Top 42 Lagers

The humble lager. Widely imbibed and deeply misunderstood, this easy-drinking beer style is light on the palate and eminently quaffable. It is a style that a beer neophyte would likely think of when doing word association simply the word “beer.”

Once the purview of megalithic corporations the world over, the pendulum of popular taste has swung back around, and lagers and light lagers are now among the most widely produced styles by craft brewers all over the world.

However, while this style might be easy to glug down, it is actually quite exacting to brew, as it has to be precisely brewed as there are no adjuncts or extremely strong flavors present to hide any imperfections in the brew. If not made correctly, brewers (and patrons) will be able to tell immediately.

The beers on this list, of course, were all made perfectly and deliver that wonderful, smooth flavor that lagers should deliver every time.

A note: While most would think of standard American Lagers or American Light Lagers as the standard-bearers for the “lager” family of beers, there is actually a wide breadth of substyles within the macro style of “lager.” Darker styles such as Vienna Lagers, Munich Dunkels and even seasonal favorites such as Oktoberfest are present on this list, as well as other darker lagers that might make one raise an eyebrow. Just remember, lagers are popular all over the world all year round, and the American style is just one of the myriad options among hundreds. Embrace diversity and try some other lagers if you love the style, as this list has plenty of options within. Happy drinking!

#42

94
Swipe Light
Southern Tier Brewing Co.

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#41

94
Steamworks Pilsner
Steamworks Brewing Co.

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“Overall the beer is a delight of balance between pilsner-style malt and floral-herbal hop tones, where the yeast mostly stays out the way. This beer would be fantastic with a spicy meal like citrus-marinated prawns pan fried with red pepper flakes. If you like golden, hop-forward lagers, this example is definitely recommended.” – Judge David Sapsis

#40

94
Festie Oktoberfest Lager
Starr Hill Brewery

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#39

94
Weekender
ZēLUS Beer Co.

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#38

94
Ahnapee Oktoberfest
Ahnapee Brewery

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“Many U.S.-made märzens miss the boat by coming off too sweet with too much caramel malt flavor. This one does not. Its hop-malt balance hits the mark and it finishes crisp and clean. The beer loses a couple points on aroma – it’s a little low – and on appearance and head retention. The brewer hits it out of the park on flavor, however.” – Judge Pat Mulloy

#37

94
pFriem Japanese Lager
pFriem Family Brewers

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#36

94
Free Time
Upland Brewing Co.

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#35

94
Great Lakes Oktoberfest
Great Lakes Brewing Co.

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#34

94
Yurei
Arches Brewing

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“Yurei is an exceptional lager. The lager has a quality pils malt flavor that is well balanced by a unique hop that has traditional noble hops (spicy and herbal) characters to go along with the citrus and apricot notes. Cheers, Prost, Kanpai!” – Judge Michael Heniff

#33

94
Enter Night Pilsner
Stone Brewing

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#32

94
Altbairisch Dunkel
Brauerei Ayinger

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“A Bavarian fixture for 150 years, Privatbrauerei Ayinger is one of the world’s classic breweries. The extensive lineup of traditional Old World beers includes the lightly chocolaty, faintly herbaceous Altbairisch Dunkel, a beer of exceptional depth and complexity. Swirling notes of figs and sweet toffee punctuate the nose’s tantalizing fresh-baked bread aroma, all topped by a passing waft of spicy German hops.” – BC Review

#31

94
Sprezzatura
Arches Brewing

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#30

94
KC Helles Lager
KC Bier Co.

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#29

94
Lager Drink
Moniker Brewery

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“Very enjoyable lager that could easily be your go-to beer. Some may want or expect increased corn, but I don’t think that’s necessary or even historically accurate. The corn serves to provide some sweetness and rounds off the bittering hops. If anything, I would say the beer could use more bitterness to come closer to what I expect the style was like before Prohibition.” – Judge Rick Franckhauser

#28

94
Timbo Pils
Highland Park Brewery

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#27

94
North Fork Lager
Payette Brewing Co.

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“Overall, the beer is a joy of honest and sparkling clean fermentation characteristics that allows blond malt tones to prevail against a delicately balanced hop profile that has nice elements from nose through bitterness, all the way to end-game flavors. This is a really outstanding beer, and in a style that I truly love.” – Judge David Sapsis

