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24-12-2022, 11:21
Visit the Fuggled site (http://www.fuggled.net/2022/12/fuggled-beers-of-year-pale.html)
As a fortnight of time off from the day jobs hoves into view, replete with weekday, and day time, drinking, it is time to look back at the best of the beers I have drunk in 2022. As in years past I plan to write a post each based on the capricious whimsy of colour, and then a final "best of' post to declare the Fuggled Beer of 2022.
My capricious whimsy of colour breaks down as follows:
Pale - basically anything yellow or gold
Darker than Pale, Lighter than Dark Brown - orange, red, brown, but able to be seen through
Dark - very dark brown, or black
As usual I will offer up the highlights from Virginia, the rest of the USA, and the rest of the World, 3 finalists each, and honorable mentions where called for, culminating in a category winner, to go forward for the beer of the year post.
Let's get started with the pales then.
Virginia
Krypto Pilsner - Decipher Brewing, Charlottesville
Found Artifacts Pilsner - Wheatland Spring Brewing, Waterford
Grill Method Grodziskie - Decipher Brewing, Charlottesville
Honorable mentions: Pylon Pilsner - Patch Brewing Company, Gordonsville; Downright Pilsner - Port City Brewing, Alexandria; Weekland Lager - Alewerks Brewing, Williamsburg.
Despite the fact that I am a terrible beer tourist, as I have openly admitted elsewhere, this year has actually been one with lots of new to me breweries, in most cases as a result of trading beers with fellow local beer fans. It was such a trade that brought Wheatland Spring into my beery orbit, a trade which included Found Artifacts, an unfiltered pilsner that rocked my socks off and I wished there had been more than a single can of in the trade, Even though that one can is the sum total of my Found Artifacts drinking in 2022, it was enough to be seared into my memory as the Virginian Pale Beer of the Year.
Rest of the USA
Malý 8° - Schilling Brewing, Littleton, NH
Herald 12° - Cohesion Brewing, Denver, CO
Kellerpils - TRVE Brewing, Denver, CO
Honorable mentions: Helles - Bierstadt Brewing, Denver, CO; Alexandr - Schilling Brewing, Littleton, NH; Paulus - Schilling Brewing, Littleton, NH; Bavarian Pilsner - Von Trapp Brewing, Stowe, VT; Helles - Von Trapp Brewing, Stowe VT; Pilz - Live Oak Brewing, Austin, TX; Pull - Columbia Craft Brewing, Columbia, SC; Captain Jack Pilsner - Olde Mecklenburg Brewing, Charlotte, NC.
2022 picked up and ran with where 2021 left off in terms of being a stellar year for pale lagers from the rest of the US. The list of honorable mentions alone has several of my favourite beers missing, as well as several beers from breweries that make up a regularish part of my drinking. Imagine then just how difficult it is to separate the three finalists. Each of the beers in the top three I enjoyed on tap in their respective tap rooms, and even on that front it would be near impossible to choose a taproom I for singular praise, they were all wonderful places. Choose though I must, and so the Fuggled USA Pale Beer of 2022 is Schilling's magnificent Malý 8°, an 8° Plato pale lager with more flavour, complexity, nuance, and sheer delight in drinking than the vast majority of stronger beers on the market today, There is a reason I traipsed 2 cases worth home to Virginia.
Rest of the World
Tannenzäpfle - Badische Staatsbrauerei Rothaus, DE
Zwickel Pilsner - Radeberger Exportbierbrauerei, DE
Hirter Privat Pils - Brauerei Hirt, AT
Honorable mentions: Organic Lager - Samuel Smiths Brewery, UK; Icelandic White Ale - Einstök Ölgerđ, IS
With such a wealth of US made pale lagers on the shop shelves these days, it is almost a wonder that international beers even get a look in. Having said that, we get Rothaus Tannenzäpfle on tap fairly often, and the Radeberger Zwickel Pilsner I picked up recently was unexpectedly lovely. However, Austria's Brauerei Hirt showed up at Beer Run not too long ago. Intrigued, I picked up a 4 pack as it seems that Austrian made pilsners hit my sweet spot, combining the bitterness of a southern German pilsner with the fuller malt body of a Bohemian. Hirter Privat Pils is thus a worth winner of the International Pale Beer of 2022.