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Lager
is the term used in English to describe bottom-fermented
beers of
German and sometimes of
Czech styles, though in the latter
case the term
Pilsener is more common. The
word comes from the
German lagern ("to store"),
and refers to the practice of storing these (and other)
beers at near-freezing temperatures for periods of several
months before drinking. The term is not used to describe
beer in German.
Lager beers run the gamut from sweet
to bitter, and from pale to black. Most lagers are of pale
to medium color, with high carbonation, medium to high hop
flavor, and alcohol content of 3–5 percent by volume. In
America, some are termed
session lagers.
Brewing technique
Lagers are brewed principally from
malted
barley,
hops and water at low
temperatures.
Lager
yeast, known as Saccharomyces
uvarum or Saccharomyces carlsbergensis, ferments
at these cool temperatures, and flocculates (forms a cloudy
mass) on the bottom of the vat. Lager yeast is a
bottom-fermenting yeast, and
typically undergoes primary fermentation at 7-12°C
(45-55°F)
(the "fermentation phase"), and then is given a long
secondary fermentation at 0-4°C (30-40°F) (the "lagering
phase"). During the secondary stage, the lager clears and
mellows. The cooler conditions also inhibit the natural
production of
esters and other byproducts,
resulting in a "crisper" tasting beer.
After fermentation, lagers are then
stored in refrigerated cellars for lagering (maturing and
clarification). Lagers are stored at a low temperature (as
low as 0°C/32°F)
for several weeks to several months, clearing, acquiring
mellowness, and becoming charged with
carbon dioxide.
With modern improved fermentation control, most lager
breweries use only short periods of cold storage, typically
1–3 weeks.
History
In the
nineteenth century
Bavarian brewers used to store
their beer in cool places such as caves to mature it. They
called the beer they obtained "Lagerbier", from the
German lagern ("to store").
During the centuries Bavarian brewers developed a special
kind of
yeast in order to mature their
cold-matured beer. The most evident difference compared to
the yeast that was used in the rest of
Europe is that lager yeast
deposits on the bottom after the fermentation rather than
rising on the top.
In the period 1820-1830, a brewer
called
Gabriel Sedlmayr
II the Younger, whose family was running the
Spaten Brewery in
Bavaria went around Europe to
improve his brewing skills. When he was back, he used what
he had learned to get a more stable and consistent lager
beer. The Bavarian lager was still different from the
widely-known modern lager: due to the hardness of Munich
water, it was quite dark.
The new recipe of the improved lager
beer spread quickly over Europe. In particular Sedlmayr's
friend
Anton Dreher used the new lagering
technique to improve the
Viennese beer in
1840–1841.
The Viennese water enabled the use of lighter malts, giving
the beer an amber-red rich colour.
The new recipe reached
Bohemia, too, and the technique
got a further improvement. In 1842, in the town of
Plzeň, a 29-year-old Bavarian
brewer called
Josef Groll
tried the new lagering recipe using a different malt with
the local water, which was much softer than Munich or even
Viennese water: the resultant beer had a very bright golden
color. This new kind of beer, which became known as
Pilsener or Pilsner,
had a huge success and spread all over Europe.
Pilsner is light in color and
relatively high in carbonation, with a pronounced hop flavor
and an alcohol content of 3–6%
by volume.
Pilsner Urquell (Original
Pilsener) is the prototypical example of pilsner beer.
Most of today's lager is based on the
Pilsner style, but is typically
much less bitter.
popular brands of lager
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Beck's: Brewed in the German
state of
Bremen.
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Beerlao: from
Laos.
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Budweiser: Light
American lager, the best-selling
beer in the world.
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Carling: English.
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Carlsberg: Danish, standard
international lager.
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Castle Lager: Most popular beer
in South Africa.
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Dos Equis: Popular Mexican
lager.
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Dutch gold: Brewed in the EU,
popular in
Ireland
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Flensburg Pilsener:
Very bitter pilsener, brewed in
Schleswig-Holstein, the
northernmost German state.
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Foster's Lager: Light Australian
lager.
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Harp: Irish, standard
international lager.
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Heineken: Dutch, standard
international lager.
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Jever: a popular North-German
pilsener, brewed in
Lower Saxony.
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Lion Lager:
a
South African lager.
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Löwenbräu, a
Helles.
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Paulaner: Munich brewery who
makes a popular example of the Oktoberfest/Marzen style.
Also makes a well known doppelbock called Salvator.
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Pilsner Urquell: the "original",
Bohemian, malty, aromatic noble hops.
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Samuel Adams: American
microbrewery whose most popular product is a unique-styled
lager.
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Stella Artois: Belgian, standard
international lager. The most popular lager in the UK.
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Steinlager:
New Zealand.
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Tennents: Scottish.
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Tiger beer:
the main beer of Singapore.
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Warsteiner: The number one
pilsner in Germany.
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Yuengling: Popular American
amber lager from
Pennsylvania.
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