Boston Beer Co.
Boston, MA
Available: Nationwide
Since 2005 the brewers at Samuel Adams have been offering drinkers a voice in choosing one of the new beers they will introduce in the coming year. This year voters in the 5th annual Samuel Adams Beer Lover’s Choice contest were decisive in choosing Samuel Adams Noble Pils, a hoppy pilsner beer brewed with a recipe that calls for all five varieties of Noble Hops.
ABV: 5.2
ABW: 4.05
Color: 5.5
Bitterness: 34
Original gravity: 1051
Wow and thrice wow—this is some beer. It enjoys five noble hop varieties in the kettle and the result is an extremely bitter interpretation of a pilsner: that’s good at a time when global brewers are endlessly dumbing down their versions of the style. It has a straw color, with spicy and peppery hops on the nose, along with toasted malt and a hint of citrus. Bitter hops dominate the palate, with tart lemon fruit and juicy malt adding character. Lemon fruit and peppery hops build in the finish but there’s a delectable underpinning of toasted malt. It’s superb, a beer that’s all about passion for the product rather than the dreaded “bottom line.”
The beer pours bright gold and stands an impressively sustained fluffy head. The aroma is fresh but muted—a whiff of citrus, a hint of hop, suggestions of sweet biscuity malts underneath. On the palate, the beer shows a gentle but elegantly focused bitterness, a clean, dry center and a long bitter finish. While it isn’t as aromatic as some German versions, it is an admirable edition of a tough style to brew well. It will move easily from your dinner table to your fishing boat. Lobster roll, anyone?
Roger Protz is the author of Complete Guide to World Beer and 300 Beers to Try Before You Die. He is a respected beer authority and editor of the CAMRA Good Beer Guide.
Internationally recognized brewer and expert on traditional beer, Garrett Oliver is the brewmaster of the Brooklyn Brewery and the author of The Brewmaster's Table.
