Kirkland Signature German Style Lager - Kirkland Signature / Costco Wholesale Corporation

Onenote81

North Carolina

3.5/5  rDev +15.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Another one from the pack my friend gave me. Poured into a stemmed lager glass.

Pours a dark rusty orange, clear, with a small white head on top. Scents of grass, lemon juice-soaked crackers, orange zest. There's ample bubbles rising through this beer, and this gives this beer a nice crisp feel. Light with a touch of dryness on the back end. Easy drinking for sure.

Mild bitterness from the hop presence, semi-sweet citrus add a nice balance. Easy finish with no lingering aftertaste. This beer is what it is - a simple easy drinking lager. I was in the mood for one and it delivered. I could see this pairing well with some burgers or grilled 'dogs.

Serving type: bottle

03-20-2013 13:29:47 | More by Onenote81

Darkmagus82

Montana

3.48/5  rDev +14.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from bottle into a pint glass

Appearance – The beer pours a clear medium amber color with a two finger white head. The head has great retention slowly fading to leave a decent level of lace on the sides of the glass.

Smell – The aroma is light overall but is heaviest of malt and a caramel sweetness. Mixed with these are a faint whiff of a earthiness as well.

Taste – The taste starts out with flavors of a malty and bready base with some light caramel flavors. As it advances further there are flavors of a fruity nature come to the tongue. The sweeter fruit flavors however start to fade more toward the middle to the end of the taste with a light bitterness form a mix of citrus hop flavors coming to the tongue. With all the flavor combined, in the end a moderately sweet caramel and lightly hopped bready flavor is left to linger on the tongue.

Mouthfeel –The body of the beer is average to above average in terms of its thickness and creaminess with a carbonation level that is rather average. The combo of the two is nice for the flavors of the brew and create a rather nice easy drinking brew.

Overall – For the price you pay for this one it is one good brew. There were no detectable off flavors with nice smooth transition. Not too shabby.

Serving type: bottle

03-06-2013 02:16:29 | More by Darkmagus82

kojevergas

California

2.63/5  rDev -13.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Acquired as part of a variety pack at Costco; it was $19 for the 24 pack. Expectations are below average; I've had the other three and they've hovered between bad and average. Reviewed live. 12 fl oz bown glass bottle with standard pressure cap served into an Oskar Blues pilsner glass in me gaff in low altitude Los Feliz, Los Angeles, California.

Served straight from the fridge. Side-poured as no carbonation issues are anticipated.

A: Pours a 2.5 finger beige colour head of slight cream, decent thickness, and average (~2 minute) retention. Body colour is a clear pale copper. No yeast particles are visible. No bubble show. Zero lacing. Neither vibrant nor dull. A typical appearance for a festbier.

Sm: Sweet malts, pale malts. Minimal floral hopping. Barley. Clean. Slight hints of sweet cidre. An average strength aroma. Comparable to festbiers I had at Bergkirchweih.

T: Clean full barley, a sweet malt climax, and a clean smooth finish. Light hop nectar and minimal floral hopping. No yeast character whatsoever. A bit too sweet and artificially so at that. Simple. The finish is strangely perfumey and bad. No alcohol comes through. Tastes like a homebrew extract beer. Imbalanced. Meh.

Mf: Smooth, wet. Average thickness. A bit overcarbonated. Thrown together.

Dr: A mediocre festbier, and not one I'd seek out again - but probably worth the low pricetag. Better than most macrobrew lagers. An underwhelming offering from Costco. Drinkable but pedestrian.

C-

Serving type: bottle

12-19-2012 05:27:17 | More by kojevergas

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.63/5  rDev +19.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

354ml bottle, with yeast from the 'Weihensephan' (sic) bank in Freising, Germany, apparently. Part of a 24-bottle, 35 dollar (dirt cheap, around here) mixpack available at Alberta Costco Liquor outlets. Brewed by "Hopfen und Malz Brewing Company, San Jose, CA". So, Gordon Biersch, then.

This beer pours a crystal clear, medium golden hue, with three fingers of puffy, foamy off-white head, which leaves some nicely consistent bansai tree lace around the glass as it duly recedes.

It smells of bready, doughy, biscuity malt, a bit of caramel, some mild drupe fruitiness, and softly bitter earthy, leafy hops. Hmmmm. The taste is semi-sweet doughy malt, a waning biscuit character, some mild nutty caramel notes, and leafy, somewhat musty noble hops.

The carbonation is quite soft and unassuming, the body a decently solid medium weight for the style, and agreeably smooth. It finishes with a strong tendency to the dry, as the malt shifts in that direction, and the hops wait with expectant open arms.

