Pennichuck Ladder 1 Lager

Brewed by Pennichuck Brewing Company
Style: Vienna
Milford, New Hampshire USA

Pours a beautiful dark caramel with a great looking light orange on the bottom that leaves a thick tan head that stays with this lager. The aroma is caramel, citrus, lemon rind, and various spices. The taste is so smooth and drinkable, very malty upfront, has a great crisp tart smack upfront but balanced by a honey sweetness. This beer is chewy and big filled with alot of character. This is a very fine Vienna lager one of the best I’ve had in awhile.

bottle from mcox90 thanks: pours a clean and clear golden honey with a foamy extra white head, that leaves a nce thin line. wonderful bready sweet caramel aroma with some earth floral notes. i love vienna armoas. flavour is toasty bread and caramel malt with a slight earthy hop bitter and a smooth and almost buttery fruit finish. really loving this style and loving that a brewery is make a fine line of sessionable beers. big thanks to mcox90 again

Pours copper with a nice white head. Smells of sweet fruit (strawberries...), some buttery hints, toasty, earthy. Tastes sweet and fruity with a crisp finish and a nice balance of carbonation

Deep gold almost copper with very little head or lace. Aroma is caramel malt. Flavor semi sweet malt, a slight light bitter finish. A good beer that seems to change flavors in your mouth long after it is down the hatch. Medium bodied with pretty solid mouthfeel. Nice beer all round. A beer that could carry 6% abv easily. Nice offering

2007 bottle drunk on 5/1/07
The perfect example of the rater’s dilemna. I enjoyed this beer immensely, and I think it’s a well-made beer, it’s just not much of a vienna. First of all, you’ve got a ton of fruitiness (cherries, strawberries), part of which is definitely coming from the yeast. On top of that, there’s a ton of actual yeast flavor (lots of chewy doughiness). The very mild carbonation, yeastiness and soft malts give it a creamy consistency which is quite a bit different than the crisp, somewhat bready/toasty notes you’d expect from a vienna (and vienna malts). Not to say you can’t have a softer-textured lager, and actually, DeCapo Wiener was quite fruity, soft and easygoing for a vienna (and I loved that one too), but I guess stylistically, it dosent really make me think of a vienna. Very low toastiness, not much on the dark fruit or melanoidin character and too much doughiness for a lager. I’ll definitely grant them that the soft carbonation, regardless of style is almost always preferential (except in the case of a pilsner, perhaps), but I do think the beer should be a little more brisk/assertive and show more caramel/toffee and toasted character. As is, it’s got plenty of base malt sweetness, giving light vanilla and mixing with yeast esters. Caramel is mild, though evident. Alcohol not perceived, no flaws other than the yeastiness which should be conditioned out. As with their red ale, the hops are mostly floral and moderate in strength, with medium-low bitterness and some light citrus notes.
Great appearance, almost perfect, with mountains of off-white head and very strong retention. Medium caramel-amber color with some darker cola tints and a high clarity with a touch of very light haze. In the end, I’m not going to take off points for being not-to-style, as I find that silly and pointless in cases where the resulting product is still highly enjoyable.

You know what? I actually really dug this. I’ve come a long way in my opinion of lagers. Has a nice straw and honey aroma from the malt. Very nice malty lager. I dig it.

12 oz bottle. Pours a nice, clear amber in color. Alot of smooth caramel in the aroma with some fruit, vanilla and floral hops. Taste is smooth caramel, with some cherry like fruit and light bitterness that lingers into the finish. Don’t think I’ve had many Viennas, but this beer seems to be very well made.

Pours a nice slight hazy golden brown color, nice carbonation, nice little creamy off-white head, with some nice sticky lacing hanging around. The nose is malty, slight citrus/spice. The taste is malty, sweet, very slight soury. Medium body. Drinkable, this is a nice one, pretty tasty.