Like most people my first experience with beer was whatever my dad had in the fridge at the time. In this case Olympia beer out of Washington State circa mid 70's. From then on - it was whatever the freakishly old looking kid from Alta High School could manage to smuggle out of our local "Gas 'n Sip".The one thing all those beers had in common was that they were Pilsner style lagered beers. When I started getting into craft beers everything suddenly shifted. Lagers had all but disappeared from my landscape, replaced by the new and exciting ales. Well new to me.
Then something happened about five years ago. The right lager came along at the right time and changed everything. Suddenly I was right back where I started... well almost.
Why am I boring you with this trip down memory lane, well like me - many new beer enthusiast have forgone their past experiences with "yellow lagers" for the exciting new styles of beer that have crept up in the past decade. And I'm here to tell you the lager is back.
If you want to get re-acquainted to the original pilsner and are looking for that life changing experience that smacked me up side the head then I have a beer for you.
The Bohemian Brewery in Midvale is re-introducing their 1842 Pilsner. 1842 is as faithful a reproduction of the original pils you'll find outside of the Czech Republic
Bohemian's brewers used a special Floor Malted Bohemian Pilsner malt. The process used to produce this malt is very labor intensive and traditional. The produces as an authentic "old" malt as you can find today.
Pours a hazy straw color with a nice, sturdy two fingers of foam. The nose is crisp and clean with nice spicy Saaz hop aromas. Toasted malts are also strong in the background. The taste is pleasantly crisp with a firm Pilsner malt body that lets the spicy hop notes shine in the finish. Well balanced. There are some peppery notes that hang in there for a short time but then leaves the palate clean. Light to medium body, but it does possess a sturdy mouthfeel. It's gentle carbonation makes it feel almost creamy.
This is dangerously drinkable. And will be available on draft today after 6pm only at the brewery. Trust me, if your a fan of the Czech Pils, you'll be in heaven.
1842 won a gold medal weeks after it was originally tapped last year in the Czech style Pils category at NABA.
In closing I have one question for you. "What was your first beer"?
I hope to see you there tonight.
Prost!
11 comments:
Interesting article. I guess I got started with cheap macro pale lagers as well. Keystone mostly. My first two craft beers were bought at a specialty beer shop in a mall in Pittsburgh that is now closed. Why they served a 16 and 15 year old is a good question. I had a Chimay Red and Unibroue Maudite (yeah, I dug that label).
Miller Light. My dad wasn't much of a drinker, but he always bought 24 packs for some reason. In high school, he would always say "have a beer, son." I did not grow up in Utah ;)
Little Kings grenades (7oz bottles)
Oly and Ranier.
Heineken...god i've come a long way.
My buddies dad drank a lot of Hamms, so we did too :)
Miller High Life 32 Ozers, 99 cents, 7-11, circa: 1995. MGD, too. Gawd, I couldn't imagine drinking a "Genuine" now.& PBR. Really, anything I could get my hands on. Oh yeah, and Stroh's! y'know, fire-brewed! plus three for free! a fifteen pack. brilliant. the three that always made me black-out.
To this day I still love Peeb's $ also enjoy a nice High Life everyonce in awhile..
Not sure what my first was. Probably StaroBrno as child in Czechoslovakia. I remember MGD and Budweiser when I first got to the states. My first craft brew was probably a Redhook ESB
Budweiser. My family was centered around St. Louis, so having anything other than Bud or Busch was punishable by beatings with an old hose. I was pretty young when I had my first taste of beer, and not much older when I downed the better part of a can of the Bud.
MGD... When I was in high school my father was the foreman of the lumber yard where I worked during the summers. After we stacked lumber all day my father bought the crew a couple cases. I don't drink much MGD anymore but I'll never forget that Montana summer evening.
The crew laughed at me when I tipped the first one back too fast and it foamed up.
I am in love with this blog. My first beer was nothing but the finest, PBR. Ha! I'm glad those days are over.
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