Italian Pilsner

ABV 4.6-5.3% · IBU 25-50 · SRM 3-4 · Serve 42-45F · Glass Slim tall glass

Identify

Bright gold and clear, under a dense white head that lasts to the bottom of the glass. The smell is the giveaway: fresh cut grass, herbs, lemon peel and white pepper, and it is far louder than any other lager on the bar. Crisp and dry, with a firm bitterness that arrives early and does not hang about. The hop flavour is herbal and peppery rather than fruity or sweet. The finish is clean and it pulls you straight back for the next mouthful.

Place

Lurago Marinone, near Como in northern Italy. Agostino Arioli brewed the first one, Tipopils, at Birrificio Italiano in 1996

Cause

Pale pilsner malt, soft water, noble European hops in the boil, a clean lager yeast, cold fermentation and weeks of cold storage. The beer is fermented out well, which brewers call good attenuation, meaning the yeast ate most of the sugar. That is what makes it dry. None of this is new, and none of it is optional.

Confused with

German Pils, which smells much quieter. Czech Premium Pale Lager, which is fuller and softer. West Coast Pilsner, which uses modern American hops and smells of citrus and pine.

Numbers

An Italian Pilsner is a German Pils that has been dry hopped. Dry hopping means adding hops after the boil, so their smell goes in without any extra bitterness. Almost no traditional lager does this, which is why the glass smells the way it does. Smell it before you drink it, from about an inch above the glass.

Will you like it, Order and Try

The smell of cut grass, or of crushing a basil or mint leaf between your fingers. Lemon zest, and the green herbal side of a gin and tonic. A drink that is genuinely dry and bitter, and that you still want more of. Cold, crisp, refreshing drinks. This one adds a smell to that without adding weight.

Pair, Judge, Myth and Remember

What does not work: rich chocolate, and heavily smoked meat. Both roll straight over the top of it. There is no sweetness or body here to meet them with. Bright gold and clear, under a dense white head that lasts. A loud green smell of grass, herbs and lemon peel. Dry and crisp, with a firm bitterness that lands early and clears.