#26

94
Upslope Japanese Style Lager
Upslope Brewing Co.

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#25

95
Seedstock Oktoberfest
Seedstock Brewery

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#24

95
pFriem Vienna Lager
pFriem Family Brewers

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“This beer is simple, elegant, and expertly balanced, highlighting classic ingredients of light kilned (Vienna, low color Munich) malts and wonderfully floral and spicy continental hops, all packaged up in a crisp and tight lager of modest strength that is both drinkable and complex enough to be savored. It is simply outstanding.” – Judge David Sapsis

#23

95
Sesiόn Cerveza
Full Sail Brewing Co.

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#22

95
Maibock
Devils Backbone Brewing Co.

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#21

95
Flensburger Dunkel
Flensburger Brauerei

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“Super fresh and clean, nearly perfect. At taste, light and spry on the palate. It is a touch on the sweet side, and a hint more bitterness up front would be great, but it’s still super well attenuated and drinkable. Rich and bready while maintaining its lean character. This is nearly as good as anything I’ve had overseas, and it makes sense that it is a German brewer making this. Fantastic.” – Judge Brian Eichhorn

#20

95
pFriem Pilsner
pFriem Family Brewers

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#19

95
Stick Shift Lager
Garage Brewing Co.

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#18

95
Pinky Sweater
Sketchbook Brewing Co.

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“This beer is very well attenuated and has a dry, cleansing finish that is smooth, crisp and the most refreshing thing you’ll drink all summer. It has a medium-light body that possesses a unique texture, making it feel fuller. Despite this beer’s clean and neutral character, there is no mistaking it for a macro lager; its subtleties are revelatory.” – Judge Jim Koebel

#17

95
Jolly Roger Black Lager
Eddyline Brewing

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#16

95
pFriem Canadian Lager
pFriem Family Brewers

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#15

95
American AF
Gnarly Barley Brewing Co.

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“This excellent example–American AF–makes me wonder why craft light lagers aren’t a larger phenomenon. Upon pouring it has a pleasantly sweet corn aroma with a touch of bready malt. There is a faint, generic ‘adjunct’ aroma in the background that would be expected in any light lager. It pours with a low white head and is a clear, straw color. This beer has bready malt flavors and a tasty dose of corn. Hop flavors are low and herbal. It is lightly bitter and dry throughout. Overall, this is a really tasty beer.” – Judge Jim Koebel

#14

96
KC Bier Co. Festbier
KC Bier Co.

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“To the credit of the brewer, the intense clean malt character found here did not manifest itself via overly sweet caramel malt flavors that often accompany this style, which are avoidable through the process of time-consuming traditional German decoction mashing. As in the aroma, hops were gently expressed in only a complementary fashion. This is a well-conceived Vienna Lager full of malt complexity that touches on the high end of the gravity scale yet is still highly drinkable.” – Judge James Link

#13

96
Gold Lager
Stoudts Brewing Co.

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#12

96
Southside Lager
Arches Brewing

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#11

96
East Brother Festbier
East Brother Beer Co.

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“This beer is barely within the style guidelines as a Festbier; it’s at the high end of the malt, in particular, but it works very well as everything is really nicely balanced, producing a world-class example of this style. This is a perfect beer to go with a family grilling session – especially bratwursts.” – Judge Nelson Crowle

#10

96
Cruise Control
Two Roads Brewing Co.

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“The flavor bears the hallmarks of this style with a grainy-malt sweetness that is not overbearing and well balanced with modest hop bitterness. The water even has a mineral quality suggestive of classic Munich brewing water. Modest herbal and earthy hop flavors add an additional quality to the flavor. The carbonation lends a subtle carbonic bite to the medium-low body of this Helles. There is really nothing to complain about as this is a world-class representation of the Munich Helles style from start to finish. I am finding myself recalling fond memories of a liter of Helles in a Munich biergarten.” – Judge John C. Tull

