German Beer Appreciation 2025

BRILLIANT!

 

I wonder what German's think of this Paulaner Original? It's a reliably good import here and usually decently priced - $9 for a 4 pk of 16.9 oz. cans. Pretty good value in my book. Cheers!

 

Yes, that is an excellent Schwarzbier. And 4 month in is no problem for me. A beer style we see a lot more of here in the U.S. the last few years. One of my local breweries makes a great one.

 

Again, super thrilled I can get Augustiner Helles. Yes, it's pricey and not always as fresh as I would like, but it's still a pleasure to drink.

 

Sounds like American Big Beer - except better quality.

 

Don't blame you on being sensitive to price. It's expensive compared to even many imports. But it's worth a try once, if you enjoy a good Helles style beer.

 

Yes, we did. I paid about $16 for the six pack and, as I recall, it was less than six months old when I bought it. But, as we've discussed, it still has a softer mouth feel and better head retention than most of the craft Helles beers I've had. There are only one or two local craft Helles beers I keep (Good Word being one) that are as good. On a per ounce basis, the Augustiner is $0.23/oz. Good Word Helles (which I'd put up against any around the country) is about $0.23/oz ($15/4pk of 16 oz cans) as well. So, Good Word is a better value (more fresh) but I paying about the same per oz.

 

I'd be pretty happy with that if that were the case in Atlanta!

 

I'm very sure you'll enjoy what Todd DiMatteo sends. He's a perfectionist about brewing and he has done dozens of collabs with breweries all over the country, with the primary purpose being learning from others. A good example is the Riding Bikes Helles. His first batch was good, but he kept tweaking it and its excellent now. His first couple of batches of Oktoberfest Marzen were way too bitter. I mentioned this to him during a brewery tour a couple years ago and he agreed. The next years batch was spot on.

Thanks, Jack. ALWAYS a great conversation with you Jack. Always.