Samuel Adams Imperial Pilsner

	Percentile
	96
	overall

Brewed by Boston Beer Company
Style: European Strong Lager
Boston, Massachusetts USA

bottled
common

on tap
unknown

Broad Distribution
Find this beer

send corrections | shelftag

Ratings	Average	Score	Seasonal	ABV	Style Pctl	Serve in
957	3.73/5.0	3.72/5.0	Special	8.8%	99.2	Lager glass

Commercial Description:
2005 info:This lager is made with fresh Bavarian hops, straight off the vines from the 2005 harvest in Germany, and packs an 8.8 percent alcohol content that's twice as strong as most popular beers.
Boston Beer Co. is brewing only 60,000 24-oz. bottles, which are due to begin arriving in stores in November.

2007 release info:
Yes, we're a little obsessed with hops. Every autumn for over twenty years, Jim Koch has traveled to one of the oldest hop-growing regions in the world, the Hallertau region of Bavaria in Germany, to hand-select Noble Bavarian hops, including the Hallertau Mittelfrueh variety. This special variety is considered to be one of the best in the world, prized for its unique taste and aroma. Samuel Adams® Hallertau Imperial Pilsner is a celebration of these extraordinary hops. This beer is one of the hoppiest in the world, without being overly bitter. With the first sip, you will experience an explosion of some of the world's finest hops. And we mean “explosion” in a good way. Brewed as a showcase for the hops, this bold brew highlights the spicy, citrus flavors and aromas of the Hallertau Mittelfrueh hops that are abundant in the recipe. The intense hops flavor is balanced with the slight sweetness from the malt. The brew remains pleasantly well-balanced from beginning to end, due to the quality of the hops, and continues to always be, well, "hoppy," providing hop lovers with an amazing beer drinking experience.
Available in 12oz. bottles.

Please Enable Javascript

This site requires javascript enabled and/or approval of googlesyndication.com.

Most Recent

Top Raters

Highest Ratings

Who's Rated This?

badbeer (433), Iowa, USA

4.1	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
4.1	8/10	4/5	8/10	4/5	17/20

Dec 23, 2007

Poured a copper orange color with about a half inch of rich creamy head. Rich smell of Hallertauer hops mixed with various floral accents, even a grassiness to it. Taste is almost a hop explosion with piney and grassy flavors, bitter but not cloyingly so. Beer is heavy in your mouth and is medium to full bodied and moderate carbonation levels. Was a nice treat, and I would get more but it’s not something I could have everyday.

mreusch (723), Olathe, Kansas, USA

3.9	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
3.9	8/10	4/5	7/10	4/5	16/20

Dec 23, 2007

Bottle, with a big thanks to Gregis for this! Pours a cloudy golden straw color, with a three finger white head, great lacing. Aroma is strong citrus hops, with plenty of orange, tangerine, and lemon zest - a very nice aroma! Flavor is zesty, with some grapefruit juice coming out with the other citrus presence. Unique, well done and enjoyable. Thanks again Greg!

vadavid (131), Fredericksburg, Virginia, USA

3.6	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
3.6	8/10	3/5	6/10	3/5	16/20

Dec 23, 2007

2007 release. Poured a cloudy marmalade-orange color. Thick off-white, long lasting head. Strong hop aroma with some sweetness. The taste is the intense hop presence as promised. There’s a pretty strong malt presence as well. Mouth feel is sticky, slightly oily. There’s a noticeable alcohol sweetness to the taste. Didn’t care for this the first time I tried it, but on a revisit find it’s not bad. A bit unbalanced to me.

Hildigöltur (5109), København, Denmark

4.2	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
4.2	8/10	3/5	9/10	4/5	18/20

Dec 23, 2007

Vintage 2007. Bottled at Bishops Arms, Helsingborg. Amber coloured. Extremely hoppy aroma. Definately Hallertau. Fresh hop flavour. Very juicy and very bitter. Very unbalanced in a very pleasant way.

oakbluff (298), Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

4	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
4	8/10	4/5	8/10	3/5	17/20

Dec 21, 2007

Appearance- cloudy light orange/tangerine with a nice sudsy white head. Smell- spicy hops Taste- hops hit the tongue like a lazer beam. Wow- that is unique. Grassy, woody, very herbal and spicy. So spicy, it almost gives a heat sensation like a hot sauce. The pale malt is strong enough to give some balance to this killer brew. Finishes very dry and the hops linger for quite some time after. Some hotness from the booze is picked up at the finish as well. Mouthfeel-carbonation level is good and the beer has some nice creaminess to it. Not thick at all. Drinkability is decent for a beer this size and hop potency. Big kudos to S.A. for brewing up this beer in the face of the DIPA’s of the world.

JoeinUccle (902), Brussels, Belgium

3.2	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
3.2	7/10	4/5	6/10	3/5	12/20

Dec 21, 2007 Updated: Oct 17, 2008

A sharp, hoppy and aromatic brew that forces you to sip. Bottle pours a cloudy orange with a big off-white head that lasts a little while. Nose is full of flowers, fresh grass and a faint citrus edge. Sharply bitter from start to finish, notes are grassy, with a sweet center that approaches cloying. Lively carbonation and lightly dry. Lastingly bitter aftertaste. I think there’s a disconnect between the sweetness and rough bitterness... lacks harmony that would help it taste better.

illinismitty (1795), Nashville, Tennessee, USA

3.8	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
3.8	7/10	4/5	8/10	4/5	15/20

Dec 19, 2007

Bottle from the gay santa Ross. Pours a very beautiful orange amber with an huge off white head. Complex aroma of floral hops, herbs, fruit, and pale malts. Intial flavor of biscuit, pils, and bready malts that is quickly overpowered by a bitterness, that gives off notes of sweet grapefruit. Finish sort of loses some momentum with a very sharp and spicy bitterness that lingers. This is still a very well done beer, and perhaps the hoppiest European Strong lager I have had. Hoppy enought to make a west coaster proud.

Speedle (262), Mid-Atlantic (Tour 2007-2008), Virginia, USA

4.1	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
4.1	8/10	3/5	9/10	4/5	17/20

Dec 18, 2007

My 1st thought when I opened the bottle was IIPA....cloudy yellow gold with a frothy small head...sweet grapefruit and hop aroma...super bitter from start to finish...citrus taste ....lingering hop finish....easily the best beer by far (for me anyway) from the brewer .... going back to pick up some more before they sell out

CONSIDER FREE RATEBEER MEMBERSHIP

Join us! RateBeer is made by beer enthusiasts for the craft beer community. Your basic membership is free and allows you to read all beer ratings. Click here to create your account... and give your opinion!

SIGN UP NOW »

View Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96

More European Strong Lagers By Style
Samuel Adams Imperial Pilsner 99
Urpiner Exclusive (Exkluzívny Ležiak Svetlý 16) 64
Fortas Stiprus 65
Rock Bottom Yorktown Lord Tufnels Imperial Pilz 90
Dogfish Head Golden Era (Shower) 94
Jihlavský Grand 18° 79
Odell Double Pilsner 82
Brok Martin 61
San Miguel Selecta XV 71
Portsmouth Imperial Pilsner 83
Stoudts Big Brother Pils 88
Hancock Old Gambrinus Beer Light 71
Namyslow Rycerskie (Knight) Mocne 76
Djurs Søren Kanne 68
Harpoon Leviathan Big Bohemian Pilsner 90

this page requires javascript