Stiegl Pils - Stieglbrauerei zu Salzburg GmbH

DerAtomsmasher

Washington

3.73/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Can't get very much more classic than this iteration of a German Pilsner. Tons of head & lace.

Grassy and sort of a clingy mouthfeel; I thought the nose was a little catty, but nothing that would put me off it. So much better than the Grolsch-Heineken business that too often overshadows this stuff.

Serving type: bottle

05-05-2013 02:25:09 | More by DerAtomsmasher

BierStein711

Illinois

4.54/5  rDev +27.9%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.75

Half liter poured into pokal.

Light amber body, vigorous carbonation!

Two finger off white head

Smells of wet grain, and lager yeast

Tastes: grassy, herbal, lemon, and a bitter sharp finish

Mouthfeel is moderate

Overall, this is a pilsner worth seeking out and having in your fridge. Buy some today!!

Serving type: bottle

04-14-2013 03:20:14 | More by BierStein711

silverking

Florida

3.71/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

A- pale gold with a fluffy white head. Head retention is good, and lacing is inconsistent. Lacing improves once the head has receded a bit.

S- grassy, biscuity. floral hops.

T- Bready malt with a sharp hop bitterness. The finish is off-dry with the aforementioned hop bitterness.

M- Light and refreshing. Carbonation is light and prickly.

O- It's a nice representation of the style

Serving type: bottle

04-10-2013 22:45:29 | More by silverking

kvnstfrd

Missouri

4.13/5  rDev +16.3%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

The picture above IS NOT STIEGL PILS! That picture is the new label for Stiegl Goldbräu. (Read the rear label.) This review is for the Stiegl Pils, NOT the beer pictured above.

Pours a slightly hazy, straw-yellow with a white, foamy head and lots of sticky lacing . Smells of cereal grain, spicy hops and fresh-cut, wild flowers. Tastes of clean and sweet, malty flavors followed by a subtle, but unmistakable dose of Saaz hop bittering. Mouthfeel was surprisingly full-bodied and low carbonation with a nice buttery feel after swallowing. Long bitter-sweet aftertaste. Sweet, malty flavours are even more pronounced after it warms up a little. Overall, one of the best German-style Pilsners I've ever had.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2013 02:47:19 | More by kvnstfrd

Ethanol4one

New York

4.5/5  rDev +26.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I had this at Chicago Brauhaus, seated right next to the owner, which did not color my review on bit. There's it's served on tap, perfectly. And it tasted like the gold standard of beer, clean, light, subtly balanced, absurdly drinkable.

You can talk talk talk, but these Germans don't play when it comes to beer. Everything I had there, including this beer was 4.5+.

All good.

Serving type: on-tap

12-11-2012 20:53:56 | More by Ethanol4one

dictatorial

2.78/5  rDev -21.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Overall it is... alright. The initial smell and taste were bitter, but after one drink it got better. The appearance, smell and taste were all ultimately average, with nothing really special to note. Really it was not bad, and not really great - just beer. I couldn't help think of Hugo Stiglitz every time I saw the name of the beer, which made for a fun time :-)

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2012 00:34:01 | More by dictatorial

Ciocanelu

Romania

2.85/5  rDev -19.7%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Served from a Weizen glass.

Has a very pale color. Huge head after pouring but doesn't stay for too long. Leaves almost no lace. Just a few bubbles rising now and then.
Has a pretty strong and malty smell.
Standard lager taste. I find the aftertaste more interesting, hoppy and quite bitter for a pilsner.
Body feels light to medium, crisp and refreshing. It leaves your mouth dry and makes you want another sip.

Overall this beer is not outstanding in any way but it isn't bad either.

Serving type: bottle

11-22-2012 16:50:08 | More by Ciocanelu

uno99

Ontario (Canada)

3.95/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Well I rarely bother to review a pilsner, but in my opinion this is right up there with the best classic and easily available examples from Europe.

Appearance: I love the label/can design. 3 colors. Minimal design. No bullshit that we as craft beer drinkers are used to being bombarded with. Reminds me of a KMFDM album cover. Beer is fairly pale straw but more amber than a weaker pilsner variant. Head sticks around a good while in my Carlsburg stange glassware.

Smell: Nice bright crystal malts. Reminiscent of a cream cracker. A little bit of minty hops. No euro lager swill skunk and funk going on. Very clean on the nose even when allowed to warm to near room temp.

