I love beer. Always have, always will. People know this, and as a result I’m often asked which beer is my favorite. That’s a question I never answer, but I will let them know that my favorite style of beer is doppelbock, and really, I’ll add that I love the beers of Germany above those of all other countries and cultures. Germany remains today a land of small brewers dotting the landscape (America once was and now is again). That being the case, it surprises me that we don’t see more in the way of German imports in the USA.

We don’t, though, so I’m constantly on the lookout for them at home or away. In fact, when I travel and find a good beer store, I usually check out the local brews first, and then always their German beer selection second. That’s exactly how I found Flensburger Pilsener (and Flensburger Dark, too) at Bruisin Ales in Asheville, North Carolina.

Flensburger Brauerei was founded in 1888 and distributes its beer throughout Germany. It is still independently owned and is not part of a conglomerate. Flensburg is located in Schleswig-Holstein on the North German coast. My bottle says it is imported by Noble Union Imports of Texas, but a trip to their website reveals that it is now handled by S & H Imports. In addition to the Pils and Dark, a Weizen and Gold are also imported, and in Germany Flensburger also brews a Maibock, Helles, Dunkel, Kellerbier and Winterbock as well as non-alcoholic beers.

Flensburger Pilsener has an alcohol content of 4.8% by volume and I paid $3 for an 11.2 ounce swingtop bottle. My bottle has a best by date of January 22, 2016 so seems quite fresh.

Flensburger Pilsener pours to a rich golden brown color with a thick cloudy head of foam and a soft, herbal slightly perfumey hop nose. Taking a sip, the beer has delicious biscuity and slightly toasty malt notes with a light hint of buttery diacetyl all followed by an aggressive herbal, grassy, minty hop bitterness that adds much aroma in the finish and leaves a long dry bitter buzz on your tongue after you sip.

My friends, this beer is Wunderbar! The bitterness is amazing here, very bitter indeed with those grassy herbal hops playing perfectly against the soft clean malt. I could easily drink liters of this stuff were I in Germany, and perhaps someday I will. For now, I’ll keep looking for Flensburger Pilsener in my own market. Don’t you think you should, too?

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