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiga9dpuIWCi37JNjVBVOfQC-60FbQ1SwzaO3_wBnxIYeW0-TCrEFspy3upX2xTSwdfFbbHO6bgaZFAZ7YvX8UWpG7kzs6dBCJ Vk15QMJVZ9jpuup769t67U6aVwOqqLqhXHi2aoq7QACA0E2mzF 2QxpNZFZlPDbOA6SD1jmzPjrnzabG0ud27bB_VU/w114-h200/20220618_171005.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiga9dpuIWCi37JNjVBVOfQC-60FbQ1SwzaO3_wBnxIYeW0-TCrEFspy3upX2xTSwdfFbbHO6bgaZFAZ7YvX8UWpG7kzs6dBCJ Vk15QMJVZ9jpuup769t67U6aVwOqqLqhXHi2aoq7QACA0E2mzF 2QxpNZFZlPDbOA6SD1jmzPjrnzabG0ud27bB_VU/s2047/20220618_171005.jpg) https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnk1vS0LOAsFb0O6GMH0FZUy5IBs4-cIvcJwW0Le8meZnrj8gadP5HI1Sp2BhH2zUI5EqMqm9gaXoJ1O WtFzp_CTXEz7KhyaClaz1id_yIw9gFE_QCo9FSKSMOaASp9ekI upryHvdk6dws7Nac-dk0WmXH2i-24XGlmd6hXBmFNL89WRI313iZL4yZ/w200-h200/20220406_160650.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnk1vS0LOAsFb0O6GMH0FZUy5IBs4-cIvcJwW0Le8meZnrj8gadP5HI1Sp2BhH2zUI5EqMqm9gaXoJ1O WtFzp_CTXEz7KhyaClaz1id_yIw9gFE_QCo9FSKSMOaASp9ekI upryHvdk6dws7Nac-dk0WmXH2i-24XGlmd6hXBmFNL89WRI313iZL4yZ/s1800/20220406_160650.jpg) https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSI4ivY4H0Szj-mcKLCMvgEZy3y0pJtUcDt0B9GP1y-iuK1oBIb24jf1ihmp47hbsH4eCKjcMjCndqMOdCnQrhQKJzb1v 411gCJQu9D5ukz3-KaOZmw_yLATlhRbJZFPxLEwsF20O1jkNo-wlf2c3ChjzW7gcCQ5hGgO6zLI_j6YLiby3M0CbchdL-/w90-h200/20220702_163201.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSI4ivY4H0Szj-mcKLCMvgEZy3y0pJtUcDt0B9GP1y-iuK1oBIb24jf1ihmp47hbsH4eCKjcMjCndqMOdCnQrhQKJzb1v 411gCJQu9D5ukz3-KaOZmw_yLATlhRbJZFPxLEwsF20O1jkNo-wlf2c3ChjzW7gcCQ5hGgO6zLI_j6YLiby3M0CbchdL-/s4000/20220702_163201.jpg)
Three simply magnificent beers, each of which would grace the tap list of the greatest beer bars of the world, but in the words of the Highlander, there can be only one. That winner then, whilst not being the reason I persuaded Mrs V and my best mate that a 4 hour drive to another state for a day trip to the town the brewery is in, it was definitely the highlight of the day. Huzzah then for Schilling Beer Co. and their majestic Malý, the Fuggled Pale Beer of 2022.
More... (http://www.fuggled.net/2022/12/fuggled-beers-of-year-pale.html)
As a fortnight of time off from the day jobs hoves into view, replete with weekday, and day time, drinking, it is time to look back at the best of the beers I have drunk in 2022. As in years past I plan to write a post each based on the capricious whimsy of colour, and then a final "best of' post to declare the Fuggled Beer of 2022.
My capricious whimsy of colour breaks down as follows:
Pale - basically anything yellow or gold
Darker than Pale, Lighter than Dark Brown - orange, red, brown, but able to be seen through
Dark - very dark brown, or black
As usual I will offer up the highlights from Virginia, the rest of the USA, and the rest of the World, 3 finalists each, and honorable mentions where called for, culminating in a category winner, to go forward for the beer of the year post.
Let's get started with the pales then.
Virginia
Krypto Pilsner - Decipher Brewing, Charlottesville
Found Artifacts Pilsner - Wheatland Spring Brewing, Waterford
Grill Method Grodziskie - Decipher Brewing, Charlottesville
Honorable mentions: Pylon Pilsner - Patch Brewing Company, Gordonsville; Downright Pilsner - Port City Brewing, Alexandria; Weekland Lager - Alewerks Brewing, Williamsburg.
Despite the fact that I am a terrible beer tourist, as I have openly admitted elsewhere, this year has actually been one with lots of new to me breweries, in most cases as a result of trading beers with fellow local beer fans. It was such a trade that brought Wheatland Spring into my beery orbit, a trade which included Found Artifacts, an unfiltered pilsner that rocked my socks off and I wished there had been more than a single can of in the trade, Even though that one can is the sum total of my Found Artifacts drinking in 2022, it was enough to be seared into my memory as the Virginian Pale Beer of the Year.
Rest of the USA
Malý 8° - Schilling Brewing, Littleton, NH
Herald 12° - Cohesion Brewing, Denver, CO
Kellerpils - TRVE Brewing, Denver, CO
Honorable mentions: Helles - Bierstadt Brewing, Denver, CO; Alexandr - Schilling Brewing, Littleton, NH; Paulus - Schilling Brewing, Littleton, NH; Bavarian Pilsner - Von Trapp Brewing, Stowe, VT; Helles - Von Trapp Brewing, Stowe VT; Pilz - Live Oak Brewing, Austin, TX; Pull - Columbia Craft Brewing, Columbia, SC; Captain Jack Pilsner - Olde Mecklenburg Brewing, Charlotte, NC.
