Augustiner Bräu Lagerbier Hell - Augustiner-Bräu Wagner KG

mikesgroove

South Carolina

4.45/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Nice light golden color comes through right away. Really tight head of white that sits on top for what seems like forever but then suddenly dropped off leaving it all bare.

Nice touches of light bready malts, caramel, light grasses and well rounded and nicely done hop profile. Warming brings out cereal grains, touches of light grass and a well carbonated and easily maintained profile. Extremely session able with an amazingly crisp and clean flavor, I had no issues at all with putting this one down.

Serving type: bottle

08-08-2011 00:30:44 | More by mikesgroove

Thorpe429

Illinois

4.47/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Consumed 11.02.2010. Thanks to drabmuh for helping me get this one.

Pours a modest yellow straw color with a white head. A good pours doesn't yield a large head, though there's a good amount of lacing. The nose is slightly sweet and brings a really nice pale grain scent. The taste is fairly plain and difficult to describe, but is quite, quite good. Light straw and grain with a touch of sweetness. The feel is excellent, with a nice amount of carbonation and is incredibly soon. Uber sessionable, this is one fine beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-03-2010 20:52:09 | More by Thorpe429

NeroFiddled

Pennsylvania

4.55/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Clear, bright gold body topped by a bright white head that holds OK but drops to a standard collar and whispy surface foam. Great Munich malt aroma and delicate hop background. The body is medium with a very fine and moderate carbonation that leaves it creamy in the mouth. The flavor is of richly malty Munich malts supported by spicy hops. Long malty finish. This is a very straightforward beer with a great Munich malt character. Quite an exceptional beer. Not complex, but with a great depth of malt character. Sweet, but also very well-balanced and exceptionally drinkable. Absolutely worth seeking out.

Serving type: bottle

10-13-2002 18:07:39 | More by NeroFiddled

drabmuh

Maryland

4.18/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a bottle into a Kostrizer Schwarzbier stein. Beer is light yellow and mostly clear with a thin white head of tiny bubbles and high carbonation, low lacing. Looks good.

Aroma is mildly grainy mildly sweet.

Beer is light in body and bright on the palate. Carbonation is high on the palate the back flavors fall away quickly leaving a nice finish with no aftertaste. Beer is moderately dry but its not bone dry, leaving a nice feeling in my mouth. The graininess gives the beer a nice flavor and overall its a really nice drinking beer. Probably the best helles I've ever had.

Serving type: bottle

10-19-2010 02:08:52 | More by drabmuh

Gueuzedude

Arizona

4.33/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Fresh on tap in Munich.
A nice pale gold color. This beer was perfect for a hot day in Munich, crisp, dry and quenching. I has a great hop bitterness that was accompanied by a subtle maltiness. The hop bitterness definitely dominates the flavor of this one, but it also has the malt backbone to balance. A very good example of a Helles, far better than most.

Serving type: on-tap

08-26-2003 17:00:16 | More by Gueuzedude

rhoadsrage

Illinois

3.9/5  rDev -6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

(Served in a imperial strange)
A- This beer has a crystal clear pale golden yellow hued body with a mousse snow white head that was a bit bubbly on top. There is a big carbonation of microbubbles gliding to the surface. S- This beer has a light green herbal and sulfur note with a very soft raw grain hint coming through as the beer warms.
T- This beer has a light pale malt hint with mineral water note to the soft Noble hop green flavor in the finish. There is a very light sweetness in the finish aswell.
M- This beer has a light mouthfeel with a tight fizz finish.
D- This beer has a very soft smooth light flavor but the sulfur is mild and blends well with the slight sweetness. The hops are not all pungent but still pretty light and dry. It is a refreshing crisp beer just a little drab.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2010 22:38:43 | More by rhoadsrage

Jason

Massachusetts

4.3/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Presentation: 12 oz slender brown Euro style bottle, no freshness date.

Appearance: Bright straw colour with a two fingered white lace that holds strong, lace sticks all over the glass.

Smell: Hay-like grainy aroma with hints of grape skin and husk, quick run of herbal hop also.

Taste: Smooth moderate body with a crisp medium carbonation. Grassy malt flavours throughout, dry from the get go with lots of character from the malt. Flavours run from grain and husk to suggestions of grape skin and grass. Hops are bitter to the point of not getting in the way, still very noticeable by adding to the poignant dry finish.

