Lagunitas PILS (Czech Style Pilsner) - Lagunitas Brewing Company

mjurney

Texas

3.95/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Golden color, slight hazy. Tons of small bubbles rising. Fairly nice bright white head.

Aroma is light. I get sweet pale malts, spicy nobel hops, pear.

Flavor starts off sweet pale malts, grassy and spicy hops, a little hint of fruitiness, crisp-bitter finish. Body is light-medium, well carbonated.

Serving type: bottle

09-22-2012 07:18:42 | More by mjurney

spinrsx

Ontario (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12oz Bottle from the Potsdam NY IGA for 2.50$

Appearance - Clear gold colour with an above average size fizzy white coloured head. There is an above average amount of carbonation showing and there is some faint lacing. The head lasted for 5+ minutes.

Smell - Malts, breads/grains, metallic, corn

Taste & Mouth - There is an above average amount of carbonation and I can taste malts and corn mixed with some herbal notes. There are some dry hop notes but not much. It ends with a grainy/herbal type aftertaste.

Overall - I was really hoping for some noble hop flavours. I was quite surprised that this is just a fairly boring euro-lager type tasting beer. Not what I expected from the usually over the top Lagunitas.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2012 00:04:00 | More by spinrsx

blackcompg

Illinois

3.73/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from their 12oz bottle...

Appearance - Poured a solid finger of bumpy eggshell head, body is a perfectly clear gold, head recedes to a broken cap in a few minutes but still leaves nice webbed lacing that coats the glass.

Smell - Mmmmm. freshly baked bread, whole grains, lightly roasted malts, crispy biscuits, touch of pear - really smells nice.

Taste - Oh is this complex and flavorful, perfectly balanced - Freshly baked bread, crisp crackers and biscuits, roasted malts with malt sweetness, light pear and apple, light floral and meadowy hops, touch of dried grass and hay, and some nice minerals. There is a wonderful bready malt sweetness along which all of this rides...

Mouthfeel - Lighter side of medium, really smooth and drinkable, medium carb provides a wonderful brightness and crispness, finisnes just slightly dry and bitter, very satisfying and refreshing.

Overall - What a nice, balanced and complex czech pils. Great flavors, very satisfying, but without being filling or heavy in the least. Sweetness is muted and very complimentary to all of the other flavors here, highly recommend.

Serving type: bottle

09-14-2012 03:55:29 | More by blackcompg

BEERMILER12

Maine

3.85/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: Pours a clear and very slightly golden yellow color with a fingers worth of head

S: Get a good dose of hops along with a hint of lager yeast and a nice little fruitiness (probably due to the hops as well). No sign of alcohol. Very clean

T: Follows the nose, with some light malts and a punch of hops at first that mellows out nicely to some fruitiness and a slight graininess. Again, very clean

M: Light-medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Smooth and easy going down

O: A very good American-styled pils that adds a nice hoppiness to the classic style. I recently had the Vunderbar from Smutty and these are very similar, except this one has a little more hop presence. Very enjoyable

Serving type: bottle

09-12-2012 03:42:54 | More by BEERMILER12

ckollias

Maryland

3.73/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Enjoyed this 12oz bottle out of a large snifter glass.

A: Pours a clear golden hue with a thin white head that quickly dissipates into a wispy almost non-existent lace.

S: Mild grains and malt aroma with hints of hops.

T: Grainy malt flavor with a slightly hoppy tart taste.

M: Medium to thick body and medium carbonation.

O: This was a solid Pilsner – not my favorite style but worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

09-07-2012 03:53:55 | More by ckollias

superspak

Michigan

3.9/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 ounce bottle into pilsener glass, bottled 6/18/2012. Pours fairly crystal clear golden amber color with a nice 1-2 finger dense white head with great retention; that reduces to a nice cap that lingers. Some decent spotty lacing on the glass, with a good amount of carbonation streaming up retaining the head. Aromas of honey, biscuit, herbal, floral, pepper, pear, lemon, and light earthiness. Nice aromas with good balance and decent strength. Taste of pear, pepper, biscuit, herbal, floral, lemon, cracker, grass, and light earth. Good amount of spicy bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of light fruits, biscuit, pepper, herbal, cracker, and earth on the finish for a short bit. Nice balance of flavors; with no cloying flavors at all. Nicely clean finish. Medium carbonation and body; with a nice crisp and smooth mouthfeel. Alcohol is well hidden with only a slight warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is a very nice pilsner. Nice amounts of flavor with good balance; and very smooth to drink. Really crisp and enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

08-26-2012 05:35:37 | More by superspak

ElSid

California

3.33/5  rDev -8.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

The Beers of California

#4

Freshness Date: None

A: Pours pis yellow, mostly transparent, with a finger of effervescent white foam.

