Think all fizzy yellow lagers taste the same? Have you ever mixed up a gose and a gueuze? Do you really know the difference between a West Coast and New England IPA? We asked beer educator Natalya Watson to explain what sets each of these styles apart. She's also recommended a few beers to taste to help bring these flavours to life, so get your orders in and get ready to spot the difference.
First up in our three-part series: Munich Helles vs. German Pils
Let’s start with the lagers. Ingredients-wise, these beers are very similar on paper. They’re both brewed with golden-coloured Pilsner malt, traditional German hop varietals, and fermented with lager yeast. So what actually sets each apart? Their balance – aka which taste is taking the lead.
With Munich Helles, this bright golden lager has an even balance between malt sweetness and hop bitterness, so it’s best described as “malty but not sweet.” Balance often makes for an easier drinking beer, so for those of you looking for a good gateway German lager, a Munich Helles like Andechs Hell (or Donzoko Northern Helles, if UK beer is preferred) is a brilliant place to start.
For those of you who are fans of hops, the German Pils might be your happy place, as this beer is balanced towards bitterness. It uses a lot more hops than the Munich Helles, so not only is there more bitterness, there’s a lot more hop aroma and flavour here, too. (The traditional German varietals used are often described as floral or perfumy.) This bitterness, combined with the styles’ high carbonation, gives it a crisp, dry and refreshing finish. To give it a go, try Schonramer Pils.
Personally, I find the bitterness of a German Pils a bit too bracing, so I’m more of a Munich Helles fan. But by teasing out the qualities unique to each style, we can all find our favourites!
Natalya Watson
Beer Sommelier & Advanced Cicerone®
Founder of Virtual Beer SchoolAuthor of Beer: Taste the Evolution in 50 Styles
Host of the 'Beer with Nat' podcast
Note from Hop Hideout:
Thanks to Natalya for kicking off this three part beer styles series for us. We recently completed her Virtual Beer School and it’s rekindled our passion for the wonderful myriad of beers out there. Which then gave us this blog series idea. Beers do come in and out of stock, especially seasonal and specials. We generally try to keep regular availability across a great range of German, Czech, World and UK brewed lager styles, but this will chop and change. Hop Hideout also recommends from our current online shop: Ayinger, Tegernseer, Rothaus, Augustiner, Beak, Burning Sky and Vinohradsky Pivovar; plus Utopian, Lost & Grounded and Saint Mars of the Desert when we have them in stock!
We also suggest this useful resource, which can also be downloaded as an app on your phone, from the Beer Judging Certification Programme: https://www.bjcp.org/stylecenter.php