Is the Helles style making a craft comeback?

Yeah, I saw that discussion. I don't know what they use for malts, but maybe that's it. I have used Avangardm BestMalz and Weyermann and I've been happy with all three. For whatever reason (malt type, FG, BU:GU, et al) that beer is not my favorite.

 

I'm not in agreement with many others here and I had fresh House Lager for the first time recently and really enjoyed it. And the six 16 oz beers were well priced too.

 

From sleuthing social media, it looks like they get their malt from Stone Path, who in turn is partnered with some German companies. https://stonepathmalt.com/about-us/

 

I don't think I have noticed any increase in Helles offerings, beyond the norm. I think lager in general is making a bit of a comeback, but not particular to the Helles.

Locally, Fat Head's offered a Helles (Starlight Lager) last year in cans. It didn't sell well at all, so it was discontinued after one year. Bummer, as it was a stellar example and was always super fresh.

Speaking of Kolsch, I'd like to see some better Kolsch. So many breweries offer it, yet I'd say most miss the mark compared to what is produced in Cologne. While I have been fortunate enough last year to enjoy it at the source, even the fresh imports have been just as good. Some recent Fruh and Gaffel I have bought is surprisingly fresh, with no oxidation character present. When I drink those and compare against a domestic offering, it's day and night. The nuisances and malt character in the imports as at another level, IMO. Again, when you can find it fresh which is quite the task. Thankfully, some local import shops around me keep their inventory low and go through quite a bit, so it's always rotating and all their beer is kept cold which is not common for many places holding such imports.

Most 'domestic' Kolsch are good for beer, but don't exactly meet that Kolsch excellence if that makes sense. As with Helles, extremely technical driven. The difference between sub-par and stellar examples for both are found in small, yet very important technique. From oxygen mitigation, conversion rests, fermentation techniques/process, balance, etc...

Helles/Kolsch that misses the mark (ignoring flaws) are often still fine beers... Perhaps boring on the palate, uninteresting. But find well made examples and honestly, I personally don't think beer can get any better.

 

From Helles itself...

 

Post Shift is likely a better beer but along the same lines, Pearl brewed this discount brand with a similar themed name:

 

koelsch-style is *such* a difficult style to get just like it is at the source. maybe the most difficult of all. we stopped brewing ours year-round bc we felt the drop-off after a certain amount of time -- combined with mishandling/mispouring/etc at outside establishments -- just didn't do it justice at all. now it's a summer seasonal exclusively, and we plan to serve at the source by gravity barrel and into stangen...while ultra-fresh only. won't even be sending any back out into distribution. we likely will still keg some up to dispense by CO2 at the pop-up biergartens, and/or maybe crowler up some stuff (esp given that the pandemic has forced us into that revenue channel), but that's really about as far as we'll stray.

our helles holds up better over time/across different modes of serving/etc. we have started employing low-DO methods on the hot side, and we really feel this has made a difference.

 

JA pricing is great. A six pack of copper legend pounders may be the best beer deal going.

 

I had a Kölsch from a local brewery last weekend that was outstanding. Freshly filled crowler straight from the brewery. 100% Weyermann Cologne Malt and Hallertau Mittelfrüh, because if it's made properly that's all it needs. Simple and clean yet full of flavor. It was one of the best beers I've had in recent memory.

 

Unfortunately many of the retailers around me who sold JA no longer do and those that still do cut back what they carry but I will be on the lookout. The store I bought the House Lager at, that was the only beer of theirs that they had on the shelf at the time. I'm assuming because we have so many local Lager options that sell really well JA just wasn't selling...it was a noticeable change, I used to be able to get many of their beers at multiple stores.

 

We only get them quarterly. So they move well

 

Yeah Red Tape is great. It was also the first beer they brewed (hence the name). Loved Saxony too, sadly it was replaced by a hoppy lager.

They decoction mash, not sure if it’s for all of their lagers though. I agree though, my anecdotal experience is the local breweries that do this tend to bring out those melanoidin characters in the malt profiles that I don’t get from the ones that don’t.

 

I think at 12.6% plato it's apparent that they are aiming for something apart from a regular circa 11.5%-11.8% Helles. In Bavaria I think a similar beer would be likely labeled as Spezial, or Export, or something or other denoting it as a specialty brand compared with the brewery's own Helles brand. I could see House Lager being maltier and sweeter than a strongly attenuated lower gravity regular Helles for that reason.

Speaking of Helles this article from 1984 by Ludwig Narziss had a nice table on page 355 with examples of circa 11.5% plato light (colored) beers, showing differences in IBUs, mashing process and malt compositions.

 

I hope to see more American breweries concentrate on the Helles style. Many of finest examples are still brewed in Germany, i.e., Weihenstephaner, Hofbrau, and Paulaner. Unfortunately, it is often difficult to find these fine products fresh. Schlafly Summer lager is actually a pretty good interpretation, and I hope to see Oskar Blue's version.

 

I hope Helles style is making a comeback. I have seen a recent trend in them recently as well. Maybe people are catching onto the fact that German lagers are complex and underrated. I would further advocate for revitalizing the Kellerbier/Zwickel category. It is similar to a Helles and my favorite style right now.