S: The nose is of earth along with a significant component of grassy herbalness.

T: Strong elements of earth which is suggested by the nose. The malt is light, consisting of crackers, grain and hints of hay. The hops impart floral, herbal, and grassy flavors to the beer along with hints of orange rind ending with a mild bitter, spicy finish.

M: Crisp and light in the mouth with moderate to high prickling carbonation.

O: A descent take on the pilsner style although overall this brew falls short. A refreshing drink for a warm day.

Serving type: bottle

08-25-2012 03:45:22 | More by ElSid

phishsihq

Colorado

3.58/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Lagunitas Pils is wonderful Czech style Pilsner. The brew pours a clear, pale straw color, and is capped by an off-white head that disappears somewhat quickly and leaves minimal lace. A subdued nose features some sweet malt, biscuit, and traces of spicy hop aromas. Sweet malt flavors quickly blend with floral Saaz hop notes. The finish is sweet, and the beer is medium in body and moderate in carbonation. Simply refreshing!

Cheers!

Serving type: bottle

08-19-2012 01:16:22 | More by phishsihq

ruckus232

Illinois

3.63/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12 Ounce brown bottle poured into a tall pint glass

Appearance: Clear golden color with a nice amount of white head

Smell: There is a slight sweetness to the smell nothing special though

Taste: There is a little bit of sweetness that fades into a bitterness that actually has a really nice floral type finish. I was pleasantly surprised that I actually liked the floral aspect.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2012 00:35:09 | More by ruckus232

TheStegg

Missouri

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A great take on a Czech-style pilsner. Bone dry with a nice sharp acidity on the mouthfeel, refreshing. Saaz hops are the star here and are forward on the pallet. Pleasantly bitter and crisp with little to no malt aftertaste. A fine beer for a hot, sunny summer day.

Serving type: bottle

08-13-2012 00:11:27 | More by TheStegg

SaintD

3.63/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Surprising for the style. Poured a wonderful head with decent carbonation. Caramel tones and spice throughout the entire flavor profile with a fuller body than expected. Not much in the way of the remeniscent typical "bitey" czech pils hops (namely Saaz), but very different, but pleasant. Overall I really enjoyed it, but I was expecting a slightly thinner body and less caramel/spice.

Serving type: bottle

08-10-2012 23:08:38 | More by SaintD

TheRealBigC

Nevada

3.73/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A solid pilsener from Lagunitas. Nice bright golden body and a basic pilsener aroma. It's actually more medium-bodied than I've come to expect from the style and is slightly higher in alcohol (though it's not noticeably different as a result). There is a slight spice to it and a nice hop bitterness with a solid grainy malt finish. Easy to drink, but not quite a session pils.

Serving type: bottle

08-07-2012 20:00:10 | More by TheRealBigC

divineaudio

Michigan

3.7/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

pint glass.

pours a hazy golden shade with a thin cap of coarse, off white foam. retention is good and leaves a few small spots of lacing in the glass.

s - doughy and sweet, almost like a pastry. faint fruitiness like dates or fig.

t - grainy and spicy with faint dark fruity notes. has a mild herbal bitterness that cleans up nicely and faint alcohol taste in the finish. hops definitely take a back seat here, not sure if that's intentional or not.

m - fuller in body with adequate carb. medium co2 profile.

o - as a beer, solid and enjoyable. as a pilsener, maybe off base a little bit. i suspect that this has been sitting around the store i purchased from for quite a while. even if it isn't certifiably fresh, it's still a good beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-06-2012 21:28:03 | More by divineaudio

elNopalero

Texas

3.85/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This Czech-style pilsner pours a solid clear golden color with thin foam. There’s a crisp hop aroma with a pleasing biscuit toasted malt aroma undertone. It’s crisp and refreshing with hints of sweetness rounding it out while still remaining decidedly light and (especially surprisingly for Lagunitas) toned down. I’ve had hoppier, grassier pilsners. Pleasing, smooth, and overall well-rounded.

Serving type: on-tap

08-06-2012 07:49:00 | More by elNopalero

Arbitrator

California

3.88/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Chilled bottle into a glass. Bottled about 3 weeks ago.

