Southern Cross
Olde Hickory Brewery

Southern CrossSouthern Cross
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From:
Olde Hickory Brewery
 
North Carolina, United States
Style:
German Pilsner
ABV:
5.75%
Score:
85
Avg:
3.75 | pDev: 11.2%
Reviews:
12
Ratings:
30
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jun 14, 2014
Added:
Dec 23, 2011
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  1
No description / notes.
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Rated: 4 by Spaten454 from Texas

Jun 14, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by cwguy5 from North Carolina

Jan 03, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by JCam9981 from North Carolina

Oct 24, 2013
 
Rated: 3.5 by Mantooth from North Carolina

Aug 18, 2013
Photo of LittleDon
Reviewed by LittleDon from Texas

3.75/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75
Golden with slight chill haze. Creamy off white head with incredible lasting power. Good lacing. Biscuity aroma with some herbal spiciness, albeit a bit on the muted side. Medium body with a medium malt presence. Medicinal bitter finish. Medium high carbonation. Bitterness moderates as the beer warms up.
Mar 30, 2013
Photo of dar482
Reviewed by dar482 from New York

2.78/5  rDev -25.9%
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
There's a foamy head with a bright yellow color. At first taste, it has a decent amount of hops, but not something of a delicious pilsner. After a while though, it just starts getting ending so fast. It's dry, lacking in flavor, and then it just dies. It's one of the quickest beers that has fallen off my palate before.
Feb 21, 2013
 
Rated: 3 by MADPolo from Alabama

Feb 21, 2013
 
Rated: 3.75 by PthPndr from Florida

Oct 28, 2012
 
Rated: 4.25 by BlueFeetAndBeer from North Carolina

Oct 10, 2012
 
Rated: 3.5 by WillieThreebiers from Connecticut

Sep 15, 2012
Photo of righthereisay
Reviewed by righthereisay from Pennsylvania

3.05/5  rDev -18.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Purchased a bottle in Swansboro, NC at Harrika's brew haus.

Not that I care about labels, but this one looks like it was made with a dot matrix printer using a photo they found on google.

Anyways, had this one a nice day on the beach.

Smell: Hoppy, bread, nothing special
Taste: Grassy hops, some citrus, nothing really special about it. Maybe more hoppy than expected.
Mouthfeel: Went down easy. But then again, what doesn't go down easy on the beach...
Overall, it was rather regular. Wasn't bad, but wasn't great either.
Aug 21, 2012
 
Rated: 3.25 by Jzmhector from North Carolina

Aug 18, 2012
Photo of daliandragon
Reviewed by daliandragon from Maryland

4.18/5  rDev +11.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Cool looking bottle I picked up at the dispensary in Apex. Olde Hickory kind of popped up out of nowhere in the last year or so. The weather has been brutal so pilsner figured about right. This one has a decent white head above a translucent golden body. Carbonation does not appear to be excessive. The nose is earthy and bread tones with some moderate noble hop coverage.

This impresses me off the bat with strong hop flavors and a quenching, refreshing mouthfeel. The carbonation is present but isn't able to temper the zesty hopping. This is much more flavorful than most pilsners and seems more like a double or Imperial than a standard German pilsners. For four bucks for a bomber, this is a nice deal too. Definitely the best effort I've seen from these brewers. Very encouraging.
Aug 12, 2012
 
Rated: 3.5 by beerFool28607 from North Carolina

Aug 06, 2012
 
Rated: 3.5 by carrollmel7 from North Carolina

Jul 28, 2012
Photo of jifigz
Reviewed by jifigz from Pennsylvania

3.19/5  rDev -14.9%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Thanks to Commis for hooking me up with this pilsner and being a great trading partner.

Okay, so the appearance is a pretty standard clear golden yellow with a nice frothy head of pure white that lingers for a decent amount of time. The Pilsner may be a little darker than some other notable German-style Pilsners that I have had (even though they are calling this a New Zealand-style Pils, and I am not sure what that means.) The beer left wonderful lacing all over my pint glass.

