Premium American Lagers

The last two styles I talked about allowed for up to 40% adjuncts to be added to the grain bill. Adjuncts are grains other that barley. Adjuncts in this style or rice or corn.
Premium American Lager have less than 25% of these adjuncts. Remember that during the first World War cereals were being rationed. A beer made with 75% of cereal grain would certainly be considered a “premium” beer.

Here is another tidbit regarding the style. It’s called American because it does not fit the Reinheitsgebot Law for German beers. This law is generally know as the Purity Law (it’s hard enough to say it let alone spell it.). The law was adopted by Germany in 1877 when Bavaria joined the German Union. The law had actual been a Bavarian law as far back as 1516. The law stated that only water, hops, and malt were allowed to be ingredients for beer. LP had not discovered yeast so it was not on the list.

As a result of the lower adjunct beer we enjoy a more colorful beer. The color in this beer can range anywhere between straw and gold. We also get to enjoy more flavor. The higher grain bill gives us more malt sweetness. However, along with more sweetness comes more alcohol. These beers can range from 2-6 % ABV. To balance the sweetness of the malt more hops are added.
We are definitely in the toothy range when it comes to this style for American Lagers. All of this is lightened up with appropriate amounts of carbonation. This gives the beer a crisp and slightly carbonic bite.

While there are good commercial examples of the beer, I do not find microbrew versions of the style. This does not mean you will not be able to find them. For the purposes of this article. I am limiting my resources to the examples which received medals at the California State Fair.
So venture out and ask your brewer if they brew a Premium American Lager. Your best bet is to go to a German -style brewery like Gordon Biersch or Sudwerk’s.