301873 Sat Apr 15 13:46:22 -0700 2006 4 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1685976 About a month ago I stumbled onto Trumer Pils. The original brewery is in Salzburg, but now it is being brewed in Berkeley CA. Wow! To my taste preferences it is the best American beer I have ever drunk. Brings back memories of the beers of southern Bavaria, which were my favorites when I traveled in Europe. Unlike most imported European beers, this had a wonderful freshness along with hopiness and a touch of malt flavor. Maybe those budweiser ads about fresh beer have a point. But this beer is not only fresh tasting, but good tasting and complex as well. Your results may differ. ed Sat Apr 15 13:46:22 -0700 2006 0 e.d. 1 1686023 the smaller breweries do a fantastic job with beer in the US. i've recently found and become a huge fan of dogfish head. their raison d'etre is exactly that. described as a wine of beers, it truly is since it's brewed with beet sugars and raisins. amazing stuff that's turning my head to smaller american microbrews. they're completely out of the raison d'etre in canada (well at least in toronto) but the 60min indian pale ale is due to make an appearance in an lcbo near you ;) give it a shot. Link: http://tongueandcheek.ca Sun Apr 16 10:11:03 -0700 2006 1685976 0 pinstripeprincess 1 1686025 The Budweiser adds about freshness are true for many, but not all beers. While certainly true for an Pilsner such as Trumer, many beers benefit from aging and some can last and improve over many years. Many of the darker Belgian styles benefit from aging, as do other high gravity styles from England, Scotland, Germany and the US. I have been to vertical tastings of the last 15 years of Anchor's Christmas Ale, and all vintages are drinking well. Over the last few years, American craft brewers are becoming increasingly creative and putting out a variety of beer styles that are worth exploring and, in some cases, aging. I'm glad you enjoyed the Trumer Pils. If you like that beer, make sure you try Victory's Prima Pils, which I think is the best German Pilsner on the market. Then compare it to Rogue's Morimoto Imperial Pilsner, that takes the German Pilsner style and cranks it up a notch both in flavor and alcohol content. Sun Apr 16 11:17:50 -0700 2006 1685976 0 brentk 2 1686149 Thanks for the response. I appreciate the suggestions. I probably should have mentioned that I do have much experience drinking American craft beers. I was in Portland in the early 80's at the birth of the craft beer revolution - in fact, I was drinking Grant's Scottish when it was the only American craft brew. Over the years I have sampled probably over a thousand different ales and beers. One thing I have learned is what I like best. While I understand that this is a matter of personal taste not absolute value, I am not fond of beers with too heavy a malt content. So in general dark ales or traditional British ales are not my favs. Belgian ale has never won a place in my heart. When I do drink ales, I prefer the more heavily hopped varieties like IPOs and especially Pliny the Elder, which I find magnificent. In more readily available brews, Sierra Nevada is (imho) a well brewed ale to my taste. But my real passion is pilsener. I like Urquell and some imported German pilsners. But what strikes me about Trumer is that it is, again to my taste, almost perfect: it has wonderful balance with some malt and pronounced hops, but it is also complex and easy drinking. I don't want it cranked up a notch (and I wish someone would wash out Emeril's mouth). I certainly don't want more alcohol; I like to drink 3 or 4 and still walk. It is a great companion to food without being overpowering. Too often, it seems to me, American craft brewers try to show off too hard, try to make all their flavors imposing and powerful as if they are thumping their chests and proclaiming "THIS IS NOT BUDWEISER." On the other hand, to my taste, Trumer Pils is just a truly fine, balanced, and fresh beer. As I said earlier, your results may differ. ed Tue Apr 18 11:19:58 -0700 2006 1686025 0 e.d. 3 1686212 I think there are a few dynamics in play w/American craft-beer drinkers. First, craft beers tend to be ales due to the circumstances of their origin, and ales are more assertive than lagers. Second, people seem not to be able to get enough hops. I think this second trend will mitigate over time and people will hold more appreciation for subtlety in a beer. Tue Apr 18 19:51:52 -0700 2006 1686149 0 Jim Dorsch