A surprisingly enjoyable version of an Oktoberfest, even if the bottle's rather pedestrian labeling offers no such classifying indication. Well rounded in flavour, so much so, that I can foresee actually drinking the copious amount of its remaining friends in that big ol' box.

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2012 01:28:54 | More by biboergosum

beerpadawan

California

2.93/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured into a glass and sipped in the sunlight, it had a clear, light-copper color. Not a whole lot of aroma; some light toasty notes.

It starts light and finishes crisp/clean, without a lot of commotion in between. It is similar in that sense to a Dos Equis Amber, maybe. A bit more malt flavor with some light toast, a bit more of a dry sense to the quaff.

Not bad to use for refreshment in the warm sun.

Serving type: bottle

08-26-2012 17:09:23 | More by beerpadawan

notsoprobeer

Oregon

3.23/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Golden orange in color, clear, with a white head that dissipated quickly. It left some lacing on the glass. Aroma of toasted malts and yeast. Flavor of bread-like and light caramel malts. Not a lot of hops in flavor or aroma. It’s light bodied, highly carbonated, and has a crisp mouth feel along with a bit of sweetness in the finish.

Serving type: bottle

09-22-2011 06:16:51 | More by notsoprobeer

Snow81

Minnesota

3.93/5  rDev +29.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance: Very light amber to orange clear tint

Head: Frosty white head

Smell: Sweet grassiness

Taste: Sweet maltyness with the grass still present and a subtle to no hop note on the palate

Weight: Light body with low carbonation

Finish: Gras with light malt

Serving type: bottle

04-11-2011 13:51:26 | More by Snow81

washburnkid

New York

3.73/5  rDev +22.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A friend brought a Kirkland mixed sixer over. The German lager was by far my favorite, and none of them were really that good. So that's saying something ... or maybe it isn't ...

Brew pours a light copper with a nicely fluffed beige head that retains well. Aromas are biscuity malt balanced by spicy, hay-like hoppiness. Very fresh on the nose. Flavors include caramel, biscuit, grass and hay. Spiciness that I can't put a name on. Light and carbed nicely and a little drying. The flavors fall a bit flat but it's easy to drink many of these in one sitting. I'm not sure if I agree with the style classification here but I think that's more the fault of the brewers, whoever they may be...

Serving type: bottle

03-13-2011 03:52:39 | More by washburnkid

afinepilsner

Iowa

3.13/5  rDev +3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

12oz brown bottle
5.5% abv

Kirkland Signature German Style Lager was amber in color with good clarity. It had an off-white head with decent retention and lacing. The smell was toasted malt with a little sweetness. The taste was toasted malt and earthy hops and a dry finish. The mouthfeel was average with a medium-light body and medium carbonation. The drinkability was just about average. This is a decent drinkable lager, but I would not go out of my way to try it.

Serving type: bottle

03-12-2011 22:25:52 | More by afinepilsner

mountsnow1010

Vermont

3.3/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Brown with a fluffy white head that leaves nice lacing. Looks very appetizing, especially with visible carbonation.
Smell is straight up green apple. OK, perhaps some hoppy floral notes with a touch of darker sugars. Mainly green apple though.
Tastes pretty good. A slightly sweet malty flavor with a respectable hop bitterness. Floral component is definitely present as well.
Mouthfeel - I would prefer the carbonation just slightly lower - it's almost prickly right now. Otherwise however, it is relatively smooth and full-bodied considering the style.
DB - I could drink these forever.

I drank this while eating sharp cheddar cheese & crackers, it was a perfect beer for cutting through the cheese - almost felt hydrating (I probably would have preferred an earthy stout with the cheese however).

I disagree with the category though - this seems like a German Helles.
Very surprisingly (to me) I'd say this is the best Kirkland beer; even though I like the other styles better, this beer is cleanly presented and has no off flavors (unlike the other 3 options).

Very enjoyable lager that I don't think gets the credit it deserves. Excellent beer for the price point too. I will have to go B- for a very reliable beer that isn't extremely interesting.

Serving type: bottle

01-20-2011 03:18:37 | More by mountsnow1010

scruffwhor

Illinois

3.38/5  rDev +11.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

From the mixed six case I picked up at the Costco in Bloomingdale.

Pours a nice caramel amber color with a one finger head that dwindles to nothing after a sip or two.

Good toasted malt aroma makes me think of sweet white bread and a little dry caramel.

Very simple ,and a litle watery, toasted malt upfront. The middle has some caramel and white bread crust, but this flavor dissipates quickly. This finish is a very soft sweet malt and a little earthen hop musk.

The palate is a little watery and then powdery, but still pretty sessionable.

Serving type: bottle

11-19-2010 22:35:18 | More by scruffwhor

FosterJM

California

2.3/5  rDev -24.3%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

45th review on BA
Bottle to pint.

