Let's talk about pilsner. Certainly, you've heard the name before, even if a genuine craft beer has never passed your lips. Maybe you've downed a few Miller Lites in your time, though, and noticed that on the label the beer proclaims itself "A Fine Pilsener Beer", or "A True Pilsener Beer". Loosely speaking, that's true, and most American Light Lagers are based on pilsners, although they've had their hops surgically removed.

Such beers as Budweiser, Michelob, Miller High Life and others got their inspiration from the original pilsner, Pilsner Urquell, which is a far more faithful interpretation of the style we now know as Bohemian Pilsner. Bohemian Pilsners are noted for their soft, biscuity malt, gentle butteriness, and assertive hop character, and abound in today's Czech Republic, where they got their start.

But wait. There's more. Not to be outdone, the Germans have their own variation that they call Pils. German Pilsner has a crisper, dryer malt character than Bohemian pilsner, and an even more pronounced hop finish. And it is just this style that Boston Beer Company's Samuel Adams Noble Pils attempts to emulate.

Every year, Boston Beer Company's Jim Koch makes a pilgrimage to Germany to select the best German hops for his beer. Much is made of this annual journey, and it's as much symbolic as it is effective. Still, it does display the company's commitment to producing really great beer, that of founder Jim Koch most especially.

When he goes to Germany, Koch is looking for "noble" hops, and Samuel Adams Noble Pils is brewed with all five varieties. Noble hops are known for their earthy, grassy, spicy herbal aroma and flavor, and for the amount of bitterness they impart. The four German noble hops are Tettnang, Spalt, Hallertau, and Herrsbrucker; the Czechs contribute Saaz to complete the set.

Samuel Adams Noble Pils is brewed with all five of these hop varieties.

To be sure, this is not the first pilsner beer that Boston Beer has produced. Their flagship brew, Samuel Adams Boston Lager, is broadly in the pilsner style. Samuel Adams Golden Pilsner is closer to a Bohemian pils, and the company has even toyed with some over-strength, super-hopped "Imperial Pilsners" (a special one-off 2005 Hop Harvest and Hallertau Imperial Pilsner).  

Samuel Adams Noble Pils pours to a light, brilliant golden color with a moderate, creamy head formation and a wonderfully herbal hop nose. I'm drinking my first bottle decanted into a bulb-capped Samuel Adams "perfect" beer glass", and as the liquid descends a light layer of Brussels lace clings to the sides. One sip and I'm in love: crisp, extremely refreshing biscuity malt forms the body of the brew.

But wait. There's more. Hops, of course, and they come at you in a big way. At first very aromatic and herbal, minty and grassy, they evolve into a delightfully long and dry lingering bitter  punctuation. They also help to make the beer decidedly more-ish, and I found that my first glass disappeared with reckless abandon. Fortunately, my second lasted a bit longer, paired as it was with an herb crusted pork roast, broccoli cheese risotto, and carrots in a lemon pepper butter.

To be sure, this is German-styled pilsner, and you'd have no difficulty convincing me it was imported straight from Germany. It reminds me of classic German Pils the likes of Konig Pilsener, Bitburger Pils, and perhaps most of all the spicy North German favorite, Jever Pils. Not to be missed, it's sold on tap and bottled in 6 and 12 packs. I paid $7.99 for a six-pack, the new standard these days, and it was worth every penny.

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