Notes: Delicate without being complex, flavourful without being complicated. Clean and crisp with an unsurpassing drinkability.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2002 19:46:52 | More by Jason

BlackHaddock

United Kingdom (England)

2.98/5  rDev -28.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Half litre brown bottle, best before July 2010, drank early June 2010 on a warm sunny afternoon in my garden. Poured (3 times) into a Veltins Pilsner stemmed tulip.

Pale golden, as you'd expect from a helles lager. Snow white foaming head on each pour, some lacing, but not huge ammounts.

Weak smell, wheat or straw type esters, otherwise nothing.

The beer is crisp and refreshing, but lacks body, the alcohol is evident from the first sip which makes the beer unbalanced in my book.

The sun makes the beers shine, but all that glisens isn't gold. This is an OK lager, but a long way from something I'd recommend anyone having while tasting German beers.

Serving type: bottle

06-02-2010 16:59:09 | More by BlackHaddock

DoubleJ

California

4.4/5  rDev +6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

On-tap at Augustiner am Platzl, on to the beer:

Bright yellow with string of lace which whip around the mug as the level of the beer drops. The aroma of cut grass, hay, and lemon, which are balanced between each other, adds additional appeal. Then I was caught by surprise how well this tasted. I like myself fresh helles, but there's something about how this tasted which almost made me dance. It's delicate, but at the same time is full of flavor. Wave after wave of grass, citrus, dough, and a light bitterness explode at the scene. It's light bodied with appealing crispness, which helps make this beer not only very drinkable, but also one of the best lagers that I had on my trip.

Serving type: on-tap

05-11-2013 16:41:34 | More by DoubleJ

kojevergas

California

3.23/5  rDev -22.2%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

500ml Bottle into halleroder mini-stein (.3L) in Leipzig, Germany. Acquired in Leipzig. Reviewed live.

A: Pours a four finger head of mild cream, okay thickness, and good retention. Clear yellow colour with few carbonation bubbles.

Sm: Strong smell of cream, hops, and slight barley. Pleasant and inviting.

T: Hoppy! Some nice cream and barley combine with the hops on the climax. Unfortunately, the hops are not distinct and defined, which renders them a bit unidentifiable. It is quite a pleasant and refreshing taste, but is also just shy of being a refreshing one. Balanced but limited by simplicity.

Mf: Nicely coarse without being overly so. Wet and refreshing. The mouthfeel complements the flavours of the body to a degree, but comes short of perfect.

Dr: Average ABV, excellent price, above average beer. Definitely one worth trying, especially for fans of the style. Just don't jump through hoops to get it.

Serving type: bottle

06-06-2011 23:20:08 | More by kojevergas

DrDemento456

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Just got bottles of this in at my local shop

A - Ow wow pours clearer than expected. A nice hazy bright yellow with a half inch of head with aggressive pour.

S - Grainy and malty with a bit of a sugar sweetness, which is very pleasant.

T - Starts off fairly dry moving to a semi - sweet grain or corn and then finishes sweet and wet.

M - Very light and drinkable. Bitterness is way lower than expected.

D - Well this changes my mind that a lager has to be an amber lager before it is sweet. A damn nice and smooth Helles! Better than most with less ABV. Bravo

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2010 05:21:31 | More by DrDemento456

KarlHungus

Minnesota

4.25/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a clear golden color with a white head that dissipates quickly. Smells of spicy hops. Crisp spicy hop flavor with enough malt precence to balance everything out. The mouthfeel is light, and dry. Overall, this would make for a good brew on a hot summer day. It is light and refreshing, but still has a lot of flavor and personality.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2005 04:37:57 | More by KarlHungus

rastaman

United Kingdom (England)

3.18/5  rDev -23.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A nice helles. Nothing fancy however. Grassy, nice drying hops in the finish, lightly fruity. Finish is hoppy and dry and as i mentioned grassy. Also quite crisp aswell, relatively refreshing, softish, lightly fizzy mouthfeel, an easy drinking helles, but not a boring one, very pleasant(Tap-GBBF 03')

Serving type: on-tap

10-02-2003 01:06:32 | More by rastaman

harrymel

Washington

3.13/5  rDev -24.6%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Unk bottle info.

A= pours a nice golden ale with excellent clarity. Single finger of soap suds fall quickly and leave a glass surface. spots are rare on the lacing.

S= not much going on here, sweet, grain, hints of skunk.

