Bayernbiere Bought and Drunk

Ive also realized that drinking Pilsners before Dunkel is really nice.

 

Thoughts on Radeberger Pilsner? Came across bottles with 11/15 best by date.

 

Good one to grab once in a while -- especially fresh.

 

I think I enjoy Radeberger more than most on here (I preferred it to Konig, for example) but don't expect the world.

 

Thanks to you both, will grab tomorrow.

 

It is an OK beer. I sorta enjoy drinking it one once in a while on draft. I have never purchased bottled Radeberger.

Cheers!

Edit. With a best by date of 11/15 it was in all likelihood bottled in November 2014; 6+ months old at this point. Too old for my tastes.

 

Ouch, was assuming it was 6 month best by, not year. Now that I think about it, guess that would be tight time frame to go from brewery, importer, distributer and shop. Thanks for the save.

 

If we're talking some of the bigger/mass-produced pilsners, I was pretty fond of Krombacher the last time I had it, preferring it to Radeberger, Bitburger, etc. Sadly, the freshest bottles in shops around here are from mid-October.

 

Decide for yourself. I doubt you'll be terribly disappointed.

That one is really good when fresh.

 

The Frau and I are stopping off at Aying for lunch and a stein at Ayinger this coming Thurs on our way for a weekend in Innsbruck. I'm really looking forward to it.

 

But Tony, what do you really think about Radeberger!?!

Cheers!

P.S. I am glad to read your recent posts! I hope that we continue to hear from you. You are an invaluable member of the Germany forum.

 

I have to admit I am confused to read positive things here about the likes of Bitburger,Radeberger, Krombacher. They are all very close together, and I think I would not be able to tell them apart in a blind tasting.

Krombacher released a dunkles a while ago. It is kind of brown in color, but tastes amazingly close to their standard Pils, just with that typical "Färbebier" taste. No malt sweetness or anything to speak off. Pretty shameless.

 

Maybe Pasteurization is helping the Krombacher, because I recently had a six-pack of bottles here in the U.S. and it was a better Dunkel than most any attempt from a U.S. micro.

It's been professed many times in this forum, but what you in Germany take for granted and see as pedestrian is still much better than most attempts at German styles here in the U.S.

 

Until my most recent trip to Germany (this past Christmas), I was VERY down on Radeberger and Krombacher. First beer I had at my in-laws' was a fresh Krombacher from the Keller, and it was *much* better than I remembered or expected. I think the fact that I was coming from the U.S. -- where German styles remain, in comparison and in general, of a much lower quality -- may have influenced my tastebuds. Still, there are far too many much better offerings over there to waste too much valuable drinking time on the likes of such beers. But here in the U.S., it remains IMO a different story.

 

I imagine a good analogy would be a German drinking an American IPA in Germany. A four month old Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA or Harpoon IPA that's travled overseas probably tastes just fine. But I would never purchase those over here with local hoppy options like Be Hoppy IPA from Wormtown, or other hoppy offerings from the local Trillium. Or the litany of other options I have that are fresher and would be considered far better IPAs than something as ubiquitous as 60 Minute.

 

In your opinion do you think that Bitburger, Radeberger, Krombacher are awful beers?

I have had all three of these beers on multiple occasions on draft and I enjoyed them for what they are: OK Pilsners.

In the US we can obtain a number of Pilsners of higher quality (both German imports and US craft brewed) but I thought that a pint of Bitburger, Radeberger, Krombacher was OK to drink on occasion. I personally would never purchase a 6-pack of any of those beers but that is just my tastes for those particular beers.

Cheers!

 

Bitburger used to be quite a hoppy pilsner (I think we've discussed this) and it has definitely been "dumbed down" in IBUs and in aroma hops over the years to 1) become an Einheitsbier 2) save money. Still it is the number one selling beer sold on draft in Germany, which says a lot about (perceived) quality and image. It still has a hoppy edge but is a shadow of it's former self.

The other two are for my tastes interchangeable, and I agree with @Lurchus that one would have a hard time telling them apart. In the end, freshness is probably key to enjoyability (not to be confused with Drinkability, which is probably trademarked)

 

Awful is the wrong word I guess. They are without flaws, I give them that.
But first, it is simply a style I do not enjoy- thin body without malt backbone, crisp,clear finish with noble hop aromas-simply not my taste. I enjoy some mass produced czech lagers, esp. in the lower ABV range which still have noticeable bodies, more.
Second, you get them EVERYWHERE here, and esp. in regions with no strong beer culture in germany, it is often all you get in pubs and at public events and so on, which can get really anoying.
And third, they are soulless, which is my biggest problem. They are not what I would call a beer, but a engineered food product...

Since there are more and more IPAs aviable locally which aren't bad, and Pale Ales which are becoming really good, I stay away from expensive imports.
And I don't know how common Dogfish Head 60 Minute is in the US. But my point is, I bet you won't find a Späti,Supermarket, Gasstation or whatever which does not sell Krombacher,Bitburger and Radeberger.
BTW, an American beer which is getting popular among german "craft" aficionados is Sierra Nevada Pale Ale...

Wow.
I admit, my experience with german-style US beers is very limited. I remember Flying Dog Dogtoberfest being totally off, way too sweet,cloying and not balanced and tasty at all. But.. I like Sam Adams Boston Lager for instance way more than the mentioned big german Pils "Brands". It has way more charakter.

 

I enjoy a Boston Lager now and again, but if I'm in the mood for a German Pilsner it's far from the first beer I'd turn to.

Being at the epicenter of all that good beer is a different perspective than the rest of us. It's easy for you to turn up your nose at a Krombacher because there's probably a smaller, more fresh beer brewed locally. Around many of us here there's no finding a beer brewed that captures that good German character -- Sam Adams got close with their Alpine Spring, but certainly not with Boston Lager.

To that -- I'll have to say that Urban Chestnut's Zwickel is really growing on me. I've been finding it very fresh and, while not dead-on to that good German character, it's pretty good. And since it's not widely available across the country, it gives me the sense of having that smaller brewery to choose when I like.