A: Pours a clear, golden body with 1.5 fingers of off-white head. Retains well, leaving a few dribbles of lace as it collapses into a collar.

S: Floral and crackery; mild spice and a touch of fresh-baked bread.

T: This has a nice malt presence; bread and cracker come through, and the hops produce both a light bitterness as well as abundant flavor on the back end. Finish is clean with no lingering oils. I expected some DMS per the style (see Reality Czech), but this is quite a bit cleaner and I'm happy to have that.

M: Light-bodied; it's not quite crisp (the finish lingers a few seconds too long), but it's still quite clean.

O: Good value; I almost wish it were a bit lower in ABV so I could throw back a couple a night, but I'm fine with it. This is a great post-workout beer.

Serving type: bottle

07-19-2012 06:14:54 | More by Arbitrator

Pencible

Virginia

3.53/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: This poured a clear light gold with moderate white head.
S: It smelled like bready and earthy caramel malt, with a little lemon hops.
T: It tasted like earthy lemon and grassy hops, with bready yeast and light caramel malt. It had a mostly clean and mild bittersweet aftertaste.
M: It was slightly thick with lots of carbonation. Pretty fizzy body.
D: This was not a bad pils, but really nothing exciting. The scent and taste were fairly appropriate, and the body was ok. The finish was smooth enough, so it was pretty easy to drink. Only worth a tick.

Serving type: bottle

07-18-2012 18:37:45 | More by Pencible

Phyl21ca

Quebec (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle: Poured a clear bright golden color pils with a large foamy head with good retention and some light lacing. Aroma consists of light floral hops with dry notes and a lightly sweet malt base. Taste is a mix between some dry hoppy notes with sweet malt base with light cereal notes. Body is quite with a somewhat oily texture and some good carbonation. Interesting though a bit too sweet for my taste and maybe even drier hoppy notes would have been preferable. I also don’t’ get the high ABV on such a sessionable beer.

Serving type: bottle

07-09-2012 21:06:23 | More by Phyl21ca

McStagger

California

3.9/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

First beer in my fancy new tulip tasting glass.

A: Aggressive pour leads to two fingers khaki white carbonation. Head retention is moderately high, with nice lacing. Beer itself is a brilliant jaundiced straw. Fairly moderate carbonation.

S: Smacks of honey, caramel, husked grain and a bit of tart fruit. Mild herbal notes detected as well. The grain really dominates the nose.

T: Husked, milled grain are immediately enveloped by grassy, herbaceous notes the translate into a floral, spicy back with a long, bittering finish.

M: A bit fuller in the body than many Bohemian style Pilseners, but this isn't necessarily a bad thing. The added alcohol and malts definitely help to balance the increase in hops that this beer gets.

O: Nice Americanized version of the style. Easy drinking, but still packing a good punch of flavor and bitterness.

Serving type: bottle

06-23-2012 04:59:34 | More by McStagger

johnnnniee

New Hampshire

3.68/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a crystal clear pale golden color with a decent sized bone white head that exudes remarkable staying power. Smells of spicy grassy hops with a honey and pilsener maltiness to balance it out. Sweet grainy and honey with just enough spice and grass flavor to provide some balance. Medium body with a spirited level of carbonation and a spicy almost tart mouthfeel. Decent pilsner, but its not up there with the hallmarks of the style. I'd like to see a richer maltiness to play against the aggressive (for the style) use of hops in this brew.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2012 01:12:44 | More by johnnnniee

tdm168

North Carolina

3.53/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - pours a medium gold; thick, white, dense head; with good retention.

S - grassy, lemon, straw, faint biscuit-y malt

T - bread, sweet, straw, bitter

M - crisp, smooth, good carbonation

This is a solid pilsner. It's sessionalbe, drinkable, and smooth. It's worth checking out.

Serving type: bottle

05-26-2012 03:04:38 | More by tdm168

KingRascal

4.2/5  rDev +15.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Look: Pale clear gold with a thin white head

Aroma: Heavy wheat aroma without an overbearing smell

Taste: Smooth pilsner taste with a crisp wheat finish

Feel: Crisp and well carbonated with a smooth finish

Overall: One of the best pilsners I've had so far

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2012 17:04:08 | More by KingRascal

Tucquan

Pennsylvania

3.58/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Had this on 2012-05-13 in Columbia, PA

A - Very clear golden-straw with a short-lived 1-finger head and mild lacing.