T= Grain, lightly bittered (a little more than your typical helles) and nice. No real info to report here, like beer for water.

M= Hollow.

O= I kept drinking it, and ordered another, so, not that bad.

Serving type: bottle

06-15-2011 10:08:12 | More by harrymel

thierrynantes

France

3.73/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Beer bottle (50 cl.), tasted in 2010.

Appearance : golden color, with white foamy head.
Smell : malty and floral notes.
Taste and mouthfeel : sweet malty flavour, a bitter and slightly floral finish.
Drinkability : a good beer in the style Munich Helles Lager.

Serving type: bottle

12-17-2010 18:56:43 | More by thierrynantes

Sunnanek

Sweden

4.35/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours pale golden with a really tall white compact and thick head. The head takes some time to set, and does so leaving rich lacings.

S: Bready sweet corn balanced with a suttle hoppy bitterness. Some faint yeast. Grassy and citric.

T: Rich malt, sweet and bready. In the back there's some bitter hops and citric notes, but that's in the back.

M: Smooth medium body and medium carbonation. Aftertaste is kind of short and mostly sweet.

A: Very nice, very nice indead!

Serving type: bottle

10-26-2011 17:04:04 | More by Sunnanek

StJamesGate

New York

3.73/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Pours white gold with lumpy snow white carpet of foam with trailers. Nose is fresh cut grain, grassy hops and maybe a hint of DMS. Biscuity malts with some straw followed by spice and hay hops. Perhaps a whiff of sulfur. Sweet finish, tingling dry linger. Creamy, crisp, round and lively, light verging on thin.

Superbly balanced and very drinkable. At the same time, a few off notes in there, too. A better than average Helles.

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2011 23:38:14 | More by StJamesGate

Jeffo

Netherlands

4.33/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Found this at Bert's Bierhuis in Utrecht. Sold out very quickly, unfortunately.

Into my Augustiner beer glass.

APPEARANCE: Pours a two finger medium-thick white head. Color is a golden or lemon yellow and is perfectly clear with decent carbonation in the form of bigger bubbles. Head slowly fades to a thin white film. A thin film remains and leaves some solid lacing down the glass. Very nice.

SMELL: Grainy sweet malt with hints of dark bread and a touch of floral hops as well. Decent strength as well. Good nose.

TASTE: A bit of sweet malt up front with some grainy and dark bread notes through the middle. Finishes with some flowery hops, bread, and a touch of bitterness. Aftertaste is mild and long lasting. Good profile for sure.

PALATE: Medium-full body with medium-low end carbonation. Goes down smooth with no bite at all and finishes crisp with just the right amount of dryness on the palate. I understand why they call this vollbier. Can't imagine it getting any better for the style.

OVERALL: Don't be put off by the fact that all the bums drink this around the train station. This is one of the most drinkable and enjoyable lagers of all time and was my beer of choice while in Munich. It's just as good out of the bottle as well. This one rivals, and probably beats, Weihenstephan's Original for top spot in the helles category. One I'll definitely make a staple, especially in the warmer summer months. Should be drunk in Mass quantities. Munich bums have good taste. Very recommended.

Serving type: bottle

07-09-2009 16:00:50 | More by Jeffo

paterlodie

Belgium

4.43/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Best before 06-05. Pours in easy and good with a thick white head that stays well. Nice golden color but litle opalizing.
Smell is wonderfully malty, great yeast and decent but fine hops.
Taste is as a Munich Hell should taste if I may say it or you ask Munich people( I'm oly 50% bavarian). Love this brew thats malty, fresh, fully yeast flavoured and has a nice but quiet bitter aftertaste!

Serving type: bottle

02-12-2005 23:56:18 | More by paterlodie

BeerBelcher

Ohio

3.85/5  rDev -7.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I was really quite pleasantly surprised by this beer. It is an eminently likeable lager with good aroma and fine mouthfeel. It's not extreme and it's not going to blow your socks off, but it really hit the spot.

Its appearance is pale yellow and sparkling, with white head. The beer was rather foamy. It was lightly hoppy in aroma (Saaz?) and its flavor was lightly sweet and bread-y, well balanced with European tasting hops. Mouthfeel was fine and smooth. I thought this beer was very drinkable. Reminds me of the best-tasting Bitburger or Warsteiner I've ever had.