Now that the 4th bottle of this beer set has been finished. I will let my Non beer friends have these bottles. Ring the bell on round 4.

App- You know that color when you just haven't had enough water to drink in a couple days and you just say wow thats too dark. Yeah that color.

Smell- I just went to the gym. I'm not sure if it's the socks on the floor or the beer in the glass.

Taste- Please don't try to re create or call this a Oktoberfest when there are countless breweries who do it so well. Choose another style and easier style. like go after BMC.

Mouth- Its a step up from Bud light. I think I haven't had that in about 10 years so I'm sure my F.I.L will give me some of that too.

Drink- I'm done. No more, giving away the other bottles. You guys want em?

Serving type: bottle

11-10-2010 04:48:55 | More by FosterJM

HugePlume

Washington

2.4/5  rDev -21.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Bottle poured into a pint.

A: Good overall appearance. Pours a nice thick head and has excellent lacing.

S: Nice malt character reveals itself to the nose. But also a metallic hot-brake shoe smell.

T: Again, decent malty flavor up front, that is later muddled by a skunky hot metal. More noticeable as it warms.

M: Mouthfeel is average, has nice lingering finish. Slightly undercarbonated.

D: Great beer to give to a space alien and say "this is what beer tastes like." Worth trying, and give the other three bottles in the pack to drunks that show up unnanounced at your tailgate party.

Serving type: bottle

10-01-2010 02:54:57 | More by HugePlume

BeerResearcher

Massachusetts

3.33/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

12oz dark brown bottle. No freshness date.
It pours a coppery amber color with a thin, fast-fading head. Some specks and webby lacing.
The aroma is fairly decent. A nice floral hoppy bouquet pops out. Background smells of mowed lawn, cereal and a mild citrusy add a touch of complexity.
An edgy Pils hop taste is upfront. After that, it's a bit a lacking. A light metallic tang and some dextrose malt don't make much of an impact.
It's gulpable.
This is certainly not a Marzen by any measure. More of a Helles/Vienna hybrid.
This may be the best offering so far from the Kirkland Series.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2010 22:10:27 | More by BeerResearcher

TMoney2591

Illinois

2.88/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Served in a flared glass mug.

Finally the set is complete. Whee. This one pours a clear russet-amber topped by nearly a finger of white foam. The nose is pretty faint, with some light walnuts and even lighter caramel somehow wafting their way into the 'strils. The taste exhibits a similar nutty caramel character, but with a biting bitterness whose source I can't quite pinpoint. Whatever it is, it's neither subtle nor tasty. The body is a light medium, with a light carbonation and a somewhat dry finish. Overall, what could have been an OK brew seems to have been ruined by an off flavor. Bad bottle? Maybe. Regardless, it wasn't very good.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2010 06:05:56 | More by TMoney2591

Elimination

Oregon

2.3/5  rDev -24.3%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

A buddy left one of those multiple pack Kirkland cases in my fridge. Free beer I'm not complaining.

Look is copperish but nothing else very dull for a lager.

Smell is faint malt a bit of sweet

Taste very little anything has a fart like quality on the taste and smell.

Mouthfeel is not great either not easy drinking but not good enough to savor

Even the drinkability is bad, had high hopes for a contract brew but this did not come through.

Serving type: bottle

09-13-2010 02:27:14 | More by Elimination

wingman14

Ohio

2.98/5  rDev -2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Pours a burnt orange with a nice head that fades fast and leaves lacing. The smell is malty with some yeast notes, not much else going on. The taste is not very complex, mostly malt start to finish. The mouthfeel is light and watery, probably the most detracting part of the beer is that it tastes watered down. The drinkability is ok, a fine beer, just not much to it.

Serving type: bottle

09-11-2010 03:55:56 | More by wingman14

Khazadum

Illinois

1.8/5  rDev -40.8%
look: 3 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 1

Bottle three in my aunt's series of 'delicious' brews.

Vision
Solid finger of densely-packed white bubbles that dissipated after their minute of fame to a skin and collar. Body is the color of copper mixed with fresh honey, no crystallization kind of course It is ridiculously clear which betrays its dirty secret of very little carbonation. There is a single bubble that rises every few seconds but nothing more.

Bouquet
Thin yeast smell... a tad bit of bready malt. Nothing else. This is awful.

Flavor Profile
The malt that barely came through in the nose dominates the flavor. It is the wal-mart of malt flavors. Generic and upsetting. The finish is like stale bread with the funk of old nuts mashed and slathered upon it. Its a myriad of unforgettable flavors.

Oral Sensations
This at least is the saving grace of this beer. It isn't water, but it isn't that much better than it. By failing to have a full body and lingering presence, I am not forced to fully suffer this brew. Minimal carbonation allows me to fully dissect the liquid.

