The line between crisp and bready is perfectly balanced, leading to it being both easy drinking and satisfying. DiMatteo came through with a great music pairing, too! “I think a tasty Helles goes great with some Father John Misty ruminating from a nearby speaker while grilling some delicious Frippers dogs on an open flame,” he shared.

A beer for beer lovers, the German-style helles is a malt accented lager beer that balances a pleasant malt sweetness and body with floral Noble hops and restrained bitterness. The helles is a masterclass in restraint, subtly and drinkability which makes it an enduring style for true beer lovers and an elusive style for craft brewers to recreate. The German helles reminds beer lovers that the simple things in life are usually the most rewarding and worth pursuing. German-Style Helles With gentle carbonation that’s viewable in the pale golden honey-hue, it’s no wonder Helles Lager is a top choice for beer drinkers everywhere. When done right, Helles is equally satisfying and refreshing making it pretty damn versatile no matter the occasion or season,” Adams says. Hop Culture’s 12 Favorite Helles Lagers While lagers are known for being crisp and not spicy, unlike pilsners, they are characterised by a distinct maltiness that includes light floral notes while still retaining a clean, crisp appeal. Like most lager varieties found today, Helles beer is made by using a unique yeast variety which helps to ensure its easily differentiated from ales. Is Helles Beer Good? There’s still a lot of misinformation about Helles and lagers in general,” shares Westfall. “They’re often thought to be boring or all too similar, but there is a large spectrum of flavor profiles within the category. I think the independent and craft beer movement having been propelled forward by big impactful beers like IPA and big stouts overshadowed softer, more subtle styles in general. That’s slowly changing and as the industry and drinkers evolve we see more of a place at the table for quality pale lager next to great IPA’s and an overall growing appreciation for precision, nuance, and drinkability.”Country Kind of Silence from Resident Culture and Fox Farm’s The Cottage are both beautifully crafted and worth seeking out,” recommends Porter. Here’s everything you need to know about Helles Lager – including which ones to try. What Is Helles Lager? So far in 2022 we've covered a wide range of styles from the 17 Best Pilsners to the 15 Best Pastry Stouts to the 11 Best Berliner Weisses to the 12 Best American IPAs. Overall, it's a list that has been heavily dominated by ales.

Hailing from Germany, Helles is what is known now as a traditional lager beer and is most popular in and around the Munich area. It spawned many crafters when it first hit the scene just before the turn of the 20th century, and is notably different from Pilsners, though they do share many of the same characteristics. How Do You Pronounce Helles? Lagerbier Hell by Augustiner-Bräu in Germany is a Helles Beer with a 5.2% alcohol volume. It has no bitterness and is an easily digestible and refreshing option. Until the 1960s, Helles was universally available in German-speaking regions. In many regions, Helles was slowly replaced by pilsner-style beers, [4] which was also driven by changing consumer preferences from draft beer to bottled beer. In regions outside of Southern Germany, Helles was regaining popularity in 2010, particularly Berlin, where the beer's traditional image has become trendy. [5] Distribution [ edit ] Helles enjoys great popularity in the Southern German regions of Bavaria, Franconia, and Baden-Württemberg. It can be referred to as Helles, Spezial, Landbier, "Munich lager", or "export". No clear distinction is drawn between lager and export, although export typically is closer in style to Dortmunder Export, which has a slightly higher ABV of 5.5% for extended shelf life. [1] Examples [ edit ] Sourcing raw materials is easy, and most brewers use a simple grist,” says Todd DiMatteo, Owner and Head Brewer at Good Word Brewing. “The approach and execution of this subtle style is what will make it easily discernible from those clamoring to produce pale lagers.” What Are Some Classic Examples of the Style?Helles” (pronounced HELL-us) is a German word meaning pale or bright in English. So, you can expect your Helles lagers to be bright, pale yellow in color. Helles or hell is a traditional German pale lager beer, produced chiefly in Southern Germany, particularly Munich. The German word hell can be translated as "bright", "light", or "pale". And while helles may not top the charts as the most popular beer style in the United States, it is a historically highly respected style around the world. And worth trying a few. Here are Untappd's 10 Highest-Rated Helles Lagers of 2022 Photography courtesy of Staatliches Hofbräuhaus München Around 2011, Marc and his business partners from Barworks started looking to make their own beer. “We had great beer sales and turnover and thought it would be interesting to brew our own,” he told The Caterer. Marc met up with his friend Jasper, who owned the Horshoe pub in Hampstead and set out plans to have a bespoke brewery shipped over from Munich. I would think if someone leans toward the softer, more modern IPA, Helles would be an easy supplement, especially as their palate fatigues of hazies,” DiMatteo remarks.