Passport Pilsner
Thomas Hooker Brewing Company

This is my seCANd true entry in Happy Damn You for Being with the Best Multiple New Hookers with Tea on Sunday When There's Beer, Bro. Woody! (Week 687). My seCANd of the day was me revisiting a Blonde Hooker, this time in the CAN. It's going to be a parade of Hookers at Chez Woody today!

From the CAN: "Character: Unconventionally Traditional"; "Using the finest ingredients from all over the world, Passport Pilsner retains a traditional European style, augmented by American innovation. Malts from Germany, hops from the Czech Republic, and a uniquely American brewing style make this lager worth the trip."

I Crack!ed this Hooker but good & then turned her upside down for an inverted Glug & some light spanking. I vigorously swirled her around to produce three-plus fingers of dense, foamy, rocky, bone-white head with great retention that left behind wonderful lacing as a reminder of her visit. Who doesn't like head? Color was a slightly hazy Straw-Yellow (SRM = > 2, < 4). Nose was very grassy, hay-like & lemony with a biscuit malt base & so I sent out for Enrico's Lemon Biscotti during our first intermission. I feed my women as I like to ensure that there is fuel for the furnace. Mouthfeel was thin-to-medium, not watery, but nothing to get excited about. The taste was definitely Pilsner, but I thought that hop-forward = Czech Pils while malt-forward = GER Pils, no? This site's style guide seems to suggest an overlap. I only mention it because I now rate to style & not to taste after being called out by some jagov. At any rate, it was the type of Pils that I like - hop-forward with a hay, grassy, lemony spicy tang with the malt as a backup. yum! Baby, I am digging you! Finish was dry, again, right in my wheelhouse. This and the Blonde Hooker from earlier would make a good tag team tandem in my cooler, especially since they come in CANs.

Poured from a 12 oz. can. Has a hazy golden color with a 1/2 inch head. Smell is of malts, light lemons, a touch of sweetness. Taste is lemons, malts, a bit of grains, a touch of hops. Feels medium bodied in the mouth and overall is a refreshing beer.

Thomas Hooker Brewing Company "Passport Pilsner"
12 fl. oz. can, "BORN ON: 2017/05/08"
$2 @ Giant, Havertown, PA

Notes via stream of consciousness: Hmmm, it's surprisngly hazy, almost cloudy. That's odd for a pilsner but I'm guessing this is unfiltered and they're going for more of a keller style. It's a deep golden in color with some orange highlights beneath a creamy head of white. The aroma is lightly spicy with a touch of lemon over a grainy malt base. It's fresh and bright and inviting. It's not what I think of as the "classic Saaz hop Pilsner" but neither does it have to be, I appreciate a bit of variance. The flavor is fairly bold, which is also a little bit surprising as I was expecting something a little more mainstream, combining sweetish grainy malt with spicy and herbal hops around a firm bitterness. I almost forgot the light note of lemon. It starts with that and finishes with more of the herbal, spicy, and at this point, earthy, hops. It lingers for a few moments as the malt fades and the bitterness rises then declines. In the mouth it's medium bodied with a zesty, crisp carbonation that livens the tastebuds. Looking back the head has held well, maintaining a thin, semi-broken surface covering and wide collar, and there's some very nice lacing left behind. I could live with this! I wish my sample was fresher but it's held up nicely. Worth trying.

 

Almost see through but slightly hazy look with a nice white head on this beer. Beery malt scent with some noble type hops on the edge of the nose. I thought this was somewhat bitter and sort of pils like but doesn't have the distinct good spicy flavors like some of the better ones have. Medium of mouthfeel with ample carbonation. Overall, there are way better pils out there, would not revisit.

 

 

 

 

 

Clear gold in color with a thin white head. The head fades fast leaving a thin lace around the glass. On the nose this beer is true to the style, a bit grass like with a slight wisp of something sweet. Taste is clean and crisp hints of hops and a bitter dry finish. Overall a real nice pilsner. This will go great in the summer with a nice burger. Worth picking up.