Samuel Adams Boston Lager

Drink less, drink better, be happy!!!!!

 

The perfect Sam Adams 4 way variety pack for me would be Black Lager, Cream Stout, Noble Pils and either Boston Lager or Boston Ale.

I wonder is they every did a combination like that?

Cheers!

 

I wonder how many people in this thread (or in general) try to have Boston Lager fresh? As with most styles (not just IPAs) freshness is key. And a fresh Boston Lager is a treat, and a hoppy one at that. Not as hoppy as an IPA, but the noble hops truly pop in the beer, balanced with a nice caramel malt backbone. I won't buy it if it's more than 3 months old, and of course the fresher the better. Everyone should do themselves a favor and have it fresh from the Jamaica Plain brewery sometime, it will blow your mind.

One of my favorite American beers, period. A world class American amber lager, superbly balanced, with a lower abv (4.9%) that's well-crafted each and every time.

 

Generally speaking I am not a betting person (although I am still waiting for my Power Ball number to hit) but I would expect that the majority (>50%) of beer drinkers do not check dates whatsoever. For folks who do check the ‘issue’ with Boston Beer beers is that the best by date is easily readable but the bottled on date requires quite some effort (dark ink on a dark bottle).

So, let me just throw out a number that 90% of Boston Beer drinkers have no idea when there Sam Adams beers were bottled.

Permit me to go on with a longer story. Last summer I helped out my next door neighbor who is 83 years old on some yard stuff. As a ‘reward’ he bought me a case of SABL. I enthusiastically stated “Thank You!” as I received this gift. The beer was already 2 months old when I received it. Not “superfresh” but relatively fresh. The first few bottles were good. Since I am a homebrewer and American Amber Lager beers are not my absolute favorite style of beers this case of beer lasted quite some time. By month 5 (the best by date via Boston Beer) these beer were very malt forward with little hops aroma/flavor. Still technically ‘drinkable’ but even less appealing to me since I am not a fan of American Amber Lager beers. I am sad to state that I drain poured a few (5?) bottles of SABL at the end to use for my homebrewed beers.

I suppose the ‘punchline’ from my perspective is:

· Buy SABL superfresh (a few weeks from bottling)

· If at all possible store SABL cold to mitigate the staling (hop fade)

Cheers!

 

Good call, sir. All I know is; If they did, I'd buy it often.

 

Well there are 2 of us.

I wonder is Jim Koch reads BA threads!?!

Cheers!

 

Nah not him personally, I'd bet anything he's got people to do that for him though.

In all seriousness though, any commercial craft brewer who doesn't have a pulse on BA.com and other fan sites is missing a HUGE opportunity to get absolutely free, quality(usually) feedback and criticism. A lot of companies have to coax consumers with various freebie offers just to get a fraction of this type of info. I can't see anyone business savvy, especially Jim Koch, not tapping these sites.

So there you have it, Mr. Koch, get this done!

 

I am to hear of DP'ing 5 bottles of beer... they would have been great to boil brats in, or make BBQ sauce with, or... I can't go on...

*getting choked up*

( )

 

I dabble...

 

Mason-jar drinkers, unite!

*bangs head*

 

It's my only full-quart vessel. Whats with all this 12oz a serving bs?

 

60 min makes BL taste like regular lager, see what I did there.

 

Its a damn good solid beer! Period!

 

Agreed. But every time I have one, I remember how good it is. I tend to pick up a sixer or 12 pack of cans once every 5-6 months and get the fall and winter mix pack every year.

 

SA makes solid, if not extraordinary, beers.

Boston Lager is a great go to beer.

 

This has been my experience as well, which is why I questioned how Boston Lager is being consumed. It's a hoppier beer for its size (well, not by American standards), and much like some of my favorite pilsners, once the hops fade the beer starts to "fall apart" so to speak.

 

I find that it just tastes better when I buy the cans. It pours with a better head and seems to retain the freshness for a longer period.

 

That's pretty much the only time I drink it. It's a nice alternative to an adjunct but not something I will pick over another craft beer. Same thing with Yuengling (even though it is an adjunct).

 

Several years ago, I spoke directly with Boston Beer's (now former) long-time head brewer and he labeled Boston Lager a Czech Pilsner.

That seemed a bit of a stretch to me, with BL being a bit too dark, and too hoppy, to fall into the Czech Pilsner style category. Although Czech Pilsners a generally a bit darker in color than German Pilsners, they are generally less hoppy than German Pilsners. So BL doesn't seem to fit into either category.

Given the Old World European influence and inspiration behind Boston Lager, including the use of Noble hops, Vienna Lager seems to be the overall best style bucket for this beer.

I agree with those who say it's a quality brew. If given the choice, I personally go for Boston Ale instead, which seems to be less filling to me.

 

Without Vienna malt though? I've heard Michael Jackson had once called it a Bohemian pilsner, but I have no reference for that, and I agree, it's not a Bohemian pilsner either.