Gold Lager

A pristine, delicately balanced pale lager, Stoudt’s Gold is eminently drinkable, brimming with floral hops and sweet, bready malt. The judges offered unanimous praise for this beer’s beautiful golden color, brilliant clarity and thick, long-lasting, creamy-white head. As befits the Munich helles style, the aroma offers teases of spicy, floral Saaz and Hallertau hops, with a delicate background of soft, luscious, lightly sweetish malt. Tim enjoyed the delicate underpinning of floral hop aromas that lurked just behind the sweet malt, while Rick commented on the hops’ faint nutmeg-like spiciness. While some of the judges found this beer slightly bitter for the style, all agreed that the flavors were exceptionally well-balanced. Tom was impressed by the interplay between this beer’s firm hop bitterness and sweet, cookie-like malt, as well as its quenching crispness. Starting off sweet and malty, the flavor quickly shifts to solid hop bitterness and bright, spicy hop flavors. Pete appreciated the assertive hop presence and noted that although its level was more appropriate in a pilsner, the beer still showed a lot of finesse. Another fine effort from Carol Stoudt, this is a world-class lager that would not be out of place in any Munich biergarten.