The aroma of the beer is clean grain with almost no hoppiness shining through in the nose. It smells slightly metallic and not at all like a wonderful Pilsner.

The taste is, well, it is better than the aroma led me to expect. It starts off fairly neutral and quickly gives way to some grainy huskiness. There are some metallic notes in the flavor that are easily picked up and the ending is extremely bitter. I love bitter beers and bitter endings, but I like them to mingle with nice hop flavor, too. This beer is just bitter with no great hop flavor you expect to pop in a German Pilsner.

The mouthfeel is thin and watery and fits the Pilsner style quite well.

This is an average beer. I am very thankful for the chance to try this beer (thanks to Commis,) but this certainly isn't a Pilsner that shines with quality. I think this needs a bit more hop flavor and balance.
Jul 26, 2012
Photo of wedge
Reviewed by wedge from North Carolina

4/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Clear gold crowned with a frothy, fluffy head that retains rather well. Buttery/biscuity pils malt aromas along with an interesting blend of NZ hops...grass, lime, fruit, and something kind of spruce-like. Nelson Sauvin is noticable. Hoppy and refreshing flavor. Slight metallic hint at first, though it seems to vanish after the first sip. Floral, leafy, minty, and green hops with some fresh grain in the aftertaste. Medium-light body, slick, oily, bitter, and lightly drying. This is a fine, unique hoppy pils. An intriguing showcase for New Zealand hops, which I'm increasingly looking forward to brewing with myself.
Jul 21, 2012
Photo of tdm168
Reviewed by tdm168 from Pennsylvania

3.58/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Thanks to jtd1969 for sharing this bomber with me.

A - pours a dark copper with a thin white lacing of head

S - very herbal hop aroma

T - quite hoppy - herbal, spicy; cereal grains

M - medium bodied, crisp, well carbonated

This is a decent beer, but it's intense for the style. The hop character is composed of New Zealand hop strains. It's intensely herbal and spicy. There are none of the grassy, noble hop characteristics here. Overall, it could use a bit of balance. I enjoyed it, but if I'm going for a pilsner I'd like something smoother and more easy drinking.
Jul 20, 2012
Photo of BirdsandHops
Reviewed by BirdsandHops from Oregon

3.87/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
A: Pours a deep, clear yellow--almost amber--with two fingers of white head that recedes into a froth ring with a little lacing.

S: Pilsner malts and biscuit aromas with sweet citrusy and floral aromas from the hops.

T: Sweet biscuit flavors up front before a big blast from the hops. Some grapefruit flavors at first followed by strong notes of earthy and resiny pine. The finish is fairly bitter, especially for a pilsner.

M: Medium-light body with mid-high carbonation, this beer is a bit oily feeling in the mouth with all of the hoppy characteristics. I'd like it more light and crisp.

O: A good pilsner, overall. I like the strong hop presence, though the body holds it back some.
Jul 19, 2012
Photo of Onenote81
Reviewed by Onenote81 from North Carolina

4.2/5  rDev +12%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
One of the newer bottle offerings in the area. They've had this on draft at their tap room before, but the first they've bottled. Glad they did. Best by Jan. '13 marked on the side.

22oz bottle, split with my wife, poured into a pint glass. Pours a clear pale gold. Light bubbles rising throughout. A nice frothy white head rest atop, leaving behind great sticky lace all over the glass. The rose is lush with ripe oranges, lemon, lime, tangelo. Really a citrus bomb. I like it.

Fresh, crisp mouth that aides drinkability and is refreshing at the same time. The citrus carries over to the flavor as I get grapefruit, bitter orange rind, and a snap of lemon on the back end. The bitterness in this one is fantastic. A nice addition to this style. This could be a MIPA (Mild IPA). Crisp smack of bitterness, but it doesn't linger leaving the palate scorched. 4 types of NZ hops were used in this one, including one of my favorites - Jade - and you can tell. Great beer. One I will share with others in upcoming trades, no doubt.
Jul 19, 2012
Southern Cross from Olde Hickory Brewery
Beer rating: 85 out of 100 with 30 ratings