Christian Moerlein Select Lager

Formerly brewed at Lion Brewery, Inc.
Style: Dortmunder/Helles
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania USA

Dark golden, slightly haved beer, with a nice off white bubbly head. Slightlyy grassy hop aroma and balanced by malts. Semi bitter malty flavour with a very noticable hop "zing" to it, some tea-like tones also. Mouthfeel is maybe a tad on the thin side for style , but leads to a refeshing drink. OK not a great Helles but a good American lager IMO.

I had this from a bottle at the Cincinatti airport while killing some time before a flight. This beer pours very unimpressively into a glass. It is a hazy dull tan color...other lagers have a sparkling, shiny appearance. This one looks beer I brewed "in-the-bag" in a college dorm room. Smell is very light and malty, and not unpleasant. This beer tastes pleasant. It is a lager with some malty substance, but its malt character seems unbalanced, as I could detect virtually no hop character in this beer. I’m not suggesting the beer has no hops, but suggesting that the maltiness overpowers whatever hop notes are present. Mouthfeel of this lager is nice. It feels substantial in your mouth (i.e. not watery) and is crisp and refreshing. Yet, this beer is also drinkable enough to have several of.

Amber. Slight hoppiness and a little bitterness. Had at a great place called the Blind Lemon in Cincinnati with the family.

Thanks to Shigaadeyo. This is pretty nice lighter style beer. Pours a medium hazy golden with a fair sized head. Nice mix of malts and hops. Very refreshing and a easy drink.

12 oz bottle from Jimbowood. This is everything a lager should be: Clean, refreshing and flavorful. In a perfect world, this is what Budweiser would taste like, and I imagine that it did once upon a time. The Saaz hops are definitely present here, and the pale malts make a nice blend that makes for a nice overall beer.

12 oz bottle via Shigadeyo (thanks!). Pours a hazy golden yellow with an average size white head. Aroma is mellow with some sweet maltiness and a bit of vanilla and yeast. Tastes like it smells with a bit of lemon, some honey and little bit of a bitter hop kick in the finish. Light to medium body. Medium/high carbonation. Decent refreshing early afternoon beer for a cold fall day. Very sessionable.

Christian Moerlein beers used to be made by Hudepohl-Schoenling in Cincinnati. Unfortunately, Hudepohl more or less collapsed and the Boston Beer Company (Samuel Adams) bought the brewery. On the good side though, the Christian Moerlein series has been revived and is now contract brewed in Pennsylvania (apparently by Lion Brewery). The beer is just as good as it was, maybe even a bit better. I’m glad to see it back, but too bad it isn’t a bit more widely available. The Christian Moerlein beers are some of my favorite old standby beers (and a good way to promote Cincinati beer!)... The Christian Moerlein Select Lager is dark gold in color. This latest bottle poured a bit cloudy which is strange as it is usually pretty darn clear. The other bottles in the pack look okay. It has a moderate amount of carbonatoin and an off-white crown. The aroma is slightly sweet, roasted mal. The flavor is crisp and rich for a lager (malt, light touches of caramel and honey, even a slight hint of fruit and yeast). The finish is smooth and slightly sweet with a bold hop ending. Medium body and great mouthfeel. A very enjoyble brew and as previously mentioned, one of my favorite local "drink in mass quantity" beers... 12 oz bottle from The Party Source.

Bottle, probably quite old, as this hasn’t been distributed in Mass for a good while. Consumed on 8/20/06.
Filtered, golden-honey colored body still shows plenty signs of life. It produces a foamy, but large white head that is surprisingly retained considering the age and the method of carbonation (forced). Light lacing on the glass.
Deep bitterness from the hops is first and foremost in the nose. Dusty, sweaty, bready, and with a mineral snappiness added from the yeast, it seems just as crisp and lively as most fresh examples. The caramel malt adds light nuances of rich, flavorful bread, while the pale malt sugars are well-attenuated, but leave some honey notes. No sign of oxidation, alcohol or off-flavors.
The flavor continues to stand up, with a hoppy burst of juniper, straw, herbs and grass. Extrapolating, this must have been an exquisitely hopped flavor (and aroma) which still has remnants of greatness, producing a fine, dry bitterness that works in harmony with the crisp yeast to provide a snappy finish. Honey and light dough-like malts balance, with a drizzle of caramel sugars. A touch of sponge-cake-like wetness, but nothing unexpected for its age. Not too much breadiness, but enough to assert the style. Carbonation, being forced, is obviously loose, but it’s one of the better filtered, force carbed beers I’ve tried lately. Impressed how crisp this is at this age. Hard to believe this is pasteurized, though lagers usually stand up better to that.