All pilsners are lagers, but not all lagers are pilsners. This is because the pilsner is a style of pale lager. The pilsner is a great choice to drink any time of the year because of its floral hoppy flavor and crisp finish always works — rain or shine, snow or sun. That makes pilsners the perfect beer for a “desert island” option — or the beer you’d be happy drinking for the rest of your life.
Before we get to that, let’s dive into what a pilsner is. The classic, crisp, easy-drinking, and effortlessly refreshing beer gets its name from the city of Plzeň (Pilsen) in Czechia. This is where the pale lager “pilsner” was refined in 1842 when the iconic beer Pilsner Urquell was first brewed as a commercial beer by a Bavarian brewer, one Josef Groll. Fast forward a couple of centuries and pilsner’s biscuit-like malt backbone and use of bottom-fermenting yeast and floral hoppiness has made the style one of the biggest and most ubiquitous beer styles in the world. Another big reason for that belovedness is that pilsners are almost always sessional brews, clocking in at or under 5% ABV. Crisp, malty, easy-drinking, and accessible, what more could you want from beer?
Now, it’s time to make difficult choices. What if you were stranded on a desert island and you could only pick one to bring, which one would you choose? To help you choose, we asked some craft brewers to tell us the one pilsner they’d drink for the rest of their lives if they could only pick one. Keep reading to see them all.
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Firestone Walker Pivo Pils
Patrick Chavanelle, Senior R&D Brewer at Allagash Brewing Company in Portland, Maine
ABV: 5.3%
Average Price: $11 for a six-pack
The Beer:
The first time I had Firestone Walker’s Pivo Pils, I was down in Texas for a wedding. We went to a bar where I saw it on tap, and I ordered one. To set the scene, this was very much a social gathering, but all I did was sit in a corner and exclaim comments to myself after every sip like, ‘Oh God’ and ‘It smells so good’, etc. I wanted to bathe in it.
Tasting Notes:
Pivo is an amazing showcase of Noble hop character that I’d never experienced before in a beer. It has punchy grassy, spicey, aromatics along with some lemon zest that is so inviting. It’s a beer that will never grow old to me. I love it.
Bierstadt Lagerhaus Slow Pour Pilsner
Fal Allen, Brewmaster at Anderson Valley Brewing Co. in Booneville, California
ABV: 5.1%
Average Price: $13 for a four-pack of 16-ounce cans
The Beer:
If there could be only one, that would have to be Bierstadt Lagerhaus Slow Pour Pilsner on draught. It’s beautifully pale yellow and crystal clear with a solid dense head of foam.
Tasting Notes:
It begins with an aroma of toasted biscuits and light floral hops. The taste is crisp and bready, full of its slow cold German lager yeast fermentation. There’s a snappy carbonation that lingers on the pallet. This beer finishes dry with a slight hint of minerality and a touch of sweetness. There’s excellent balance with a high drinkability rating.
Troegs Sunshine Pils
George Hummel, Grain Master of My Local Brew Works in Philadelphia
ABV: 4.5%
Average Price: $12 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Nothing beats a nice fresh can of Troegs Sunshine Pils. Once relegated to seasonal status, I was overjoyed when they freed it to year-round availability.
Tasting Notes:
It’s crisp with a firm bitterness that steps aside to allow a peek of bready malt. The flavor and aromatics just drip with floral Hallertau hops.
Rothaus Pils Tannenzäpfle
Joe Mashburn, Head Brewer at Night Shift Brewing in Boston
ABV: 5.1%
Average Price: $17 for a six-pack
The Beer:
If I was only going to drink one pilsner for the rest of my life, it would be Rothaus Pils Tannenzäpfle. It’s pricey for a 6-pack but delicious if you take the plunge.
Tasting Notes:
“Tannenzäpfle” is a “fir cone,” and this pilsner has a great spicy character that reminds you of being in a forest.
Notch Session Pils
Zach Fowle, Head of Marketing at Arizona Wilderness Brewing Co. in Phoenix, Arizona
ABV: 4%
Average Price: $11 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Notch Session Pils by Notch Brewing Co. is my pick. Calling this a “Session Pils” may seem a little redundant, but crushable low-alcohol versions of popular styles are Notch’s whole bag. Lesser inebriating power takes away nothing from this Czech-style lager.
Tasting Notes:
It jabs the nose with dead-on peppery and lightly floral Saaz hops alongside a hint of sulfur threaded through doughy croissant-like malts. On the tongue, subtle malt sweetness spreads under earthy/herbal hops, trailing off at the finish into a gentle but noticeable bitterness.
Kent Falls The Hollow
Matthew Steinberg, co-founder and Head Brewer of Exhibit ‘A’ Brewing Company in Framingham, Massachusetts
ABV: 5%
Average Price: $15 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Kent Falls Brewing is one of my favorite breweries. Their focus on quality and the use of locally sourced malts just hit right for me. The Hollow is their house pilsner. Kent Falls brewers really dig deep into tradition and care deeply for their roots and place. They have a northeast sensibility focused on farmhouse beers.
Tasting Notes:
The Hollow is dynamic, crisp, and clean and is hopped with Brewer’s Gold that is grown on their farm.
Wiseacre Tiny Bomb
Garth Beyer, certified Cicerone and owner of Garth’s Brew Bar in Madison, Wisconsin
ABV: 4.5%
Average Price: $11 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Wiseacre’s Tiny Bomb is an epic pilsner. It elevates your standard pilsner style with a bit of local wildflower honey.
Tasting Notes:
There are delicate floral aromas and a steady sweetness. It’s a pilsner that feels like it gives you energy. A light version of liquid bread, if you will.
Trumer Pils
Rob Lightner, co-founder of East Brother Beer Company in Richmond, California
ABV: 4.9%
Average Price: $11 for a six-pack
The Beer:
If I could only drink one pilsner for the rest of my life, it would have to be Trumer Pils. That has always been one of my go-to pilsners and served as a model and inspiration for us when we created East Brother Bo Pils.
Tasting Notes:
Trumer is crystal-clear, starts with a touch of honey, and shifts to a grassiness on the palate followed by a bready finish. It’s always consistent and always delicious.
Silvaticus Sovereign Pils
Frederic Yarm, USBG bartender at Josephine in Somerville, Massachusetts
ABV: 5.3%
Average Price: Limited Availability
The Beer:
Brewery Silvaticus specializes in German lagers and Belgian ales and makes my favorite pilsner that I could return to again and again without getting tired.
Tasting Notes:
Their Sovereign Pils is an unfiltered kellerbier-style pilsner with delightful cracker, honey-floral, lemon, and grassy notes. Pair that with any of the brewery taproom’s German foods — like their pretzel or pickle plate — and I’m in heaven.
Bitburger Premium Pilsner
Scott Wenger, bartender at Hula Bay Club in Tampa
ABV: 4.8%
Average Price: $12 for a six-pack
The Beer:
Bitburger Premium Pilsner is known for its hoppy, crisp, lightly bitter flavor profile. It’s definitely a beer that belongs in your refrigerator all the time.
Tasting Notes:
It has a crisp, refreshing flavor that is more floral than sweet and enough hops to balance it all out.
