Impostor Lagers

I personally can’t address your overall conspiracy theory but I am confident that Troegs Troegenator is brewed using lager yeast (and lagered).

Cheers!

 

If you like the beer, why do you care whether it is an ale or a lager? It tastes good, right?

Shit, sometimes we over-think things that don't really matter.

 

Sorry, I didn't intend for that to sound so snarky. It's just that sometimes on this site (and social media) we stress out over inconsequential things.

 

Heh, this one outfit labeled their Maibock an Ale. or shall I say they mislabeled their ale as a Maibock.

Some sketchy place in Oregon.

 

http://www.beeradvocate.com/communi...a-oktoberfest-2015.246274/page-2#post-3165544

 

Never had this problem.

I did have one issue at this past Great Taste, my friend told me we were drinking Surly's Cacao Bender... however, the amount of coffee flavor I got from that makes me think it was really Coffee Bender, but that's another problem.

 

Is Trogenator clear? Or hazy to some degree?

My experience with lagers is that they're virtually 100% clear across all styles.

I'd swear I've had a lager that had a fruity (English pale ale-like) quality to it, but it escapes me at the moment. *runs off to search review list*

Yep. Here it is:

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/2854/27945/?ba=Premo88

Of course, the beer is from Germany and 100% clear, so it never crossed my mind that it might not be a lager.

 

I've noticed this as well, and I've come to the conclusion that people just aren't willing to pay much more than that for a lager.

 

I don't think OP is stressing out, just asking a question. Someone else seems a little stressed though.... have a lager, or an ale, or something.

 

I love doppelbocks. And I like Troegenator. But I've noticed the same off flavor as well and don't buy it very often since widely distributed German examples, like Salvator, to me are better and are at a better price point.

I'm sure Troegenator is a lager, but my suspicion has always been that the "off" flavor to me has something to do with the brewing process, not the yeast used. Across the board there are very few examples of US made lagers that hold up to fresh German and Czech imports in my opinion, and I imagine a lot of that comes down to process as well.

 

Keep in mind, the definition of ale and lager we use now are born mostly out of convenience and marketing. Not all ales are top fermenting and many can be fermented cool, just as not all lager yeasts are bottom fermenting and some can be fermented warm (steam beer comes to mind). The word lager comes from the process of cold storage and secondary fermentation, and many of the lager yeasts we use now were probably more like today's ale yeasts that adapted to colder fermentation by selective pressure from brewers. Just worry about whether it tastes good or not!

Except for Dead Guy, that's some bullshit for them to call that beer a Maibock.

 

I have noticed this across a variety of lager styles. I, too, suspect it primarily has to do with process...although ingredient choice plays a role in some/many cases as well. Plus there are many people -- drinkers, brewers, and beer competition judges -- who simply don't have first-hand experience drinking classic lagers at the source and instead rely on (frequently incomplete or even misleading) guidelines to form their concept of these beers. But as we all know, theory and reality can often be very divergent.

 

I've had a few higher ABV India Pale Lagers I suspected might have actually ales, particularly when they're from a less reputable brewery. But who knows.

Doppelbocks, for the record, are usually quite fruity; I get a lot of dark fruit tastes out of them. I think it's a product of the malts more than the yeast. Is that the kind of fruitiness you're getting out of Troegenator?

 

I lived in Germany for four years and am often disappointed in American attempts at German styles, but I felt Trogenator was a good Dopplebock and could pass as German.

 

I'm not sure why you got snapped at for asking this question. If this isn't the forum to get ultra-geeky, and discuss the finer points of beer, where can we chat about such things? I not only think the question is intriguing (and you did say, you were just wondering), but informational for those learning about the finer points of ales, lagers, etc. Many of us enjoy the real depth to brewing beer, drinking beer, and all things beer. It's not over-analysis, it's interest.

Anyway, now that my rant is over, I've wondered the same thing, sometimes. But, I think what is really going on is that the brewing world has exploded so much and so many innovations are upon us that we are now seeing more sub-groups and more tastes than ever before. I don't think many brewers would try to pass off an ale as a lager -- if you are getting it cheap than there's certainly no profit in doing so, but I could be wrong.

Off the top of my head, I think when beers are fruitier, for me, it becomes harder for me to tell lager vs ale (in some cases).

I think the only way to solve this is to force brewers to come to our houses and brew for us, let us taste it, and be sure it's right. Is that unreasonable? :-)

 

I get some dark fruit flavors from a lot of Dopplebocks and I think that is just from the malt choices used to make the beer, not necessarily the yeast used. Also, I could see initially lagers costing more for a brewery to make due to the longer fermenting times, but after some growth, they get the same production flow of bottling/canning the beer all the time as an ale. Jack's abby in MA is all lagers, and they started off more expensive selling pints of their beer, then 4 packs of the pints and now they are 6 packs of lagers for around $10 which is all just about building up production and saving money through buying in bulk.

 

Do you find that lagers cost more than ales comparatively? I would say they are pretty equal. I'm at a loss trying to think of a $20/$30/$40 lager, but I can think of many sours in that category.