Thursday 11 December 2008

Attack of the Münchens

This is my first dip-of-the-toe into the usually unwelcoming (for me) waters of lager and I'm not looking forward to it all that much.

I have a bit of a loathe-hate relationship with lager, having had way too much of it in my youth thinking it was exotic and continental before feeling distinctly cheated when I found out it was all mostly brewed in Faversham, Kent. Cheated and bloated. Cheated, bloated and flatulent.

Now I know there are some good examples of Pilsener-style brews out there and that they're not all the same, etc. But I can barely bring myself to touch them these days and, if forced, I really have to hold my nose to get the stuff down my gullet.

This one's an Oktoberfestbier, so it's a little bit stronger than the average premium lager, but in my experience, that usually means it tastes worse.

In short, I'm having real difficultly getting all that excited about this one.

Beer: Augustinerbrau Oktoberfestbier
Country: Germany
Strength: 6%
Colour: Like lager, so child's piss coloured and dismal.
Smell: Disappointingly lager-like.
Circumstance: At the end of a relatively stressful day spent grappling with uppity upstart clients and before going out on the razz to the Jerusalem Tavern in Clerkenwell.
Tasting notes: As lagers go, this isn't bad. It's a bit like refreshers to begin with and is withouth the tinny chemical squeaky cleanness of some lagers I could mention. It also delivers a small, bud-like floweriness in the middle, but the flavour drains away quickly after that and you're left with an unsatisfying feeling that someone's relieved themselves in your mouth. Still, having said that, it's streets ahead of any lager you'd be able to buy in a pub over here, so if drinking bright yellow, fizzy, unexceptional beer is your bag, go for this one.
Drinkability: All right, I suppose, but I just wouldn't want any more than one. Even on a sunny day.
Gut reaction: Belching already after only a few sips. Doubtless I'll have to walk it off after I finish the lot. N.B. I'm not leaving any.
Session factor: Bit strong for that, even if you were up for drinking a load. I hope I wasn't persuaded to buy more of these, although I can't remember now, so there could be another lurking in the calendar.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

Fair points.. I guess... but living in a country with no ale available has made me appreciate the yellow stuff.