Pilsner for the People

And I'm loving it!

 

A great Pils is a thing of beauty. Just had a Victory Braumeister Pils the other day to start off a session. One thing that we're not lacking in Western PA is great Pilsner beer, with the likes of Victory, Troegs, and Fatheads all within short distances and Penn and the Hofbrauhaus right in Pittsburgh.

 

I really don't see how Pilsners will be the next trendy style. The majority of beer geeks now love the current trendy styles (fruity/dry hopped sours, juice bomb ipas, adjunct barrel aged stouts) because they have a ton of flavor. While I can definitely appreciate a well made pilsner, and I feel like most other BAs would as well, I don't see a style with very little flavor (comparatively) taking off like the current trendy styles have/did.

 

"But when you blast a Pilsner base beer with Citra, Amarillo, or Mosaic, we can safely say you’ve created something rather un-Pilsner like. Call such creatures India Pale Lagers or just hoppy lagers, but let’s leave Pilsner out of it."

Agreed. Glad to know it's not just me.

"It’s time for Bock, Doppelbock, Helles, Maibock, and others to get some real respect from beer geeks."

Also agreed, but it's a shame that I'm seeing the same blast of those American hops being used to "innovate" Maibocks now, too.

 

Was a time when all I wanted to drink was big Stouts and Barleywines -- fruity estered ales with citrus hop flavors. But I came around to enjoying the subtle nuances of a well-made Helles or Pilsner, so don't count everyone out.

It also doesn't mean I can't still appreciate a big, bold beer, it just means my choices are much wider now.

 

Great pils and lager have tons of flavor; the fresh bready, doughy, hay and grass notes sometimes. And the spicy herbal hops when well done. The flavors just don't smash you over the head. Kinda like the difference between a gorgeous and delicate pinot noir and a big brawny high alcohol zinfandel. Both can be great in different ways, with lots of flavor, subtle and overt.

 

Pilsners have PLENTY of flavor. You just have to pay attention to its nuances instead of being hit over the head with a glass full of obviousness.

I agree that, in their traditional form, they are decidedly NOT going to be the next big beer fad.

 

"I don't have time to look for flavors, brah. I have better things to do with my time."

Turns and enters 20 new beers into Untappd account.

 

In defense of SteveD082791 he did add the caveat "comparatively" to his response. But yeah, you have to want to understand all beers and their characteristics, not just the ones that grab you by the shirt front and scream LOOK AT ME!

 

That last bit's more accurate. It's not necessarily that these other beers have "more" flavors. They just have more obvious ones.

 

I know, that's why I used the pinot noir/zinfandel example. You'll understand that I'm a bit defensive about German and German-style beers in this modern era. Them beers done borned me beer brain!!

 

Below is something I posted discussing Pilsners in a thread entitled Next Hyped Beer Style:

Last summer (2016) I had a series on the weekly New Beer Sunday threads entitled "Summer of Pilsners". During this past winter for a month+ I had a series entitled "Winter of Pilsners".

Over the past couple of years I have seen more and more craft brewed Pilsners on my local beer retailers’ shelves. I am starting to wonder: how many new craft brewed Pilsners can the craft beer market support?

For some reason the words of "hyped" and "Pilsner" just do not seem to go together. Probably because for the hard core beer geeks, lagers are not a cherished type of beer?

Anyhow, I am of the opinion that craft brewed Pilsners will continue to be "popular" for the near futures but I am reluctant to use the word of "hyped" here.

Cheers!

 

I get my wine, spirits, and mainstream beer friends to drink Foothills Torch Pils quite often. They love it and really like the local aspect. We are all so focused on beer around here that we often forget that the great majority of people either like beer or they don't. I haven't meant to prompt them to local, but it really makes a difference to most. Being too strident in advocacy has its perils, and, after all, really, it's just beer. We now have a wonderful local beer culture that I never could have dreamed of 10 years ago.

 

Seeing how there is not 1 Pilsner in the top beers list I guess the "hype" ain't working.

 

Victory Prima Pils is my favorite. Also, Sierra Nevada Nooner.

 

Hard to not like any lager from Victory, but their Pils are not to be missed.

 

I can't wait

 

Great article I hope that the Pils trend really takes off. I've been homebrewing for 18 years. I've brewed and drunk all kinds of styles, and honestly all that I care to brew/drink now are hoppy, juicy pales and IPAs, and lagers. Everything else is sort of back seat, has been for the last few years.

 

This piece also could have been titled, "Get Off My Lawn!"

I'm enjoying some of the newer pils of late, especially the "bastardized" American hop versions. Who cares if it's not brewed to style? Drink what you like.