Herold 14° (Bohemian Bronze Lager)

Brewed by Pivovar Herold
Style: Bohemian Pilsener
Breznice, Czech Republic

500 ml bottle from MJ Rare Beer Club. Clear gold with a nice sized white head. Aroma is mostly grainy and dough. First taste is nicely hopped and malty. As it warms, the sweet grain flavor comes through. This to m is where the beer gets very interesting and tasty.

Lemon copper. Slightly rocky, grabby white foam. Very good retention. Rustic aroma of minerals, fennel, and biscuity malt. Fluffy carbonation softens the body’s hardness. Mineral laden body ignites a zingy hop engagement. Quite dry, but packed with a creamy, semi-cakey caress of banana bread and honeyed graham sweetness to balance the overly herbal, unrefined nature of the Saaz. Dainty floral softness. Zingy fennel remnants continue despite the firm toasted straw push. Finishes complexly malt driven, with toffee and toasted dough being trailed by a palate swiping wash of everlastingly raspy hops and stonelike dryness. Very good, if a tad unpolished.

Bottle from the MJ Rare Beer Club. Beautiful gold body. Small eggshell colored head. Nose is grassy and crisp with medium toasty malts, and lighter sweetness. Like buttered biscuits with a dab of honey on them. Light Euro hop perfume as well. Taste is a bit hoppier and grassier and the sweetness seemingly recedes to the background. I’m thinking this tastes a lot like Hopfen Konig from Eggenberg, but since I don’t have any to compare to right now, it’s simply speculation. Body is a bit dry with some lingering bitterness, and mild carbonation tingle. Light medium overall feel. Finish is crisp and hoppy. Light toastiness while honey combs are dancing amongst whole leaf Euro hops. Pleasantly delicious. Another winner from Herold.

500 mL capped Bottle: pours nicely into the tall pilsner glass: frothy Styrofoam head constantly fed by streaming golden bubbles. Mostly clear. Thick, sweet, malty aroma laced evenly with dusty hop flowers, chalk, and bitter honey. Soft, only slightly gritty palate. Sweet and juicy flavours with a mild and lingering bitterness. Refreshing and tasty on Hot days in the city…

Bottle (at U Zpevacku, Prague). Pours amber and yellow body with somewhat lasting head. Warm caramel nose and flavor, with sticky fruit flavors and some hops. Alcohol is a little too present, though. I’ve had this on several different occasions and like it less each time, but the first bottle was a nice change.

The Lure:
A russet/amber gown with gold highlights surprises somewhat, and is crowned by a throne of foam, with nice lacing abilities. Highly mineral effusions shock the nose, which fails to notice the grassy hops and caramel sweetness in the first few dives. Almost eggy, this aroma is very problematic and worrying.

The Festivities:
Round caramel and honey malts surround the wise grassy, wooden hops. No sign of the terrible metallic minerals, thankfully. Interesting bitter/sweet balance is showcased in the ample body. The big-bubbled carbonation gives me the impression that the flavors aren’t that cohesive, even if the gooseberry fruitiness tries very hard to meld the sweet malt and the serious hops. I would definitely go for their regular Svetlé 12% instead of this half polotmavé/half svetlé, even if I forget about the aroma debacle.

Transcendence:
High expectations can spoil surprises.

Bottle (from Pivni Galerie in Prague): Deep golden colour, thin fluffy white head, long lasting; malty and also a bit fruity nose with a tinge of bitterness and some alcoholic notes; the initial full-bodied sweetness quickly moves into a dry, sharp, bitter aftertaste; robust, but not well rounded, alcohol not well hidden......Kind of unharmonic.....

500 ml bottle, bought at Pivni Galerie, Prague. Deep golden colour, moderate head. Nice hoppy aroma with hints of caramel. Flavour is fairly malty (at least if you want to categorize this as a pilsener), but a substantial hoppy bitterness and solid ABV (5.8%) make this a very robust relative of the lighter-bodied pilseners. Long bitter aftertaste. Way ahead of your average lager-swill.