Bitburger Premium Pils (4.8%)

Large production German lagers don’t tend to get the respect they deserve. There, I’ve said it, and I mean every damn word!

Beers like Jever, Wernesgruner, and Bitburger, the first owned by Radeberger and the second by Carlsberg, are seldom mentioned in the same respectful tones as are their Czech-brewed contemporaries, such as  Czechvar, Pilsner Urquell, and, for some odd reason, Staropramen, but they are equally solid, reliable, and affordable beers. Especially Bitburger.

While Jever and Wernesgruner may have lost a step or two over the years, particularly Jever, the hoppiness of which I find to be rather toned down from a decade or two ago, I find that Bitburger has stood solidly the test of time. And at its current price point, it also represents very good value for a half-litre .

Now available in a very cool retro-styled can featuring ‘The Connoisseur’ graphic developed in 1929, what is allegedly Germany’s most popular draught beer pours a bright, attractive gold colour topped by a pure white and lasting collar of foam. On the nose, the first impact is of floral hop, along with a hint of graham crackers, followed by a denser, more bready, even a bit caramelly aroma. Most of all, though, it is clean and inviting.

The palate entry offers a touch of cereally sweetness which, while quickly giving way to a drier and more bitter hop character, persists to some degree throughout the flavour, balancing what could otherwise become an overly assertive astringency. As for that hoppiness, it arrives in full glory on the mid-palate, at first floral, then spicy and a bit metallic, and finally bittering and drying in harmony on a finish that is quenching, appetizing, and lingering.

While hardly the most complex pale lager you’re likely to come across, Bitburger definitely is what it intends to be, specifically a flavourful, satisfying, and quenching can of beer.

84 ($2.89 - $3.15/500 mL)