Bayern Brewing Pilsener Lager

According to the Bayern Brewing website, it sounds like this is about as close as you can get to German beer without being in Germany… if you are on the western side of the United States (they are in Missoula, Montana), at least… :)  I bought a sampler 12 pack of their beer from Malt & Vine about a week ago and this is the first one to go on the blog.  After tonight, I am very much looking forward to tasting the other three varieties.

Bayern Brewing Pilsener Lager is a super solid beer.  I would seriously put it up there with some of the finer German beers that we have posted on this blog.  It has a great color, a good head if poured according to the instructions, and a strong but smooth flavor that provides a perfect aftertaste to remind you of that difference between American lager and German lager.

It was great for a relaxing after dinner beer and at 5% it relaxed me just right.

JBB6 Rating: Will Buy Again

Squatters Provo Girl Pilsner

Second Utah Beer of the night brings us a funny name for a beer: Squatters Provo Girl Pilsner.  I wish the taste lived up to the name, but what can I say?  This came in a 12 pack that had 4 different types… Squatters Party in a Box.  A good way to sample the beer from this here brewery, but I hope that the rest come out better. 

Provo Girl is another watered down Utah beer that seems like they are trying too hard to hit the 4.0 ABV.  As my drinking buddy Ryan said tonight, it is kind of like taking your best friend to prom… it might look good on the surface, but you know you aren’t going to really get anything out of it at the end. 

JBB6 Rating: Just Not Right

Pinkus Organic Ur Pils

Ladies and gentlemen, we are 5 for 5… that’s right, 5 of our 5 German beers that we have rated have been Will Buy Again or better.  Tonights wonderful German beer comes to us from Munster, Germany.  A wonderful little town that I have actually been to.  I don’t remember if I had Pinkus beer there, but the food, people, and beer were all very good and I look forward to future return trips.

Pinkus Organic Ur Pils was on the table tonight and appears to be an American version of the Pinkus Original Pils both of which are brought to us by the Pinkus Müller Brewery.  The web site is completely in German, but if you futz around with it enough you can get an idea of what they are all about. 

As far as the beer is concerned, it poors very nice with tight head and milky-cloudy complexion.  The cloudiness comes from the fact that it is unfiltered and actually gives it a bit of a hefeweizen look.  In fact, the taste is hefeweizen-like, as well with fruity undertones.  I tasted a hint of citrus and apricot in my glass.  Overall, this was a super-easy-to-drink beer with clean, crisp, and deep flavor that didn’t dissapoint.  Next time I am in Munster, I have to stop by the brewery and congratulate them on such a fine beer.

JBB6 Rating: For the Win

Pilsner Urquell

Last beer of the night… don’t worry, this was over a 4 hour period, so I was fine when we were done… at least according to Intoximeters Incorporated and their Drink Wheel.  Actually a pretty darn cool site if you ever wanted to test out your limits.

So, Pilsner Urquell… another sprise that it has taken this long to get on the blog since this is one of my all time favorite beers.  The folks at Plzensky Prazdroj bring us this fine libation for year round enjoyment.  The Pilsner Urquell web site, is actually pretty damn cool and provides a fine amount of information on the history of the beer.  I also found out that the head is supposed to be precisely 35mm high… get out your ruler.

As far as flavor goes, Pilsner Urquell lives up to its reputation of being *the* benchmark for other pilsners the world over.  It has a wonderfully light yet full, strong flavor that sits just perfect in your mouth and on your tongue.  It is a as easy to drink as it is to look at and smell, showing off a beautiful golden color… like a field of mature wheat in the afternoon sun. 

There isn’t any other way around it… this is hall of fame material. 

JBB6 Rating: JustBeer Blog Hall of Fame

Just a side note… that is StRoss in the background looking all serious… if he was much of a beer drinker, he would like this beer… I promise.

Tsingtao Beer

Making like Marco Polo, my eastern odyssey continues with a brief stop-over for a pint of product from the Tsingtao Brewery Company of Qingdao, China. And product pure and simple is what this is. Tsingtao beer is made a in factory built by Germans a hundred-something years ago, donated (along with a Pilsner recipe) to the followers of Mao some years later. Apparently this is the top-selling Chinese beer in the U.S.A., accounts for over half of China’s famed beer exports, and is the number one branded consumer good exported from the People’s Republic. Given the size of the US trade deficit, that’s gotta be a heck of a lot of beer.

Anyway, onto the booze - it’s a pleasing lager colour, with a definite lager-like aroma and and a clean lager taste. Actually, it’s got a bit more taste than most domestic US lagers, which makes for an decent change. But in the end, it’s still a fairly plain lager. From a factory. Can you tell I’m having a hard time to find much to say about it? There’s nothing to complain about, but nothing particularly special either.

Sorry Tsingtao, I did want to like you. I’ll drink you again in a restaurant with dinner, or if ever I’m in China, but I don’t think you’ll often find a place in my shopping trolley.

 JBB6 rating: Middle of the Road