There is the fear factor as well. I've spent good money on
lagers from breweries that make ales 99% of the time and usually I am left highly
unimpressed. They cannot dry hop or barrel age the malt flavor out of existence
and you are left with crap. There may very well be a haze factory out there that
makes an Oktoberfest that is so good, it would make the most discerning beer
enthusiasts out on the Wiesn cream their Lederhosen. But I am not going to dedicate
a lot of time and effort to sifting and winnowing in order to find a hymen in a
whorehouse.
It's a real shame that the single beer coolers are often
times where old beers are sent out to pasture. I like being able to get a bottle/can
or two for sampling purposes instead of committing to a 4- or 6-pack. This is
especially nice for breweries with which I am nearly or totally unfamiliar. But
there are still fresh or relatively fresh singles to be had in some coolers.
And so it was on a trip to the singles coolers at my local
grocery store. Good City's Pale and India Pale Ales were there flanking a row
of their Pils. So I snagged one of those so I could finally give them a try. It was
canned on 18 November which meant it was less than 2 months old. Not super ultra
mega maxi fresh but still plenty fine.
Pils was surprisingly hazy. With the proliferation of the
Kellerpils, pilsners that aren't crystal clear are no longer novel. I must have
looked silly holding my glass to the light and I felt like the kind of person
Pantone marketers laugh at. Is it a light gold, or more of a darkish yellow? One
of those. My pour didn't produce a big head but the white foam I did get looked
nice while it lasted. While I spied some bubbles inside, I expected more.
Although I was not exactly bowled over by the beer's
appearance, the smells emanating from my glass were wonderful. A strong biscuit
scent was followed by some berry and pear and a faint hint of grass.
Not only did I smell biscuit but my tongue tasted it and the flavor was
very, well, tasty. Perhaps a bit stronger than I'd expect from a pils but delicious
nonetheless. Not surprisingly it had a body that wasn't as light as your normal
pils but it was by no means a particular heavy beer. There was a good level of carbonation
though, as with the bubbles, I'd expect a little more fizz.
For being "assertively hopped", I didn't find it particularly
hoppy. I caught a little berry fruitiness from the Saphir along with a grassy/straw
taste. The expected pepper-like bitterness came on the finish which, with some
fizzy help, made for a decidedly dry experience.
Pils genuinely defied most of my expectations. I expected
clarity and I got haze; I figured there's be a light, crackery malt flavor and
I was given something more like a Helles; I read "assertively hopped"
and found it to be more moderate to my taste. Despite this, I rather enjoyed
Pils. While I would have liked a bit more Noble hop flavor, I felt it had just
the right level of fruitiness. And I really liked the biscuit flavor here.
Think of it in REM terms. With a pils I would expect the jangly
guitars of "Pretty Persuasion" and I instead got the distortion and
chords of "Oddfellows Local 151". Great songs both of them. Pils may
not be what I was expecting but it was still delicious.
Junk food pairing: A fresh take it may be, but it's still a pils
from Milwaukee. This being the case, pair it with some Prime Rib flavored
potato chips. For a real treat, dip them in horseradish sauce.
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