Heater Allen Brewing LenzBock and Comet Pils now in Cans
McMinnville, Oregon's master lager brewers Heater Allen Brewing have dropped two new beers in 16oz cans. LenzBock is a light Bock that makes for a perfect spring seasonal, and Comet Pils was originally meant to be draft-only before the Coronavirus pandemic hit.
After being hit by a string of break-ins amid the Coronavirus-related mandatory shutdown, Heater Allen could especially use your support. It doesn't hurt that they make some of the finest German-style lagers on the west coast. For fans of blond and pale lagers, the latest two beers are must trys.
Comet Pils - Taking off from the more traditional German-style Pilsner, this one features a modern American hop called Comet. Though it was first released in 1974, the Comet hop was discontinued in the 80's before recently getting dusted off and rediscovered by brewers today. Comet is a great way to merge German lager with American, as it's actually a cross breed of English hop and wild American varieties with signature notes of grassy-citrusy aromatics with a high alpha acid content.
Comet Pils is a light 4.8% ABV and features a base of 100% Barke Pilsner malt.
"We've made a few of these Pilsners that are more in the German-style realm and use an American hop," says brewer Lisa Allen. "This really allows the hop to shine while still having a sessionable beer with a nice malt forward base."
LenzBock - is brewed in the traditional German-style of Heller Bock or Mai Bock. Helle means "light" in German, these beers are typically straw gold to blond colored beers that are malty but not carmelly. Sweet crystal malts are absent, but the Barke Pilsner malt imparts it's own sweet and bready profile. The Heater Allen LenzBock is rich and malty but not sweet, it's balanced with classic spicy Hallertau Mittelfrüh hops and a moderate 6.25% ABV.
Heater Allen Brewing beers (including LenzBock, Comet Pils and many others) are still available for to-go sales from the brewery on Friday's from 3-6pm. If you cannot make it out to McMinnville then you can find cans at the usual suspects like The Beermongers, Belmont Station and major markets like New Seasons, Whole Foods, Zupan's and Market of Choice.