#9

96
Highland Pilsner
Highland Brewing Co.

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“If you are seeking a world-class German Pils that is brewed in America, look no further. Refreshing and subtly complex, every aspect of this beer is identifiable, clean and fresh. There is a real synergy as each element of the beer works to complement the other. I suppose if you prefer a more Bavarian interpretation of the style you would want some additional depth to the malt character but that would be purely a matter of personal preference.” – Judge Rick Franckhauser

#8

96
Devils Backbone Vienna Lager
Devils Backbone Brewing Co.

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“The malt flavor is clean and toasty, with hints of freshly baked bread and a touch of nuttiness. None of this is very big. It is a Vienna Lager, after all, not an Oktoberfest, but the flavors all work well together… Few amber lagers and ales express malt as smooth and clean as this. Not a big beer, but soft and thirst-quenching. It’s refreshing to see lighter beers with this much subtle complexity.” – Judge Tom Cannon

#7

97
Göller Dunkel
Brauerei Göller

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“Overall, Göller Dunkel hits all of the marks for what I’m looking for in a dunkel. My biggest issue with the beer is that I only received two bottles from which to judge; both went down much too fast. Seriously though, the only aspect keeping this Dunkel from perfection was a slight tinge of age/oxidation. That aspect alone wouldn’t stop me from buying a case of it.” – Judge Michael Bury

#6

97
Mexican Empire
Arches Brewing

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“A truly remarkable example of the style that showcases high-quality malt and doesn’t seem to sacrifice flavor by using adjuncts like many modern interpretations. If European Lager styles are truly making a comeback, this beer should stand out as one of the reasons why. A world-class Vienna Lager that should be sought out wherever possible.” – Judge Sean Coughlin

#5

97
Hofbräu Dunkel
Staatliches Hofbräuhaus

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“The venerated Hofbräuhaus invariably comes up in any discussion concerning “classic” or “epic” breweries, and their sublime Münchner Dunkel most certainly contributes to the reverence in which beer aficionados hold the brewery. This beer bursts with lush aromas of sweet caramel and light toffee, accentuated by a solid punch of spicy Munich malt. Yet another demonstration of Hofbräuhaus’s artistry, Münchner Dunkel is a most satisfying beer, as well-suited to a warm spring afternoon as it is to après-ski quaffing.” – BC Review

#4

97
Sirène
Arches Brewing

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“The pils malt flavor is crackery and grainy. This beer is crisp with medium body and moderate high carbonation. Overall, this beer is supremely well balanced and a world-class brew. Its flavors are individually familiar but come together in a way that is particularly delicious. It’s always a fun surprise to find an exciting take on a common style. This is a stellar beer — one of the best I’ve had all year.” – Judge Jim Koebel

#3

98
Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier
Brauerei Heller-Trum

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“While rauchbiers may not be every beer drinker’s choice for a session beer and are somewhat of an acquired taste, this is the stuff of liters for beer connoisseurs. Schlenkerla is a world-class beer and a perfect complement to any evening meal.” – BC Review

#2

98
Privat
Brauhaus Riegele

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“You won’t be disappointed in the very least with Brauhaus Riegele’s Privat. It’s a nigh-perfect interpretation of a Festbier that demands to be imbibed  by the boot or the liter.  The clean fermentation allows both the malt and hops to shine. You’ll be disappointed if you only picked up a 6-pack, since you’ll want many, many more. This highly flavorful yet easy-to-drink beer can be appreciated by the beer connoisseur and the less devoted beer drinker alike.” – Judge Michael Bury

#1

99
Prima Pils
Victory Brewing Co.

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“Prima Pils, one of Victory’s flagship beers, is nothing less than the quintessential German-style pilsner, rivaling anything that Germany has to offer. The aroma, overflowing with flowery, spicy Saaz hop notes, permeates the room as the beer slips into the glass. Holding true to its Germanic antecedents, Prima Pils is topped by a pillowy, pure white head and fairly glows in the glass, bathing the room in a suffused golden wash of light. As expected, a pleasantly stinging hop bitterness dominates the flavor, but there are gobs of flowery, faintly resinous hop flavors as well. The panel members were effusive in their praise of this brilliantly executed, world-class pilsner, agreeing that this is one of very few beers that is perfectly suited for anything, anytime, anywhere.” – BC Review