Conclusions
Never again. No way, no how. Can't even pay me to drink this beer. I feel like this has ruined my palate in some way. Its alcohol isn't noted, but that is what you'd expect from 5.5%.

Serving type: bottle

09-08-2010 00:12:12 | More by Khazadum

gkunkle

Oregon

3.3/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Pours a copper color with an off-white head that leaves a little lacing. Smells malty and hoppy, pretty clean smell, but nothing astounding. The taste has more emphasis on the malts and it has a nice clean finish. Medium bodied beer with light carbonation. Overall it was okay, It was my first marzen, but its not something I am going to judge the style by.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2010 20:52:17 | More by gkunkle

Gmann

New York

3.35/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Pours a crystal clear copper color with a soapy white head that quickly settles into a very light ring. The aroma is quite faint. I pick up a bready malt with hints of caramel and peppery spice and that is about it. The taste is quite bready with a sweet caramel/toffee flavor. There is a tea like bitterness in the back end, though it's not very strong. The bitterness seems a bit out of place for the style. The feel is light to moderate with active carbonation; finishes slightly bitter and astringent. I expected the beer to be more smooth. An average marzen; starts off nice and bready but then takes a downward turn. Could use some more caramel flavor and less tea-like bitterness.

Serving type: bottle

07-11-2010 01:30:30 | More by Gmann

MikeBrandman

Connecticut

3/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Looks good when poured into a Sam Adams Sensory glass. Delicious brown body. Pretty much only brown with slight amber and redness to it. Little visible carbonation. No sediment, completely translucent. 1 finger of head; no lacing.

S - A pretty gross smell. Slight urine smell. A little sweetness to the smell. No hops or alcohol.

T - Similar to the smell. Very sweet taste. Slight metallic taste. Nothing really special here. Nothing stands out. Very low profile beer.

MF - A little syrupy. Doesn't complement the flavor well.

D - Fairly drinkable, if not for the taste.

Serving type: bottle

06-18-2010 03:28:23 | More by MikeBrandman

biggred1

Indiana

3.48/5  rDev +14.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Copper amber with a fluffy eggshell head that leaves some sticky lace on the glass. Sweet caramel malty notes with fresh bread and an underlying earthy hop aroma. Sweet malty and bubblegum flavors with light noble hop bittering to balance. Finishes clean and slightly metallic. The body is on the lighter side of medium with sharp carbonation. An easy drinking enough beer but nothing to write home about, kind of a poor man's Sam Adams Boston lager.

Serving type: bottle

05-21-2010 23:27:10 | More by biggred1

NeutroMan

Illinois

2.75/5  rDev -9.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

12 oz bottle into a becker.

A: Crystal clear dark gold/honey color with a modest off-white foamy head.

S: Breaded malts dominate; hops are rather muted. Clean lager aroma.

T: The breaded malts are again most forcefully present intially, although it finishes somewhat dry. German hops are a little more pronounced than in the nose, but still rather diminished.

M: Medium bodied with a creamy texture. Minimal carbonation, which was somewhat surprising.

D: This is a decent stab at a Märzen, but it's just missing too much. It's not offensive; I just probably won't be coming back for any more.

Serving type: bottle

05-10-2010 02:52:59 | More by NeutroMan

puboflyons

New Hampshire

3.13/5  rDev +3%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured from a Utica, N.Y. brewed 12 fl. oz. bottle with an expiration date of Apr 05, 2010. Sampled on April 17, 2010. It has an amber-orange pour with a short-lived head the bubbles up a bout a half inch and then dissolves right off. I found the aroma to be rather bland. Yeah, there were malts and light hpps but nothing stood out. It certainly had a crisp, cleanliness in the taste and I noted more malts than anything else. This beer expired a couple weeks ago and it shouldn't make a huge difference in that short of a time. Then again, maybe it did. Nothing I would go out of my wa for.

Serving type: bottle

04-17-2010 21:34:07 | More by puboflyons

sweemzander

Illinois

2.2/5  rDev -27.6%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

12oz. bottle poured into an imperial pint. Best before June 15, 2010. Thanks to BeerFMAndy for the bottle.

(A)- Pours a clear caramel-like amber color. Produced an immediately dissipating white head.

(S)- A sweet corn meal & corn husk with hay.

(T)- Same as the smell. A really grass-like, almost sour hay with tons of corn meal. Bitter.

(M)- A good carbonation level. A very bitter/grassy/sweet yet sour corn thing.

(D)- Not a big fan of the bitter grass that turn almost sour. Just tastes like corn otherwise. Doesnt remind me of an oktoberfest much.

Serving type: bottle

04-06-2010 23:58:49 | More by sweemzander