Taste: The malt is the hero here. very well balanced though near the finish with some decent hop presence. Once the beer warms up the taste lingers for a good while and it is very pleasant.

Mouthfeel: Nice acidic apple upfront. Rather bitter middle and semi juicy on the finish. Would like it to be a bit drier. Finish goes on and on though.

Overall: You can't do much better for a European Pils. Don't overlook this one - Right up there with Budvar and Pilsner Urquell

Serving type: can

09-13-2012 22:59:47 | More by uno99

endovelico

Portugal

3.48/5  rDev -2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I came across this beer at a quirky Austrian café, in downtown Lisbon, on a searing hot end of morning. As the waiter, stumblingly but proudly tried to nuance out the differences between the limited range of Austrian lagers available, the scientific description of 'Sweetest of the bunch' grabbed my attention as it's often the case that testimonies of the sort will point to the most interesting beers of a bunch.

The undescriptive, laconic label left me in doubt as it could be interpreted as both a half-ass commercial lager or as a endearingly amateurish label that could point to some kind of regionality and hence, untouched big-business hands.

The brew had a deep golden color with semi-persistent foam and low perceived carbonation while the aroma is subdued and skewing towards noble hops character, cooked vegetables and grass.

By now I'm tepidly reassured, as this is most likely a heller (or at least something brisk with
some hop character) and will provide some flavor and plenty of refreshing qualities needed to ease the kilning i was being subjected to. It's somewhat chewy, but relatively effervescent; medium light bodied, but with decent kick of hop bitterness. Low in alcohol, but graceful in the was that it lets the ABV show through the other 'layers'.

The taste is evergreen-ish, minty with notes of honey sickle and the ubiqutuous cooked vegetables, denouncing the probability of corn or just slack brewing procedures. Nonetheless, regardless of what central European lager category it belongs to, it's still a pretty unremarkable beer.

Serving type: bottle

09-08-2012 14:55:08 | More by endovelico

ccrida

Oregon

3.53/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

The 33cl bottle is the same label as pictured, but the bottom of the label states "goldbrau premium lager", which BA has listed separately as a marzen, which this most certainly is not...poured into my Straub pils glass, Stiegl is a spritzy gold with a small white head leaving zero lace.

Smell is cereals and a little doughy. A kiss of skunky hops overcome by sweetness.

Taste is on the sweeter side, clean cereals, and a slight hint of earthy hops.

Mouthfeel is dry, spritzy but not sharp, light bodied.

Drinkability is pretty good, classic and well executed. Not much here, it's good, but simple, leaning on the sweet side, but not cloying.

Serving type: bottle

09-02-2012 01:53:57 | More by ccrida

confer

Pennsylvania

3.9/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I got this in a .5 brown bottle unlike the one in the picture, at Total Wine in De.
Pale yellow and crystal clear, white head that fade quickly. Lots of carbonation.
Light malty aroma.
Taste is sweet and lemony, very small hop bite, but that is what dominates the aftertaste.
Light and refreshing, easy drinking.
Now I need to go to Austria and drink a real fresh one.

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2012 02:47:13 | More by confer

mick303

Ontario (Canada)

3.73/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

500 mL can from the LCBO, BB(13/3/2013). Pours a good head of soapy foam, leaving a slight film and good lace. Colour is medium straw gold.

Smell has fresh straw and crisp pilsner hoppiness. Slightly floral and light, with a slight citrus note.

Taste is initially fruity, with red fruit, citrus and apples, before crisp dry hops come through. Develops nicely on the palate, very drinkable. Hops are fairly underplayed, form a good part of the body of the beer, but not too bold.

Mouthfeel is crisp, carbonation is good. Light-medium bodied, with a smooth body and good drinkability. Quite dry on the finish.

Much more smooth and palatable than some in this style. All of the typical pilsner character, without too much to distinguish it. Good, crisp and dry, with a nice initial fruit character. Sessionable and quite refreshing.

Serving type: can

08-13-2012 21:24:51 | More by mick303

McStagger

California

3.73/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours the standard pilsner yellow. Good, two finger white head with nice retention and great lacing. Ample carbonation. Looks just about perfect.

S: Clean malt bill. Touch bready, metallic, grassy. Touch of sulfur, lemon.

