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Standard American Beer / 1B

American Lager

Unfiltered BJCP Styles Style Profile

Official BJCP guideline sections attached for full style exploration.

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Certified Cicerone® Advanced Cicerone® BJCP Beer Judge Entrance Exam
Source
BJCP 2021 Beer Style Guidelines

Overall Impression

A very pale, highly-carbonated, light-bodied, well-attenuated lager with a very neutral flavor profile and low bitterness. Served very cold, it can be a very refreshing and thirst-quenching drink.

Aroma

Low malt aroma optional, but may be perceived as grainy, sweet, or corn-like, if present. Light spicy or floral hop aroma optional. While a clean fermentation profile is desirable, a light amount of yeast character is not a fault.

Appearance

Very pale straw to medium yellow color. White, frothy head seldom persists. Very clear.

Flavor

Relatively neutral palate with a crisp, dry finish and a moderately-low to low grainy or corn-like flavor that might be perceived as sweetness due to the low bitterness. Moderately low hop flavor optional, with a floral, spicy, or herbal quality, if strong enough to distinguish. Low to medium-low bitterness. Balance may vary from slightly malty to slightly bitter, but is usually close to even. High carbonation may accentuate the crispness of the dry finish. Clean fermentation profile.

Mouthfeel

Low to medium-low body. Very highly carbonated with slight carbonic bite on the tongue.

Comments

Often what non-craft beer drinkers expect to be served if they order beer in the United States. May be marketed as Pilsner outside Europe, but should not be confused with traditional examples. Strong flavors are a fault. With little malt or hop flavor, the yeast character is what most frequently differentiates brands.

Characteristic Ingredients

Two- or six-row barley with up to 40% rice or corn as adjuncts. Lager yeast. Light use of hops.

Style Comparison

Stronger, more flavor and body than an American Light Lager. Less bitterness and flavor than an International Pale Lager. Significantly less flavor, hops, and bitterness than traditional European Pilsners.

Vital Statistics

IBU
8 - 18
SRM
2 - 3.5
OG
1.040 - 1.050
FG
1.004 - 1.010
ABV
4.2% - 5.3%

Commercial Examples

  • Budweiser
  • Coors Original
  • Grain Belt Premium Lager
  • Miller High Life
  • Old Style
  • Pabst Blue Ribbon
  • Special Export

Style Attributes

balanced bottom-fermented lagered north-america pale-color pale-lager-family standard-strength traditional-style

Similar Styles: How to Tell Them Apart

Use these guideline-based sensory contrasts to organize comparative tasting practice.

These pale, highly attenuated lagers can all be light-bodied, clean, crisp, and refreshing. Separate them by intensity rather than color: American Light Lager is the least flavorful and thinnest, American Lager adds modest body, International Pale Lager adds more flavor and bitterness, and German Leichtbier combines low strength with distinctly German malt and hop character.

Compare with: 1A. American Light Lager; 2A. International Pale Lager; 5A. German Leichtbier

By aroma

  • American Lager remains low and neutral in aroma, with optional grainy, sweet, or corn-like malt and light spicy or floral hops.
  • It has slightly more aroma and body than American Light Lager but less malt and hop presence than International Pale Lager or German Leichtbier.
  • A clean fermentation profile without distinctive regional malt or hop character keeps it more neutral than German Leichtbier.

By taste

  • American Lager has more grainy or corn-like flavor and body than American Light Lager, but stays less bitter and flavorful than International Pale Lager.
  • Its low to medium-low bitterness is gentler than German Leichtbier's medium bitterness, and its hop flavor is usually less distinct.
  • The finish is crisp, dry, highly carbonated, and neutral rather than the more clearly malty-hoppy finish of German Leichtbier.

Quick tell: American Lager is the neutral middle step above American Light Lager but below International Pale Lager in flavor.

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