The Brew SiteCanned Beer Week 2: Mama’s Little Yella Pils
During last year’s Canned Beer Week, I spent some time focusing on Oskar Blues Grill & Brewery as they were the first microbrewer to can their beer beginning in 2002. In addition to informally interviewing Marty Jones, their Marketing Director, I also did (post-Week) reviews of three of their beers:
At the time, Oskar Blues beers weren’t available in Oregon at all, Marty graciously sent me the three to review. Since then, I’m happy to report, not only are their beers available in Oregon, but they’ve added a new one to their line: Mama’s Little Yella Pils. I thought it was fitting to kick of Canned Beer Week 2 with a review of MLYP.
Here’s their blurb about the beer:
Our new canned good is a delicious, small-batch version of the beer that made Pilsen, Czechoslovakia famous. Mama’s is made with hearty amounts of pale malt, German specialty malts, and traditional (Saaz) and 21st century Bavarian hops. It’s the perfect antidote for the watered-down, cornfed versions of pilsner clogging America’s shelves. Our first canned lager, it’s also fermented at cool temperatures with a German yeast. While it’s rich with Czeched-out flavor, Mama’s gentle hopping (about 35 IBUs) and low ABV (just 5.3%) makes it a luxurious but low-dose beer. Look for our Gold Metal Winner on US shelves in March. Sadly, the Feds rejected our “Take Two and Call Us in the Morning” line on the can.
Appearance: Golden yellow with a slight haze. Crisp white head, though not a lot of effervescence.
Smell: Crisp, mild, toasty wheat character, a surprising sweet aroma—kind of a caramel?
Taste: Bitter and malty—almost more like a Hefe than a Pils [my initial impression]. Yeasty? Bready—French bread crust. Hop bitterness is clean and spicy.
Mouthfeel: More of a substantial body from the yeast/cloudiness than I’d expect from a Pilsner. Finishes clean.
Overall: Different; lots of character here, less to style than I would expect for a Pilsner, but on its own it’s tasty and drinkable.
On BeerAdvocate, it scores an overall grade of B. On RateBeer, it scores 3.12 out of 5 and is in their 58th percentile overall.