T: Thick (for the style) layer of malt in this one. Earthy hop presence overtakes about mid swig. Bit of doughiness from the yeast. Tart lemon. Subtle bitterness that is accentuated with a mineral/metallic edge Fairly dry, with a touch of citric hoppiness (lemon peel) entering the fold at the end.

M: A bit heavier bodied than many pilsners I've had. Not a bad thing. The carbonation, though ample, does struggle to keep up with the mouthfeel and this beer feels a tad heavy for a pilsner.

O: Beer looks great. And it has some complexity. It just falls short of pilsner greatness. Miss that zingy hop edge that pilsners bring, I guess.

Serving type: bottle

08-09-2012 05:27:42 | More by McStagger

RblWthACoz

Pennsylvania

3.53/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This is a decent pilsner, though it's heavy on the malts, which gives a sweeter tone to it. Fairly one dimensional, but it's consistent. A nice enough beer that goes beyond the typical yellow fizzy stage. Kind of a small bottle though, which doesn't make too much sense for such a low abv beer, imo.

Serving type: bottle

07-30-2012 16:28:04 | More by RblWthACoz

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A - Pale yellow. Small amount of white head.

S - Bready malts with some sweetness. Saaz hops profile evident with light to moderate hopping and floral aroma.

T - Same as nose. Some sweet bready malts with light sazz-like hopping. Good overall balance.

M - Light body. Moderate carbonation.

Serving type: on-tap

07-13-2012 13:01:40 | More by TheSevenDuffs

NV9

Ontario (Canada)

3.3/5  rDev -7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a can into a craft pint glass.

Not too much head with this one, no lacing, clear deep golden colour.

Citrus and metallic are what I smell.

Taste is much better than what I expected from smell and look of it, was expecting just another pilsener but this is good. Very clean, a bit of spice and definite hops present.

A bit watery on the finish and light carbonation.

Overall would definitely go back to this one.

Serving type: can

07-06-2012 00:59:16 | More by NV9

Converge

Alberta (Canada)

3.6/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

500ml can poured into a 22.3oz pilsner glass.

A - Pours a vibrant golden-yellow, with a color much more bold than the average lager. Frothy bone-white head rises up and out of the glass off the pour. Not much head retention, but a nice frothy cap. No lacing.

S - Surprisingly, this smells really great. Clean pale barley malt upfront, with some grassy noble hops and honey aromas giving it some character. There's a sweet apple presence here too, almost like honey glazed apples. No skunk whatsoever in the smell, and I thank this nice can serving for that!

T - A sweet and simple profile overall. Pilsner malt upfront gives it a much more grainy taste than the aroma had me thinking. Notes of subtle honey sweetness, crisp apples, and mild noble hops make up the flavor. Not as sweet or as clean as the smell was, with some off metallic/skunky flavors coming through as well.

M - A bigger body than most lagers; I'd pin this at about medium bodied. Carbonation is high, but not fizzy, it's just right. Appropriate feel for the style, but nothing great.

D - Unspectacular, but also unoffensive for the most part. I'm not overly familiar with German Pilseners, but to me this seems like a decent, drinkable representation of the style. It may be a patio beer at best, but there's certainly worse ones out there than this.

Serving type: can

05-21-2012 00:56:26 | More by Converge

steveh

Illinois

4.1/5  rDev +15.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

On a Stiegl kick after enjoying one many years since the last one.

'm afraid of the (apparent) Julian code dating on the label of this bottle -- this beer is probably 7 months old, but let's live dangerously.

A -- Pours a very pale, clear straw gold color with a dense, long-lasting white head.

S -- Good balance of spicy, herbal hops and bready malts with the scales tipping to the hops.

T -- Mildly citrus and herbal hops up front that fold into the lightest, bready malt and finishes with a dry, bitter hoppiness. Spicy bitterness lingers through the aftertaste.

M -- Mouthfeel is very soft with the lightest crispness and a light body.

O -- Another highly drinkable, enjoyable beer from Stiegl. The brewery is making some great light lagers that prove the style isn't inherently bland.

Serving type: bottle

05-02-2012 20:56:42 | More by steveh

Maxwell

Massachusetts

2.43/5  rDev -31.5%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

Appearance: Pours a cloudy yellow fresh pressed apple juice, with a nice eggshell white head that dissipates quickly and leaves at best a light lacing. Very light carbonation

Smell: Smells almost wheat-like with a very bready up front kick. There’s almost an apple juice like tinge to the back of the smell.