S - Pale malt, light hop floral, light lemon and light spice. Pretty mild but pleasant.

T - A decent malt backbone and more hop bitterness than indicated in the smell. There's some leafy hop and spicy hop flavors. Just a splash of citrus. Dries quickly and leaves a lightly sour, spicy and mildly bitter finish.

M - Light-medium body and medium-high carbonation. Effervescent and refreshing.

O - A pretty good pils although not as interesting as the Victory Prima Pils I had recently. Still, a good refreshing beer after today's long hike.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2012 18:50:32 | More by Tucquan

eclaycamp

Kansas

3.43/5  rDev -6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

12 ounce short bottle, poured into a pilsner glass. With the pilsner style, which is typically light in color, it's easy to see if the glass you are using has been properly cleaned. And I'm a bit ashamed to admit that my glass doesn't pass the test. That's my fault, not the brewer's. The beer pours a nearly brilliant light gold, with wave upon wave of bubbles coming up from the bottom of the glass. Most Pilsner style beers are really light in color but this one is darker than those that I’m used. I got sort of aggro with my pour but alas I don't get an real sort of head. I do however, manage to over-pour and spill down the sides of my glass. Bummer. I like a nice frothy head (one you can float a bottle cap on as Jim Koch is fond of saying) with my pilsner beer. Initial aroma is of … well hold on a sec as I’ve managed to give my nose a bath. This review is just going swimmingly. I primarily get some light candy corn malt sweetness, with some flowery hibiscus like hop character in the background. On the aroma side of things the hop character is really muted, especially for a beer that’s done in the Czech Pilsner style. The hops in the first taste are both in the front and rear; malt flows through the middle. There’s a nice bitterness but it’s very mild and low key. Not surprisingly, mouthfeel is light and refreshing, with ample carbonation. I get a little bit of carbonic bite with this beer, but it’s not unpleasant, and not surprising given the carbonation levels. The carbonation sweeps in quickly, ridding your mouth of the beer before you have a chance to ponder what else it may hold. I think that’s a good thing, as the beer has quite a bit of residual sweetness, and without the carbonation levels this could end up cloying. Sweetness may also be coming from the alcohol, as at 6.2% this is bordering on a 1.5x Pilsner … that may be also why I’m getting some sweetness out of it. Kudos for keeping the phenolics out of this one. Instead it goes down quick and easy. Lawnmower beer seems like too lazy a descriptor, so I’m left searching for something else. Lavender hops yield to candy corn sweetness, before both are quickly evaporated in a wave of carbonation that leaves a lingering, slightly sulfuric, afterfinish. I’d like a bit more hops in this one, especially in the nose, as they are there but they play a supporting role to the sweet malt profile. Not a badly done beer, but there are other pilsners out there that I prefer.

Serving type: bottle

05-11-2012 23:05:27 | More by eclaycamp

Jerone

Florida

4.25/5  rDev +16.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Golden and slightly hazy with some bubbles coming to the top where there lies a pillowy off-white head that sticks around and leaves fair lacing.

S - Hops and malt with a surprising yeasty smell that I like.

T - A good floral hop spice is supported by a biscuit malt along with a yeast flavor that gives a touch of banana or bubble gum flavor, just enough to make it different.

M - Verging on medium body with fairly high carbonation but very drinkable.

O - A great beer that is maybe my new favorite pils, or perhaps tied with noble pils.

Serving type: bottle

05-05-2012 21:39:10 | More by Jerone

jtingue

New York

4.1/5  rDev +12.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a pint glass.

Appearance. Golden yellow in color. Crystal clear, with effervescent bubbles rising from the bottom of the glass. Pours with a soda-like head that very quickly dissipates to a very thin grouping of bubbles on top.

Smell. Very thin smell, with grassy hops and some sugary sweetness. Some floral notes as well.

Taste. Starts out with some bready sweetness. Some grassy bitterness starts to balance it out, but not before another intermittent burst of sweetness. Bitterness and herbal hop flavor take over for good. A slight medicinal note is detected right before a semi-dry finish, with a lingering grassy bitterness.

Mouthfeel. Medium body with a moderate to high level of bitterness.

Overall this one is quite enjoyable, especially here in the warming late spring months. The taste was a bit too sweet for me, though it seems pretty accurate to style.

Serving type: bottle

05-05-2012 20:12:47 | More by jtingue