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2007 15:28:02 | More by BeerBelcher

SkeeterHawk

Texas

3.83/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I got this beer from the "bottom shelf" at Spec's here in Houston. Those are singles where part of the six-pack gets broken...or someone switches out the bottles to get an odd number. It wasn't until right before I drank it that I noticed that it had some floaties on the bottom...indicating that it likely has some age on it. A beer this delicate doesn't age well, so my initial expectations are pretty low.

Appearance: Some floaties on the bottom. Poured a super clear golden yellow with a 1/4" white head of active small bubbles. The head was gone within 20 seconds or so to end up a small white layer on top of the beer. There are quite a few bubbles rising to keep some foam on top of the beer.

Aroma: Very light aroma of sweet malts are the dominant player. No apparent oxidation...which is a good thing. The malt is really dry and toasty smelling that is reminiscent of a milkshake. There is a bit of a stale aroma coming out as it warms a bit.
Taste: Very clean flavor. There is some soft cereal-like sweetness to greet you in the beginning of the profile. There is a subtle floral hop presence that is noticeable for a minute in the middle of the profile, but this doesn't last long as the malt takes back over and leads into the finish. The beer tastes like it has a bit of age on it, and finishes a little more dry because of it. The beer is well attenuated, but there is still enough mouthfeel to let you know that was a quality beer you just drank.

Opinion: I really like this beer, but this was a bad example. I will have to get a six-pack just for a review...and get it from a high volume shop so I know it will be fresh. I will post another review when I feel I have a better example.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2006 00:44:43 | More by SkeeterHawk

mdagnew

United Kingdom (Northern Ireland)

3.58/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

500ml bottle bought from Redmonds, Dublin...

Poured a very pale, crystal clear, straw yellow colour... White head poured fairly big and foamy and a good steady stream of carbonation bubbles maintains a good thickish coating throughout... decent amount of sticky lacing...

Aroma - Light maltiness, light peppery hops, spicy fruits (light lemons, apples), some saltiness, light honey sweetness, light cut grassy / peppery notes, floral, slight trace of rubber...

Taste - Peppery and grassy hop bitterness, quite tart fruits (lemons, tart apples), some honey, nice maltiness, herbal notes, salty traces...

Feel - Light and crisp... Light body... Pretty refreshing and drinkable - very sessionable

Overall - A good, clean and very drinkable lager.... nothing groundbreaking but very quaffable... worth a try...

Serving type: bottle

04-25-2008 14:33:27 | More by mdagnew

TheSarge

Illinois

4.53/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

This helles bier pours with a decent amount of bright white head, and has a crystal clear golden body.

The aroma is potent. Lemony Hallertau hops are easily perceptible. There is also the typical grainy huskiness common in beers of this type.

Taste wise this is a delight. There is a solid biscuit character, with a tang of lemony hops. There is a fullness here that I can't quite explain.

This is a light bodied brew with much thirst quenching qualities. This isn't overly carbonated and hits the spot just right. This is probably about the most unique helles lager that comes out of München, even though I am a big fan of Löwenbräu.

Serving type: bottle

06-13-2008 16:00:11 | More by TheSarge

morebeergood

Massachusetts

3.43/5  rDev -17.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

As some of the reviewers also say below, I had the pleasure of drinking a lot of Augustiner at the 2009 Oktoberfest. I loved the Oktoberfest bier served in the tent, and also the lager served at their restaurant near Marienplatz. So when I saw bottles of this on the menu at Post 390 Restaurant in Boston, I thought I'd give it a shot. Well, as they say, it's always freshest at the source. Poured into a pint glass, it had a nice bright yellow color, but lacked the head I was hoping for. Smell was clean and fresh. Taste kinda let me down somewhat. While I could feel that crisp German lager flavor was there, I think the bottle was starting to turn a bit, as it was a bit skunky. Kinda turned me off a bit. An easy beer to drink, but maybe I should have skipped it in the US and just kept the good memories of drinking it at Oktoberfest in my mind.

Serving type: bottle

11-23-2009 23:57:39 | More by morebeergood

bruachan

Rhode Island

3.63/5  rDev -12.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

yup, it's a hell; it's kinda hard to review some of these beers...the differences are quite subtle. decent head to start—lacing looks decent

the aroma is big and malty. it's not a hoppy beer, though i suppose argument could be made that it should be to a certain point. i may detect a little zing at the end

the maltiness is very crisp. a good quaff

Serving type: on-tap

07-04-2006 03:14:18 | More by bruachan