Taste: Taste is bready with malts, yet crisp and clean, and again there is a slight tinge of sweet apple juice and a slight caramel feel. After taste is a lingering sweet on the edges of the mouth.

Mouthfeel: Very watery with little to no carbonated tingle. Very clean and smooth on the tongue, I suppose, but over all just very watery.

Overall: This is a meh beer. The malty/apple-juicey taste is strange in a lager and the mouth feel, while extremely drinkable, isn’t very compatible with the heavier feeling that the lager leaves in the stomach.

Serving type: bottle

04-28-2012 23:17:31 | More by Maxwell

sergio1va

California

4.23/5  rDev +19.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours to a golden yellow color with a small white foam head. Notes of grains and wheat combined with a well balanced carbonation. Mild bitterness and hop profile makes this Pilsner a very pleasant sessionable beer.
This brand is not very common in the U.S. but a clear example of a good pils.

Serving type: bottle

04-27-2012 03:56:53 | More by sergio1va

tigg924

Massachusetts

3.93/5  rDev +10.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Had on tap at New World Tavern, Plymouth

Appearance: 1/4 head, medium carbonation, gold in color, clear

Smell: grass and honey

Taste: big dose of honey, grass and light hops in the background

Mouthfeel: sweet with slight bitterness in the finish, moderate carbonation, light bodied

Overall: Nothing too complex but a nice and light pilsner that I could have several glasses of. An excellent summer beer. Happy to have found this on draft.

Serving type: on-tap

04-18-2012 12:46:31 | More by tigg924

timtwoface

British Columbia (Canada)

3.28/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

I tried this for the first time last night, poured into a Stiegl glass from a 500mL can.

This beer tastes very much like the other pilsners I've had from central European countries. It's light, yet refreshing, and still has that ever so mild skunkiness that I come to expect with these particular beers. Not a favourite but still definitely drinkable - I must have enjoyed it enough, since I had 3.

Serving type: can

04-14-2012 16:42:27 | More by timtwoface

tobelerone

New Jersey

3.58/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Clear pale yellow body, excellent white cap of foam that settles slowly. Lace is good. Malty aroma, somewhat sweet and bready, with the anticipated aroma of Saaz hops, floral and a bit grassy. The taste is close but a little unbalanced in my view; the malt is a bit too sweet for me, less bready and cracker-like than I’d hoped, and the hops tend towards the plainly bitter, with much of the floral subtleties a bit buried. There’s a touch of honey to the taste which I found covered up the other flavor aspects too much. Would have liked a slightly drier flavor overall.

The finish ends up dry enough, however, with just a little bit of lingering bitterness. Body is medium light, carbonation is moderate enough but still crisp; draft gives this an appealing mouthfeel that’s both smooth and clean. A highly drinkable Pils but for me, not a standout.

Serving type: on-tap

03-30-2012 14:51:54 | More by tobelerone

ckollias

Maryland

3.3/5  rDev -7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Enjoyed this 11.2oz bottle out of a large snifter glass.

A: Pours a clear golden-orange hue with a thin, 2-finger, white, head that quickly dissipates into a wispy lace leaving a semi trail down the glass..

S: Skunky pilsner aroma with hints of grains and bread.

T: Crisp and clean and slightly bitter. Similar to the smell a there is a little bit of a skunky flavor with hints bread in the background.

M: Medium body and medium carbonation.

O: This was a decent pilsner – a little skunky – but interesting flavors and aromas.

Serving type: bottle

03-28-2012 02:31:13 | More by ckollias

cbutova

Massachusetts

3.15/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

A- Light golden hue poured into a pint glass. Small white head forms with a bubbly texture and fizzes down fairly quickly. A few small webs of lace.

S- Just a touch of grassy, floral hops above a light malt backbone. Not a ton of aromatic strength, gotta search for it. No skunking even with the green bottle.

T- Hops are there for me right away and they have a Pils feel for sure, I want to say they have a "green" grassy feel but I am not sure if that is the right descriptor. Grassy, herbal and a bit piney overall hops with a light cracker, caramel malt backbone. Yeast bread and light fruit character also comes into play.

MF- Foamy light body with a somewhat creamy overall feel. Bitterness on the palate in the finish.

Not a bad Pils when it comes down to it. I would drink this over many BMCs and other lighter imports.

Serving type: bottle

03-06-2012 03:57:45 | More by cbutova