“Straw colored with a light, creamy head, Spencer Premium Pilsner is an authentic German-style Pilsner. Traditional noble German hops provide herbal notes, a floral nuance and the classic closing bitterness. Crisp, clean and refreshing – perfect after a day at work.”

Glassware: Flute.

Appearance: Light pale gold with a bit of haze. Atop sits a finger of finely beaded foam which peels off pretty quick. Some wavy lace here and there.

Aroma: Interesting. We guess it was always going to be when an American Trappist brewery is having a crack at a German/Czech classic. It certainly has that herbal/grassy Noble hop character dialled in but it also has a somewhat Belgo-inspired honey sweetness and yeast-driven spice. Clean malt profile consisting of crackers, hay/straw and grainy bread. Really nice.

Flavour: Keeps pretty traditional and doesn’t stray too far off that line of straw and hay, grainy malt, grassy/herbal spice and subtle gritty earthy-ness. There’s hop bitterness that gradually intensifies late in the piece and adds to the dry grassy finish. Pretty decent legs on it.

Mouthfeel: Typical Pilsner texture – crisp, dry and inoffensive. Nice and light with fine carbonation. 4.7% ABV is spot on.

Overall: We’re pretty confident that this is the first Trappist Pilsner we’ve ever tried so that’s pretty rad. Although it’s a decent drop if we had a hankering for a traditional Pils we’d still be reaching for the likes of Weihenstephaner or Pilsner Urquell. It’s good it’s just not all that memorable.