Chicagoist's "Beer of the Week": Trumer Pils

By Chuck Sudo in Food on Jul 13, 2006 6:00PM

There's a longstanding quote attributed to Benjamin Franklin that states, "Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy." Although Chicagoist's belief in a higher power is suspect, we agree with the rest of Big Ben's wisdom. Beer - and other malt beverages - is also a much discussed subject among the Chicagoist staff. One staffer is obsessed with the alcoholic energy drink known as "Sparks"; just can't get enough of it. We feel that Sparks falls in league with Long Island iced teas, vodka and Red Bull, frozen cocktails, any drink that ends with the word "bomb", and Southern Comfort: if you're old enough to order it legally, you're old enough to know better.

Thankfully, we do. And with the weather becoming increasingly muggy, we need to retire the pale ales and stouts in favor of some lighter libations. This is pilsner weather, folks, and we've got one for you to try out. You've probably seen or heard ads for Trumer Pils during your daily routine somewhere. Chicagoist first became aware of Trumer on our March field trip to Cork & Kerry. We didn't try it then because the bartender said it had been on tap for three weeks, and no one had ordered it. A few days later, we wrangled a twelve-pack bottle from one of Trumer Pils' marketing reps. We liked it so much that we started ordering it whenever we found it in a bar or restaurant.

The history of Trumer Pils goes back 400 years to a family-owned brewery in Salzburg, Austria. A few years ago, the Trumer Brauerei entered a joint venture with the Texas-based Gambrinus brewery, to open a start-up brewery in Berkeley, California (now known as Trumer Brauerei Berkeley). The goal was to apply classic European pilsner brewing technique with American craft beer technology. Judging from the gold medal Trumer Pils recently won in this year's World Beer Cup, it's safe to assume they succeeded. It's golden in color, with a solid head that maintains retention. The hops used in brewing include Czech Saaz, German Hallertau Perle, and Spalt Select. The beer is aged six months before bottling and comes to you with 4.9 percent alcohol, by volume. This all adds up to one of the smoothest pilsners we've tasted in quite a long time, with a slightly dry finish.

Trumer Pils is a wonderful alternative to Pilsner Urquell, Staropramen, and yes, your standard diet beers. Trumer Pils is Chicagoist's "Beer of the Week."