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Beer Styles - European Pale Lagers

Styles & Seasonals June 2, 2005      
Written by Oakes


Richmond, CANADA -

Pilsner – This style is quite misunderstood. The first thing I would like to clear up is the notion than mainstream swill beers are pilsners. They are not. Pilsners are bitter, aromatically hoppy beers. The first example of the style was Pilsner Urquell, which to this day remains a hoppy beer. Hops are the signature of the style – the only lager style to focus on the blessed flowers.

For the purposes of classification, there are three pilsner classes listed on Ratebeer. The original class, Bohemian Pilsner; the popular Classic German Pilsner and the generic Pilsner class for all the pilsners that do not meet the specific characteristics of the two main regional branches of the style.

All pilsners are hoppy beers. I set the cutoff at 28IBUs but that is arbitrary so opinions may vary a little bit. I picked that number because the less bitter of all “classic” pilsners, Budweiser Budvar, checks in at 30IBUs and I felt like a couple points worth of leeway was sufficient. Hop flavour and aroma are vital as well. Most examples will use “noble” varieties – the most esteemed continental hops, like Hallertau, Tettnang, Spalt and Saaz.

Malt character varies depending on the substyle, as does colour, though it won’t be darker than deep bronze no matter what. Strength ranges between 4-6%. Very few pilsners are cloudy, but it has been done. It’s just that originally one of the main selling points of the style was its clarity. The finish should be dry. Body can range quite a bit, typically depending on substyle and amount of malt character.

Most popular examples: Victory Prima Pils (USA), Bohemia (Mexico), Christoffel Blond (Netherlands), New Belgium Blue Paddle (USA), Tyskie Gronie (Poland)

Some of my favourites: Christoffel Blond (Netherlands), Victory Prima Pils (USA), ‘t IJ Plzen (Netherlands), Tatran 12 (Slovakia)

Colour: 0.5 – 1.5
Flavour: 1.5 – 4
Sweetness: 0 – 2.5

Bohemian Pilsner – The first pilsner was made in the Bohemian town of Plzen in 1842 and was dubbed Pilsner Urquell. This example is still considered the benchmark for the style, though recent changes at the brewery such as switching from wooden to stainless steel fermenters has had an impact on the quality of the beer. The other benchmark is Budweiser Budvar, which is significantly lighter and represents the opposite end of the style’s spectrum.

Being based mainly on one specific beer, the style has a fairly narrow definition. It is a lager of golden to bronze colour with a rich hop character. The bitterness can go from about 30-45 IBUs. There should be a significant malt presence on the palate – very clean – providing balance and backbone for all the hops. The finish should be dry. The beer should be very clean and smooth, a result of soft water, the refined flavour of Saaz hops and Moravian barley and long lagering times. The Saaz hop is the signature hop for the style, and it would be tough to view a beer as being a Bohemian Pilsner if it were not made exclusively with the Saaz. Alcohol will be on the lower end of the pilsner family, 4.1-4.5%, though some variations are made with slightly lower or higher gravities.

Most popular examples: Pilsner Urquell (Czech Republic), Budweiser Budvar (Czech Republic), Staropramen (Czech Republic), Zlaty Bazant 12 (Slovakia), Radegast (Czech Republic), Kozel Premium Lager (Czech Republic)

Some of my favourites: Nynäshamns Pickla Pils (Sweden), Pilsner Urquell (Czech Republic), Herold Svetle (Czech Republic), Klaster Svetly Special 14 (Czech Republic), Budweiser Budvar (Czech Republic)

Colour: 1 – 2
Flavour: 1.5 – 4
Sweetness: 0.5 – 2.5

Classic German Pilsner – The German variant of the pilsner style differs in a few ways from the Bohemian variant. Most superficially, they use local hops. As brewers tend to do that from time to time, the use of local hops does not constitute a separate style. Hop rates are similar to those of Bohemia, and the range is similar as well. Lagering times are equally lengthy.

The biggest distinguishing factor are the malts. German pilsner is more well-attenuated than Bohemian, resulting in a much diminished malt character, lighter bodies and in many cases higher alcohol as well. The most typical examples of this are found in the north of the country, where beers can be very bitter and hoppy, but have little body, a pallid complexion and a bare minimum of malt character. Bavarian examples tend to straddle the North German and Bohemian styles.

Most popular examples: Warsteiner Premium Verum (Germany), Bitburger (Germany), Jever Pilsner (Germany), St. Pauli Girl (Germany), König Pilsner (Germany)

Some of my favourites: Jever Pilsner (Germany), Moravia Pilsner (Germany), Bitburger (Germany), Åbro Bryggmästarens Bästa Pilsner (Sweden), Pfungstädter (Germany)

Colour: 0 – 1.25
Flavour: 1.25 – 4
Sweetness: 0 – 1.75

Dortmunder/Helles – Two very similar styles, sometimes considered separate styles. I think of them more as twins who were separated at birth, grew up not knowing about one another, only to find themselves sitting side-by-side on the shelf of a beer store.

These are session strength pale lagers, with an emphatic malty accent. Fresh bread is the key here – in both aroma and palate. They are moderately sweet, balanced by subtle noble hops. Dortmunder (also called Export) grew up with a narrow definition, while Helles was a term applied to any pale lager in Bavaria (very few were Pils). If one must make a distinction between the two, consider the following guidelines.

Dortmunders tend to occupy the stronger end of the scale, between 5.2-5.6%, whereas Helles are often lighter, but on occasion do climb into this range. Dortmunders are slightly sweeter, more marshmallowy, while Helles are typically earthier and certainly would be expected to have a drier finish.

Outside of Germany, things get blurrier. Denmark and the Netherlands have adopted the Dortmunder style and made some rather strong examples (towards 8% on occasion). These have to maintain a session character otherwise they become a pale Bock. German brewers have spread across the globe and you find some Helles that are unfiltered, particularly in Asia.

I once wrote that the biggest difference for me between the two was attitude. Dortmund is a working-class city and Dortmunder beer is meant for workers when the day is done. A good example of the style will suit weekdays best. Helles is a Bavarian style, with a greater association to nature and relaxation. Biergartens, patios and parks are the best places for a Helles. This is the beer for the weekend. Kind of hard to quantify, of course, and it may be in my head and mine alone, but to me that sums up the differences between the two.

Ultimately, though the differences are far less significant than the similarities. They are both variations on the same theme, and in a blind test it would be tough to distinguish between them.

Most popular examples: Spaten Premium Lager (Germany), Lowenbrau Original (Germany), Great Lakes Dortmunder Gold (USA), Weihenstephaner Original Mild (Germany), Hacker-Pschorr Edelhell (Germany)

Some of my favourites: Greifenklau Lager (Germany), Sillamäe Muncheni Hele (Estonia), Le Vôtre Yellow (China), Augustiner Lagerbier Hell (Germany), Joker Helles (Russia), Bürgerbrau Wolnzacher Hell (Germany)

Colour: 1 – 2
Flavour: 1.5 – 3
Sweetness: 2.75 – 4

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