I have another assortment of beers sent to be by the brewer’s American rep for my comment.
Radeberger Exportbierbrauerei was founded in 1872 in the city of Radeberg, near Dresden, Germany. This put it in the former East Germany, so it did not see much distribution in the West until after reunification. Its flagship Pilsner was apparently a favorite beer of Vladimir Putin when he was station in Dresden with the KGB. It was also preferred by Charlie Harper, Charlie Sheen’s character in “Two and a Half Men.”
But the Pilsner will be discussed later in this article. Radeberger first wanted to talk up one of their first major line extensions, their Zwickelbier. A Zwickel (also called a Kellerbier or Landbier) is a German lager served directly from cask without filtration. The base beer is generally a helles or other German light lager, so in this case, we have an unfiltered version of their Pilsner. It has previously been available only in their taproom, and at their Radegast Beer Hall in Brooklyn. Now it’s available in cans… perhaps in this market.
The beer pours a straw color, similar to the usual German import. There’s a slight cloudiness in the center, with a nice white beery head.
The smell has peppery noble hop overtones, light toasty malts, and maybe a bit of sweetness. Same again in the palate. Crispy toasted lager malts, although there is some sugar to it. A bit filling, though I’m not catching any yeast dregs or other unfiltered bits. I can’t connect it to the soft water profile of a Pilsner, but perhaps that’s the “Geman Pilsner” speaking to me, It manages quite well as a light “import shelf” beer.
Radeberger Pilsener
Here’s their “original” pilsener beer. I had an import bottle long ago and was not thrilled. But that’s the risk when a beer has sat in a bottle on a shelf for who knows how long. This one was sent to me directly, so let’s see:
A straw to gold color in the glass, with plenty of bubbles along the sides. Fizzy head that dissipates quickly. There’s a light whiff of sweetener, but some of the hard water profile of a Pilsner. The taste allows for some sharp German hop notes. The extra sugar I thought was on the nose cannot be found in the palate. When I first had this, many years ago I thought there was some skunkiness or oxidation from being in glass bottles. But shipping in a can, and a half liter can at that, has helped prevent some of the faults of an imported light lager beer. Packaged 15 Jan., 2021.
