Bikini Blonde Lager
Maui Brewing Co.

Bikini Blonde LagerBikini Blonde Lager
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From:
Maui Brewing Co.
 
Hawaii, United States
Style:
Helles
Ranked #258
ABV:
5.1%
Score:
82
Ranked #25,077
Avg:
3.61 | pDev: 12.47%
Reviews:
210
Ratings:
671
Status:
Active
Rated:
Mar 04, 2024
Added:
Jul 07, 2008
Wants:
  24
Gots:
  132
A clean, crisp & refreshing Helles, perfect any time.

18 IBU
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Cavery:
Photo of Cavery
Reviewed by Cavery from California

3.43/5  rDev -5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Can shared with SundaySour, figured we'd give this Maui Brew a whirl.

Canned 6/21/11, poured into a pint glass.

A: Light yellow with some give towards pale oranges. Light soap sud head of about 1 1/2 fingers that did left as fast as it arrived. White bubbles give it a classic American session brew look. Modest but apparent ring of foam hugs the glass wall. Doesn't stand out, but it's inoffensive. Small streams of bubbles in a clear body.

S: Wheat and peanut oils mix for a slightly crispy peanut punch. Lightly salted peanuts mixed with lightly buttered popcorns. The wheat sweetness does its best to escape the snack food notes, but it really runs through a spectrum to do so: corn nuts, raw corn tortillas, and light grease make this an oily nose. Surprisingly potent.

T: Light dustings of salt on a mix of nuts. Almonds, cashews, and peanuts complete a salt-friendly nuttiness. Some crispy wheat breakfast sweetness that suggests breakfast toasts and whip butter spreads. I really like the brief appearance of plantains, wish there was more of that. The volume seems turned down a little bit from the nose, but this is a welcome mellowness. Some unexpected dried apricot fruitiness. White corn in the middle-end, before the flavor drops off a cliff. Mild sensations of hop bitterness in the later flavors.

M: Oily and lightly coating, but not overwhelmingly thick. This is much more of a pleasant glaze than a syrupy nightmare. A slippery coco-butter like feeling in the mouth makes the brew just slip too easily down the throat. Really easy to drink, and a solid medium-full body to boot. A complimentary sizzle on first contact.

O: Really quite decent, but the corn and oil flavors make for a bit of a taxing beverage. It drinks very easy, but the flavor makes me feel like I'm drinking a bag of corn nuts. Some people might really like this, but as a person that likes to have food with beer, I feel like this tastes more of fatty salty fried snacks than I'd like. However, there were some things that made this really pretty good. In the middle-flavors I had visits from plantains and dried apricots. I thought that was a really compelling mix, but it was too short lived. I want to up the fruity characters of this beer, and cut down on the salty nuttiness. There's something worth cultivating in here, but for right now it's just pretty okay.
Aug 08, 2011
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.27 by acurtis from New Jersey

Mar 04, 2024
Photo of MeanMotaScootah
Reviewed by MeanMotaScootah from California

3.77/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
I am not super well versed with this style so reader be aware. Aroma is very biscuity, lots of sweet malt notes. Flavor is very crisp and light and slightly creamy. More bittering hops than I expected but nothing near a pilsner or pale ale. Overall this is a great tasting beer. Very light and easy drinking. I'd have this again for sure in the summer.
Feb 03, 2024
 
Rated: 3.84 by Rodya-CA from California

Jan 09, 2024
 
Rated: 3.92 by CisPiece88 from Nebraska

Sep 20, 2023
 
Rated: 3.38 by markallmon from Tennessee

Sep 17, 2023
Photo of gefinley
Rated by gefinley from California

3.71/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
12 oz can marked packaged on 4/12/23 12:28 4002A Boulder
Aug 06, 2023
Photo of Spikester
Reviewed by Spikester from Oregon

3.83/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Clear gold with three fingers of white head. Splotches of lace appear as the levels drop.
Smell is cracker malt with faint herbal hops.
Taste is cracker malt with herbal noble hops.
Mouthfeel is light and well carbonated. The finish is lightly dry and slightly bitter.
Qverall a nice lager. Shows 4.8% abv. on the label.

Date 02/09/23. #1883.
Jul 19, 2023
Photo of littledogbigtrouble
Rated by littledogbigtrouble

3.4/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
Nothing special, but tastes really good on a hot summer day with pizza.
Jun 05, 2023
Photo of Emichaelbray
Reviewed by Emichaelbray from Pennsylvania

2.51/5  rDev -30.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.5
This was a real disappointment. It was part of a mix 12 pack that I got for such a great price, I was really only interested in two of the four. Still, I hoped the lager in the pack would at least be drinkable. I'd written off the IPA as either giving it away or pouring it out but, man, the IPA was less nasty bitter than the lager!
Look started off fine. My 3.5 might be a bit high because there was nothing especially impressive about it. Just a golden lager with a lot of foam.
I started realizing that something might have gone wrong with the nose. It wasn't necessarily bad, mind you, but beneath the expected cracker malt and autumn fruit scents, there was definitely a strident hop presence. Not what I'm looking for in a lager.
And the taste made it clear. I don't think this is correctly called a lager. More kolsch than pilsner, I'd say. Borders on IPL. It's so bitter that the malts are buried under the hops. It's distractingly bitter. I really dislike this taste.
The lager crispness is there but the finish is, again, way too hop filled. Not even refreshing. It leaves a dryness that I deliberately avoid by not drinking IPAs. So why is my lager drying out my mouth more than the same brewery's IPA?!
I don't like this. I didn't think I would feel strongly enough about the beer to even write a review. But, I was disappointed enough to want to warn others. If you like your lagers to border on the IPL, this might be for you. If you're looking for the Czech style, malt forward pilsner or, more appropriately, an Octoberfest style lager, avoid this bitter dryness.
May 06, 2023
Photo of MikeWard
Reviewed by MikeWard from Pennsylvania

3.86/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
12oz can into a pint glass. Canned 8/6/22, so 8 months old.

Nice looking beer, glassy yellow body. Light aroma, but good taste, clean, light, quite sweet.
Apr 19, 2023
 
Rated: 3.51 by NRMeadmore from Connecticut

Apr 13, 2023
 
Rated: 4 by morsa_95 from California

Apr 12, 2023
 
Rated: 4.5 by TheSWolf from Florida

Apr 02, 2023
 
Rated: 3.73 by mkh012 from Colorado

Mar 23, 2023
 
Rated: 3.5 by alexsergio from New York

Mar 18, 2023
Photo of Sigmund
Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway

3.02/5  rDev -16.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
March 2012: 355 ml can, Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 5.1%. Golden colour, slightly hazy, large and lasting white head. Fairly strong aroma of grassy hops, some grain too. The flavour is "clean" and has a decent presence of pilsener malts and a hint of citrus, but the hops are too moderate.
Mar 16, 2023
Photo of Redhawk
Rated by Redhawk from Indiana

3.28/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
Pours clear with pale color, good head and good taste. Smells of bread and maybe some citrus.
Feb 12, 2023
 
Rated: 3.41 by Danzifer from Ohio

Feb 11, 2023
 
Rated: 3.71 by KC_beerman from Missouri

Feb 07, 2023
Bikini Blonde Lager from Maui Brewing Co.
Beer rating: 82 out of 100 with 671 ratings