Revisit: Carlsberg Danish Pilsner


*Edit: I actually did review this beer, back in 2012 - here's the first review, with basically the same intro too!*

There was an era many, many years ago when I wasn't a beer geek nor snob but I was always looking out to try new fancy beers, mainly lagers in fancy packaging from around the world (predominantly lagers). I can pinpoint when I first tried Carlsberg Pilsner, it was December 2004, I don't know how, but I just do. By this time in life I've already tried Heineken, Grolsch (loved the swing tops!), Beck's (found that one way too bitter), A Marca Bavaria and Corona. 

I recall the beer being your typical European-style lager, a bit sweeter than your North American lagers and a bit more straw. Well, at that time the beer was being brewed by Labatt but Labatt stopped brewing it only months later, moving the production back to its home country of Denmark. I still remember at the time being upset that the beer went from a domestic to an import as it was only $8.00 CAD for a 6-341mL case. I don't recall what the price was after it returned to production in Denmark but I stopped buying it regularly. Fast forward to now, just about every major beer brand from Bud Light to Sapporo, Corona and Stella Artois are now being brewed domestically in Canada but some of them still brand themselves as imports..

Anywho, I was feeling nostalgic and picked up a few beers I was drinking back when I had a total of two reviews on RateBeer.com (As of 2023 I've only reviewed 49 beers there!). 

Carlsberg's website describes the Pilsner as wonderfully crisp and refreshing, with a full flavour and a distinctive hoppy aroma. 5.0% ABV

Appearance: Bright, very clear golden straw body. The beer has a mild carbonation at the beginning but diminishes rather quickly, leaving behind some bubble trails in the body and a light snow white head on top. Goes from frothy to minimal head in less than a minute.

Aroma: Sweeter than I was expecting - It's got a heavy wet straw aroma with notes of honey, a hint of syrup-like sweetness to it, light grassy hops at the end.

Taste: Quite a sweet-forward Pilsner. One of the sweeter ones I've had in recent memory.. It has a bit of a syrupiness to it that I'm not too keen on, as well as the sweetness lingers for a good moment or three on my palate, it just won't go away. There's a slight hop profile to it - pretty much a grass forward one, not at all bitter, as well as a slight straw and corn presence at the end. It's pretty watery for mouth feel, and pretty easy on the palate for the most part.

Overall Thoughts: Very smooth, yet very sweet. Lots of straw and a bit of an artificial syrup sweetness to it. Pretty crushable anyways though it's not the kind of Pilsner I'll be going out of my way to look for unfortunately. I'm glad I got to revisit the beer after over 17 years... oh how time flies by and I feel really old now.

Edit: As of Summer 2023, Carlsberg is now brewed in Canada at their recently acquired Waterloo Brewing facility in Waterloo, Ontario. I'll likely do a review in near future.



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