Let's Give Lagers Some Love (2024)

I'll be real, I used to stomp my feet on the regular here on BA about how lagers were overlooked and under appreciated. I yearned to see them have more shelf space and taps. My wish has now come true as it seems like just about every brewery is throwing some kind of Helles or Pils out there. Unfortunately, many of them aren't very good. But I definitely don't want to go back to the under-appreciated lager days either. Oh well.

Luckily, I live near Jack's Abby, Notch, Schilling, and Fox Farm, all of whom absolutely kill it in the lager game.

 

I'm with you. Most random American lagers aren't great...but with that flood we've gotten some full-on world class examples, too. Some are just as good as the old world stuff. The catch is that most tend to be regionally isolated with limited distribution. At least in my area the imported lager selection has suffered a bit as a result, too. My local stores have dialed back their import selection by a lot...and/or they've just started carrying twice as much Modelo to fill in those extra doors/shelves. I wouldn't want it to go back, but it's not exactly a perfect scenario, either.

 

Let me check my stash -- Dunkel, Rauchbier, Doppelbock, one last Märzen and a case of Pilsner. Okay, I'm in.

(nevermind the Oatmeal Stout and Pale Ale -- for now. )

 

Been enjoying a lot of Illinois and Wisconsin brewed lagers lately -- no corn involved.

3 of the above mentioned by me are Illinois and Wisconsin brewed.

 

In Southern California Enegren , Two Coast and Firestone Walker are kings.

Moonlight is ok but their prices are laughable.

 

Had this American Lager last night. Nothing special, but not too bad at all.

 

there are now too many appreciation threads

 

This past Saturday I attended the annual German Bierfest in Philly and there were many lagers served there that I loved, both German imports and locally produced lagers from craft breweries.

Did somebody request photos?

• Weihenstephaner Vitus
• Andechs Doppelbock
• Bitburger Winterbock

All three of these beers were delicious.

A local brewery, Mainstay, also had two beers served via cask: Helles and Poplar Pils. The Poplar Pils was excellent.

Prost!

 

Maybe that's why the OP switched it to "Give ____ Some Love "?

What, no " chili "?

 

I, for one, love lagers because they’re typically served in liquid form, making them relatively easy drinking and thirst quenching. Not always, of course, but often enough! Plus, many lagers I’ve tried contain alcohol, which I’ve found sometimes relaxes me. Wish I was drinking a lager now!

 

Since we're hugging lagers right now, I'd like to know opinions on who the best craft lager brewer is in the US? I mentioned a few of my favorites above (Notch, Schilling, Jack's Abby, and Fox Farm). I'll take Fox Farm out of it because they aren't lager-centric like the other three are. It's hard for me to pick just one of those, as they do so much that I love. Gun to my head, I'd probably say Notch even though Jack's Abby has been the focus of my love for so, so long.