered this is minimal but brisk on the ferment, and it tastes as good as it smells. the malt has some depth for it being as light as it is, faintly toasted to me but dry the whole way, lively palate with the natural carbonation, the hops move it quickly and do add some significant late bitterness, but they also bring freshness, a little herbal lift, and they fit the style perfectly well. this is snappy and satisfying, anything but boring, the lager yeast is right, and everything about this seems intentional, professional, and thoughtful. about as good of a german pils as ive had in awhile, and with everyone jumping in on the lager game these days, its cool to have one stand out so much for its quality. really enjoyable, they should be real proud of this, id love to try it from the can too!