Weihenstephaner Helles

Helles is a great example of the style.

BeerAdvocate
Quaffable, mild, Bavarian – as a true Helles should be. Available in cans!

Weihenstephaner Helles was first introduced in May 2020 to Germany after a full year of preparation to fine tune the recipe for release. Winning Gold at the European Beer Star awards in Fall 2020, Weihenstephaner Helles is a 4.8% ABV Session Helles Lager that is an easy drinker with full flavor. Brewed with Bavarian malting barley and aroma hops from the Hallertau. A crowd pleaser with a light body and clean crisp finish, that will make you want to crush another.

OG: 11.1
IBUs: 16
Hops: Hallertau Select and Sapphire

Tasting notes
20260601: I write from memory. Chris and Emily bought a 4-pack for our visit. I liked it a lot. It drinks easy and balances a little sweetness with some subtle hops. The rating may be too harsh because memories fade but I think I remember thinking it was not as good as a good pilsner.

Rating: 4 glasses

 

Surly Hell

Surly Hell is a great example of a Helles.

Brewer's notes: "German for “light,” Hell is a pale gold lager with bready malt sweetness, floral hops, and a crisp, balanced finish."

Beeradvocate: "Not unlike a Zwickel Bier from Germany, Hell is not filtered and fermented with lager yeast. American hops takes a back seat to the Pils malt sweetness and fresh bread aroma. The color is well... hell (Deutsch for light). It's fiendishly drinkable, and you don't have to sell your soul to get another."

Tasting notes
20260327: I liked the first four-pack so much that I purchased another four-pack. Tonight I compared Hell with Tucher Festbier. I drank Hell first. As I drank it I was thinking what a good beer it is and how it might replace pilsners in my rotation. Then I drank the Festbier and liked the Festbier better.

On my bike ride a day after writing the review, I kept thinking about the beer and how good it and Tucher Festbier are. I am upgrading the rating.

Rating: 5 glasses

20260111: The first can of a four-pack purchased on somewhat of a whim from Total Wine. I was surprised by how much I liked it. It fits the description of the style in BeerAdvocate well. "Helles lager beers offer a touch of sweetness that balance a measurable addition of spicy German hop flavor and light bitterness. The malt character is soft and bready, making it a terrific complement to light dishes such as salad or fresh shellfish, like clams. Clean and crisp, this is a refreshing beer with substance." The beer has a nice touch of sweetness balanced by grassy and spicy hops. It has substance and is easy to drink. I think that I could add it to my regular rotation of beers to have in my "cellar". 

Old rating: 4.5 glasses and thought about 5.

RAGBRAI

Here are some quick notes about beers I sampled while biking with RAGBRAI, the Register Annual Great Ride Across Iowa.

New Glarus Spotted Cow
A decent saison. It was a gift from Nancy and I would have drunk a second one if it was on the table.
Rating = 3 glasses

Cross Plains Esser's Best
A decent Helles. Another gift.
Rating = 2.5 glasses

Big Grove Tailwind
Notes: Tailwind is a celebration of all things RAGBRAI® and Big Grove Brewery. We brewed this light, refreshing golden ale for the “oldest, largest, and longest recreational bicycle touring event in the world.” Relax and embrace the Tailwind.
Rating = 1.5 glasses

Big Grove Easy Eddy
Notes: Easy Eddy showcases big tropical aromatics of pineapple and mango. Flaked wheat and oats make for a brilliant golden haze in this Unfiltered IPA. Hopped with Citra, Mosaic, and Simcoe.
The other RAGBRIA beer. A decent NE IPA.
Rating = 2.5 glasses

Spaten Münchner Hell

Münchner Hell is a Helles lager sold as Spaten Premium Lager in the USA. Eh! It is Ok but nothing great. Perhaps a good summer lawnmower beer. As Rachel Ray would say, "Its wet and its cold.

BeerAdvocate

Rating = 1 glass