#saaz hops

New Year, New Beer! For the next week’s worth or so of blogs I’m going to write about beer from breweries I have never tried before. Czechvar is the original Budweiser and is a much better beer than the American version (probably because there are no adjuncts like rice!). You can still find this beer branded as Budweiser in Europe but in the United States they had to come up with a new name so Czechvar it is. This is a crisp, clean beer that still has a lot of flavor for a lighter brew. Artesian water and Saaz hops undoubtedly help create this. There’s a hint of yeast and lemon as well as an understated hop bitterness. A little skunkiness comes through but it’s less than a lot of other Euro-lagers have. I’d drink this again but I would never choose to drink the swill that stole the name Budweiser.   

This Czech-style pils is called Shower Beer so naturally I had to drink it in the shower. Do I recommend drinking beer in the shower? Not so much. It’s kind of distracting. That being said, Shower Beer from Champion of Charlottesville, VA (not even going to go into the recent events there though suffice it to say my opinion of humanity is at a low point) is a good beer. It’s only 4.5 percent ABV but packs in a lot of flavor. It’s quite a hoppy pilsner and that comes from the bright Saaz hops. There’s a bready and yeasty malt backbone that definitely tastes “European.” It’s probably be a good beer for other watery activities too, like the pool, the lake or the river.  

The Heart Lies Because It Must ...a dark lager, Czech-style, with Saaz hops.  By Resident Culture.

Down with it? Yeah, you know me.