Serve in a pilsner glass at 2-5 °C
What it tastes like
American lager is about refreshment more than flavour. It pours very pale, with a bright white head and a lot of bubbles. The taste is a faint grainy sweetness, sometimes a hint of corn or rice, with very little hop aroma and only light bitterness. It finishes crisp, dry and clean.
The style came from German immigrant brewers in the United States in the nineteenth century. American six-row barley was high in protein and made hazy beer, so brewers thinned it with corn or rice. The result was lighter in body and colour than the lagers of Europe, and it suited a hot climate and a mass market. It became the most sold beer style in the world.
Do not mistake simple for easy. With almost no malt or hop flavour to hide behind, any fault shows: sulphur, butter, cardboard from oxidation, green apple from a rushed lager. Producing it consistently at scale takes a well-run brewery, cold fermentation and a long, cold conditioning period.
Style profile
- Look
- Very pale straw, brilliantly clear, with a tall white head that fades fairly quickly.
- Aroma and flavour
- Low grainy sweetness, a hint of corn or rice, very low hop aroma and a clean lager yeast with no fruit.
- Mouthfeel
- Light body, high carbonation, a crisp and dry finish with little lingering bitterness.
- Ingredients
- Pale barley malt with a large share of rice or maize, a small charge of hops for bitterness, a clean lager yeast and soft water.
In India
Most of the beer sold in India is built on the same idea: pale malt lightened with rice or maize, fermented cold and served very cold. Indian craft brewers rarely make this style, because the big brewers already do it at a price no microbrewery can match. Where it does show up on a tap list, it is usually a house lager for guests who want something familiar. It is at its best on a scorching May afternoon, served close to freezing.
At the Indian table
Food pairings contributed by Anuradha Rao
- Amritsari fish fryHigh carbonation scrubs the gram flour batter from the palate and the light body keeps the ajwain in front.
- Pav bhajiA cold, neutral lager cools the spice and lets the butter and vegetable mash do the talking.
- Goan chorizo paoThe crisp, dry finish cuts through the fatty, vinegary sausage.
- KulfiA light, very cold beer with a clean finish refreshes the palate after a dense frozen dessert.
Brewed in India
We could not verify an Indian craft brewery that brews this exact style today. India's mainstream lagers use a similar rice or maize recipe, though they are not craft beers.
Want the long read? American light lager