2022 picked up and ran with where 2021 left off in terms of being a stellar year for pale lagers from the rest of the US. The list of honorable mentions alone has several of my favourite beers missing, as well as several beers from breweries that make up a regularish part of my drinking. Imagine then just how difficult it is to separate the three finalists. Each of the beers in the top three I enjoyed on tap in their respective tap rooms, and even on that front it would be near impossible to choose a taproom I for singular praise, they were all wonderful places. Choose though I must, and so the Fuggled USA Pale Beer of 2022 is Schilling's magnificent Malý 8°, an 8° Plato pale lager with more flavour, complexity, nuance, and sheer delight in drinking than the vast majority of stronger beers on the market today, There is a reason I traipsed 2 cases worth home to Virginia.
Rest of the World
Tannenzäpfle - Badische Staatsbrauerei Rothaus, DE
Zwickel Pilsner - Radeberger Exportbierbrauerei, DE
Hirter Privat Pils - Brauerei Hirt, AT
Honorable mentions: Organic Lager - Samuel Smiths Brewery, UK; Icelandic White Ale - Einstök Ölgerđ, IS
With such a wealth of US made pale lagers on the shop shelves these days, it is almost a wonder that international beers even get a look in. Having said that, we get Rothaus Tannenzäpfle on tap fairly often, and the Radeberger Zwickel Pilsner I picked up recently was unexpectedly lovely. However, Austria's Brauerei Hirt showed up at Beer Run not too long ago. Intrigued, I picked up a 4 pack as it seems that Austrian made pilsners hit my sweet spot, combining the bitterness of a southern German pilsner with the fuller malt body of a Bohemian. Hirter Privat Pils is thus a worth winner of the International Pale Beer of 2022.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiga9dpuIWCi37JNjVBVOfQC-60FbQ1SwzaO3_wBnxIYeW0-TCrEFspy3upX2xTSwdfFbbHO6bgaZFAZ7YvX8UWpG7kzs6dBCJ Vk15QMJVZ9jpuup769t67U6aVwOqqLqhXHi2aoq7QACA0E2mzF 2QxpNZFZlPDbOA6SD1jmzPjrnzabG0ud27bB_VU/w114-h200/20220618_171005.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiga9dpuIWCi37JNjVBVOfQC-60FbQ1SwzaO3_wBnxIYeW0-TCrEFspy3upX2xTSwdfFbbHO6bgaZFAZ7YvX8UWpG7kzs6dBCJ Vk15QMJVZ9jpuup769t67U6aVwOqqLqhXHi2aoq7QACA0E2mzF 2QxpNZFZlPDbOA6SD1jmzPjrnzabG0ud27bB_VU/s2047/20220618_171005.jpg) https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnk1vS0LOAsFb0O6GMH0FZUy5IBs4-cIvcJwW0Le8meZnrj8gadP5HI1Sp2BhH2zUI5EqMqm9gaXoJ1O WtFzp_CTXEz7KhyaClaz1id_yIw9gFE_QCo9FSKSMOaASp9ekI upryHvdk6dws7Nac-dk0WmXH2i-24XGlmd6hXBmFNL89WRI313iZL4yZ/w200-h200/20220406_160650.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnk1vS0LOAsFb0O6GMH0FZUy5IBs4-cIvcJwW0Le8meZnrj8gadP5HI1Sp2BhH2zUI5EqMqm9gaXoJ1O WtFzp_CTXEz7KhyaClaz1id_yIw9gFE_QCo9FSKSMOaASp9ekI upryHvdk6dws7Nac-dk0WmXH2i-24XGlmd6hXBmFNL89WRI313iZL4yZ/s1800/20220406_160650.jpg) https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSI4ivY4H0Szj-mcKLCMvgEZy3y0pJtUcDt0B9GP1y-iuK1oBIb24jf1ihmp47hbsH4eCKjcMjCndqMOdCnQrhQKJzb1v 411gCJQu9D5ukz3-KaOZmw_yLATlhRbJZFPxLEwsF20O1jkNo-wlf2c3ChjzW7gcCQ5hGgO6zLI_j6YLiby3M0CbchdL-/w90-h200/20220702_163201.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSI4ivY4H0Szj-mcKLCMvgEZy3y0pJtUcDt0B9GP1y-iuK1oBIb24jf1ihmp47hbsH4eCKjcMjCndqMOdCnQrhQKJzb1v 411gCJQu9D5ukz3-KaOZmw_yLATlhRbJZFPxLEwsF20O1jkNo-wlf2c3ChjzW7gcCQ5hGgO6zLI_j6YLiby3M0CbchdL-/s4000/20220702_163201.jpg)
Three simply magnificent beers, each of which would grace the tap list of the greatest beer bars of the world, but in the words of the Highlander, there can be only one. That winner then, whilst not being the reason I persuaded Mrs V and my best mate that a 4 hour drive to another state for a day trip to the town the brewery is in, it was definitely the highlight of the day. Huzzah then for Schilling Beer Co. and their majestic Malý, the Fuggled Pale Beer of 2022.
More... (http://www.fuggled.net/2022/12/fuggled-beers-of-year-pale.html)