The other day, G-LO called to say that he had a couple of Pilsners and wanted to get my impressions of them. While I am not necessarily a fan of Pilsners, I am also not one to turn down an opportunity to duck out of the house … er … to do some in-depth research for the blog, so I quickly headed over for our session. G-LO had picked up four pilsners: The Wright Pils from Great Lakes Brewing Company, the Scrimshaw Pilsner from North Coast Brewing, the Prima Pils from Victory Brewing Company, and the Mama’s Yella Pils from Oskar Blues Brewery.
In reviewing the four pilsners, I found them to have the following characteristics…
|
Pilsner |
The Wright Pils |
Scrimshaw Pilsner |
Prima Pils | Mama’s Yella Pils |
|
Appearance |
Yellow Straw with minimal foam |
A little darker with more foam and lacing |
Lighter than the Wright Pils |
About the same as the Wright Pils with more foam and lacing |
|
Aroma |
Smells like a typical beer; a little malt and then not much else |
Kind of funky; like a glass filled with wet wheat bread and almost no sweetness |
Not much in the way of dough or sweetness but more hops |
Not quite as fragrant as the Prima Pils but a little more than the first two |
|
Taste |
Thin and watery with a doughy sweetness and hints of citrus and hops |
Totally different than I was expecting with an almost Belgian quality to it |
Nice mouthfeel; not as thin as the Wright Pils and more like a Pilsner than the Scrimshaw. A nice blend of malt and hops. |
Good mouthfeel; fizzy with a nice balance of flavors |
| ABV | 5.3% | 4.7% | 5.3% |
5.3% |
Final thoughts…
- The Wright Pils was a respectable entrant but left me wanting a little more. It was good but not great; respectable but unremarkable.
- The Scrimshaw was an entirely different entrant; it is almost a German wheat beer with big hits of citrus and coriander. It was not a Pilsner.
- The Mama’s Yella Pils is a favorite of mine as it comes in a can which makes it pool club portable and is readily available in Southern NJ (especially in the sample pack with the Old Chub).
- I saved my impressions of the Prima Pils for last. This is by far the best of the four that I tasted, and it might be the best Pilsner that I have ever tasted.
Many thanks to my man G-LO for taking time out of his busy day to further my education. I will need to return the favor. Perhaps a pumpkin beer-off?
Categories: Brew Review, Great Lakes, North Coast, Oskar Blues, Victory
AMKrouse
The Alemonger
G-LO
limpd
The Wookie
The ROK
Sarah -BeautifulTangibleThings
The Astounding Prism
It's just the booze dancing... 
Nicely done Limpd! Prima Pils is definitely the best of this lot with Mamma’s Little Pils coming in a close second. I hope Victory decides to start canning the Prima cause this is a beer that I would totally keep on hand year round.
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If you can find it this is an amazing Pilsener. Firestone Walker Pivo Hoppy Pils http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/2210/83473/
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You’re right. It’s fantastic. Reviewed it a few months ago. Here’s the link: https://boozedancing.wordpress.com/2014/03/04/firestone-walker-pivo-hoppy-pilsner/
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Don’t recall any offer to share in a Firestone Walker pilsner. I guess I should be happy with what you shared. And, I will have to look out for the Pivo Happy Pils.
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Mama’s Little Yella Pils is one of my favorite easy drinking beers. Tasty, but not so complex that all I want to do is sit and taste it. Pairs well with food and is just an overall fun little beer. Nice write up 🙂
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Thanks, the writing is a lot easier when you have a number of good beers to write about. Your assessment of the Mama’s Little Yella Pils is spot on. It is a great summer beer!
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Definitely agree – Prima Pils is among my preferred pilsners along with Troegs Sunshine Pils. My favorite, which I had not long ago when I was out of state, was Firewalker’s Pivo Pils.
Unfortunately, I don’t drink this style often, if only for the fact my palate wants big, flavorful food and drink. But a pilsner is surely nice to break up the intensity.
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