I picked this one not
because I heard good things about it but because it is regarded as
the quintessential cheap beer/Pils in Germany. It's aroma shows
sulfur (not DMS but the rotten egg kind) and some hops. I never got
sulfur in any of the beers I had so far. Except for a beer sample at
the Bavarian Brewing Museum. But that was basically home brewed
on-site even though I though they should be able to do better. Sulfur
in a lager means that the beer was rushed.
A hop flavor is present in
the start all the way through the finish. The interesting thing is
that the bitterness shows itself again a while after swallowing. It
doesn't linger for very long and isn't very strong either, but that
reappearing of the bitterness wasn't anything I had with any of the
other Pils type beers. The mouthfeel of this beer is thin. It is
almost watery in its finish. Doubtful that the brewer invested for
any more than Pilsner malt and a very short mashing schedule. The
taste is also rather bland. This beer is also known for a high level
of fusels from an accelerated fermentation at higher temperatures.
But I don't taste any of these higher alcohols. A headache after a
night of drinking this beer would tell, but I'm not about to put this
to the test.
Another beer that I had
when visiting Bamberg. Its aroma has a touch of a floral character to
it. Almost like American C-hops though I doubt that any of them were
used. It starts slighly malty but still bitter enough to be
considered balanced towards the hops. This bitterness lingers into
the finish more than for the other southern German Pils style beers I
had so far. But I wouldn't consider the finish as being dry. It has a
medium mouthfeel and an almost sweet hop taste like an APA.
Well done Pils, but I was
bothered by the lingering bitterness. To this point I'm not sure if
this is a sign of just more hops or poor craftsmanship. It somewhat
had the character of a common homebrewed Pilsner.
Hartmann Pilsner on Ratebeer.com
This is one of the beers I
had at the Hopfenmuseum Tettnang (hop museum Tettnang). It is brewed
with only Tettnanger aroma hops. While intended to be a showcase of
Tettnang hops, it has only a slight hop aroma, even once the head
subsided and the beer is sloshed a little. This is evidence, that
even the hop dominated beers in Germany, like German Pils, have a hop
aroma that is less than the common American pale ale. The hop
bitterness is fairly assertive all the way through and lingers more
than the other Pils type beers I had so far. I'm unsure if this is
due to a higher bitterness content or differences in the brewing
process. There is only a slight hop taste as know from a pale ale or
IPA and even compared to some other German Pils beers. It has a dry
finish. The beer seems neither sweet or malty.
Meckatzer Pils on Meckatzer.de
A Kellerbier is an
unfiltered beer that is sometimes also served with lower carbonation.
This one was fully carbonated. There was only little aroma to it but
most of it only after the head subsided a little. The bitterness
dominates and feels rather harsh. It also lingers longer than it did
for the other Pils beers I had so far including the Meckatzer and
Hartmann. There is a relatively strong hop taste which seems to come
from both the hop aromatics and the hop material (a little grassy).
Malt character is very low and overshadowed by the hops.
This beer is very close to
a common home brewed pils, but I don't think that the bitterness
should be as harsh as it is.
Brewery: Gasthas zur Krone, Tettnang, Germany
Stammwuerze: 11.8 % (or Plato)
Alcohol: 4.7 % abv
Final extract: 2.9 % (or Plato)
Apparent Attenuation: 75 %
Tettnager Keller Pils at krone-tettnang.de
The aroma showed a medium
strong noble hop aroma, which is more than most Pilsners I had. A
malty sweet start is accompanied by by a medium bitterness (for Pils
standards) which lingers a little after the finish. The mouthfeel is
more than medium. The malty sweetness might actually be some Munich
or crystal malt given the slightly darker color of this beer. It is
not a sugary sweetness, just more malt character that balances the
hops.
This is the kind of
Pilsner I like. Bitter and hop forward enough to show that it is a
Pilsner, yet a little more malt character to make the taste more
interesting.
This beer showed very nice
lacing, which was more pronounced than for most of the other beers
that I had so far.
Brewery: Allgaeuer
Brauhaus, Kempten, Germany
Stammwuerze: 11.3 % (or
Plato)
Alcohol: 4.8 % abv
Final Extract: 2.3 % (or
Plato)
Apparent Attenuation: 80 %
Yet another college time
favorite. A very subtle hop aroma is followed by a malty sweet taste.
It is sweeter than the Teutsch Pils that I had first, but not as
munich malt like. It seems that this sweetness is more the result of
a large content of unfermented fermentable sugars. But the sweetness
is far from being cloying though. The bitterness is mild and doesn't
linger much. I assume that to be a result of creating a low
bitterness mass marketed Pilsner. There is some hop flavor as well.
I find this a rather mild
Pilsner and prefer the more hop forward character of the Teutsch Pils
from Allgaeuer Brauhaus.
Brewery: Badeberger
Exportbierbrauerei, Radeberg bei Dresden, Germany
Stammwuerze: 11.4 %
(or Plato)
Alcohol: 4.8 % abv
Final Extract: 2.3
% (or Plato)
Apparent Attenuation:
80%
A version bought in the US doesn't seem as sweet and the bitterness seems stronger and lingers longer. The beer seems drier compared to the one I had in Germany. It doesn't seem to be the same beer that I remember from about 6 weeks ago.
The aroma is a mix of a
slight noble hop aroma and a slight malt sweetness. A sweet start is
immediately followed by a nice bitterness that is not assertive but
distinct and lingers a little. The mouthfeel is above medium. The hop
taste is only subtle and one has to look for it.
Brewery: Gottmannsgruener
Familienbrauerei, Gottmannsgruen, Franken, Germany
The aroma shows some noble
hop character but is otherwise neutral. The beer tastes neither sweet
nor dry and its bitterness is delicate and noticeable right from the
start. The hop taste is also low and the bitterness lingers only a
little. Based on the bitterness it could be a Helles but the hop
character still dominates this beer. The mouthfeel is well above
medium and almost full. No significant malt taste other than pilsner
malt.
Brewery: Radeberger
Gruppe, Krostrizer Brauerei, Krostiz bei Leipzig, Germany
Stammwuerze: 11.7% (or
Plato)
Alcohol: 5.0 % abv
Final Extract: 2.3 % (or
Plato)
Apparent Attenuation: 80%
Ur-Krostizer at
krostizer.de
This one was serve to me
in a stoneware mug. So I didn't get a picture of it and had to use
the picture from the Brewery's website
The aroma is slightly
hoppy with a hint of malt sweetness. The beer has little malt
character and is fairly dry. That is followed by a medium strong
taste of hops that feels more harsh when compared to other Pils
beers. This is most likely because this beer is indeed more bitter
than other Pils beers I had so far. The bitterness also lingers more.
The mouthfeel is thin.
Being drier and more
bitter, I would consider this a northern German Pils.
Brewery: Krombacher
Brauerei Bernhard Schadeberg GmbH & Co. KG , Kreuztal
Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany
The aroma is clean without any
significant hop or malt presence. The taste starts dry and is
finished by a slight hop taste. The bitterness is dominant but not
assertive yet and lingers medium long, which is longer than for most
other Pilsner that I tasted. The beer is fairly dry in general and
its mothfeel is below the Pilsner average. There is no significant
malt taste.
Fairly thin, little taste and then
lingering bitterness, that's what I remember from this beer.
Brewery: Berliner – Kindl – Schultheiss – Brauerei GmbH, Berlin, Germany
Stammwuerze: 11.7 % (or Plato)
Alcohol: 5.1 % abv
Final extract: 2.1 % (or Plato)
Apparent Attenuation: 82 %
Berliner Kindl Pils on berliner-kindl.de
