22 Pils
New Glarus Brewing Company

poured from a 12oz bottle generously gifted from my parents’ neighbors (and friends) into a tall new glarus pilsner glass - how fitting! pours a beautiful straw gold with some chill haze to it and two fingers of fluffy white foam head. aromas of malty bread, crackers and earthy hops. taste offers up some mineral-like qualities to go along with a clean bready maltiness and grassy hops. maybe a touch of earthy bitterness to the finish. it has a soft, gently carbonated and full mouthfeel. so smooth. so tasty. what a happy coincidence to get to try this one. loved it.

 

 

Pours a brilliant golden / straw in color, topped with a pale tan (but more than just off-white”) head. Good carbonation.

Classic Pils nose: Noble hops, lightly grassy and herbal…. and with a touch of biscuit-y malt. Almost Perfect!

Smooth and soft on the first sip, with a great deal of malt complexity and hop character flowing across the palate into every boo and cranny… coating both the upper and lower palate.

Mild but insistent bitterness, just about right for such an “old school” take. Malt character is very reminiscent of Urquell, while still drinking like a more classical German take. That’s a fine balance right there.

Seeing as how everyone else has rated this one fairly highly, I would hope that my rating won’t be too much on the lower end of the scale.*

This is a great Pils, and well worth seeking out and/or trading for.

(*On the one hand I would feel bad about ”dinging” this or any of Dan’s brews, because his beers are regarded by many as among the best in America. On the other hand -and this is my personal take- there have been a few batches out of the many thousands of batches which simply didn’t knock it out if the park, so to speak. This isn’t one of those per se, but it may not be among his very, very best, either. “YMMV”)

 

 

12oz bottle poured into a dimpled mug.

Appearance: translucent golden yellow with massive bone white head. Thick dense tenacious lager foam as always from New Glarus crispy beers. The foam coats the inner part of the mug where beer used to be. The head stays around for the entire drink.

Smell: Hop forward Pilsner with a biscuity / crackery type sweetness from the malts. Hop profile smacks your nose with grapefruit zest, spicy notes and herbal notes.

Taste: Starts with rich & lightly sweet bready malts. Hops are spicy, herbal, lightly floral with a ruby red grapefruit zest that dries into the finish.

Mouthfeel: Light bodied lager that gets weighted down from the hops at the end of each sip. Moderate carbonation levels. Crispy and lightly dry.

Overall: Would have liked to see the hops dialed back significantly more in this Pils. Still tasty and New Glarus lager reputation remains intact.

Pours a crystal clear golden color. Incredibly effervescent which feeds a lovely velvety, but thinner white head. Head is never more than a couple fingers thick, but shows incredible retention of that thin head with a nice layer of velvety foam always present on the beer. Aroma has notes of bready malt, cracker, white bread, with a light sweetness. There is a certain minerality coming through on the nose along with some spicy, grassy hops.

Taste follows the nose with a clean crisp malt backbone. Notes of white bread, crackery malt, and straw come across the palate with a light malty sweetness. Then the hops come into the palate with a surprisingly bracing bitterness that has notes of spicy, peppery dried grass. The bitterness lingers on the palate. Feel is light, crisp, and bright. Moderate carbonation. Very dry finish.

Overall it is a lovely pilsner and a nice reminder that New Glarus can produce top notch beers. Hopefully this eventually goes from brewery exclusive to wider distribution.