Birmingham Pilsner has been going down a storm since releasing last week, so we thought we'd give a bit of a detail as to why it tastes so damn good (and why Birmingham is the best place in the country for lager brewing).
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First up, a bit of background. Every Brummie knows that Birmingham has the best tasting water about. Okay, so we do rob it from Wales, but we've been doing that for years so it's basically ours now. It has a very low mineral content, making it incredibly soft.
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The mineral make up of the water we brew with makes a huge difference to the finished beer. For most of our beers, we add minerals to the water to affect the way the final beer tastes (check out the last post from @samintheattic for more detail on this, if you're interested in learning more).
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To brew a good Czech-style pilsner though, the lower the mineral content the better. It turns out that Birmingham's water is perfect for this style without us having to make any changes. It's not possible to remove minerals from water without some pretty pricey equipment. For a small brewery like us, there really is no way we'd be able to brew a Pilsner of this quality if we weren't based in Birmingham.
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So what does this mean for the beer in your glass? Well, we've kept fairly true to the classic pilsner style. A light caramel colour and a thick white head mark it out from other lagers on the bar. Saaz hops bring a bitterness and mild herbaceous spice that keeps sweet malt flavours in check, whilst that soft water cuts the bitterness short for a dry, refreshing finish. After all that, you're ready to go straight back to the well for another sip.
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Currently on draught at several venues across the city, due out in can soon 😉.
