Teufelhaus
Golden Handle Project

a whole lot better than their saison, but still a little amateur to me, not as well refined as it could be, i mean heck its not even perfectly clear despite the style guidelines, but it shows a lot of promise, drinks easy without being bland, and hits most of the flavor elements i want. still a little unclean or impatient or something on the lagering, but this comes close, and when its nice and frosty cold its solid with some refreshment value even if its a touch metallic and less than perfect. what i like it that i can taste some german character to the grain and also the yeast, and that the mouthfeel is right, close to all the way dry and crisp and snappy on the swallow. other than that, its a bit lackluster, rough around the edges, and is another beer from these guys that isnt quite where i want it to be. seems like the local scene here is so saturated with great beer that there wouldnt really be room for this level of liquid, but they seem to be doing just fine. maybe i just havent seen their best yet, i hope thats the case. i will check in again with them next time i am in town...