Beer of the Weekend #86: Trader Joe’s Vienna Style Lager
What a great day of college football!
I’m in heaven. I’ve been watching football, flipping from one game to another, since nine this morning — about 14 hours. I did go to the store and run, though (I’m not that pathetic). From the Hawkeyes’ two field goal blocks in seven seconds (which I “watched” via Andy Hamilton’s Iowa City Press-Citizen live blog and ESPN’s GameCast) to BYU’s upset of the Sooners, it’s been an excellent and memorable beginning to the season. And what better way to end the day (just the third in a five day marathon of college ball) than by tipping back a couple brews.
The second beer this weekend is Trader Joe’s Vienna Style Lager brewed by the Trader Joe’s Brewing Company of San Jose, California.
TJVSL is my base lager this weekend, and, frankly, there’s nothing base about it. I tried it for the first time last night and it’s a damn good brew. I almost feel guilty for choosing it as a base; it completely outshines the traditional BotW, Shock Top (which, actually, isn’t hard). TJ’s makes a number of lagers and I was debating whether to buy the Vienna Style or the Bohemian Style. The Bohemian Style is a Czech Pilsner, a light and slightly hoppy brew more inline with what I usually drink as a base. But VSL is a Vienna Lager, which uses toasted malts and is a little darker.
Serving type: Six 12-ounce bottles. No freshness date; only a cryptic batch number.
Appearance: Poured a light amber, almost caramel. Two fingers of head developed and dissipated to leave a spotted lacing and ring around the outside.
Smell: Smooth toasted malts with a grassy, barnyard quality. I also picked up hints of coffee, milk chocolate, and citrus, mainly lemon. My first whiff reminded me of Red Trolley Ale.
Taste: The taste is an equally smooth caramel, though it’s not as evident as it was in the smell. The toasted malts also come through, and there’s a pleasant hop bite at the end. As it warmed I picked up the slight milk chocolate from the smell.
Drinkability: VSL is very drinkable, though it’s not a hot day, tailgate brew. It’s a high quality choice for a lager, on par with its neighbors in South Germany.
Fun facts about TJVSL:
-Price: I bought it Thursday night and threw away the receipt, but I think it was $5.99. When I first came to California (I left Iowa three years ago today), most of the beer TJ’s sold was priced at $4.99. I couldn’t believe I could buy a sixer of Mackeson (which they don’t sell anymore) for just five dillies! The slight price increase is probably due to a tag team impact of commodity costs. Not only has the price of fuel and transportation increased, but the price of hops is also on the rise, prompting brewers to increase the cost of their beers.
-Serving temperature: 40-45ºF.
-Alcohol content: 5.7 percent ABV.
-Food pairings: BA recommends Latin American and German cuisine, as well as pork and poultry.
-IBU: 20.
-Here’s an odd quirk about the “Vienna Lager” page on BA. The first paragraph reads, “Named after the city in which it originated,” but the second graph begins “Although German in origin…” Did it originate in Vienna (in Austria) or in Germany?
The Quiet Man’s grade: B.
I’m in heaven. I’ve been watching football, flipping from one game to another, since nine this morning — about 14 hours. I did go to the store and run, though (I’m not that pathetic). From the Hawkeyes’ two field goal blocks in seven seconds (which I “watched” via Andy Hamilton’s Iowa City Press-Citizen live blog and ESPN’s GameCast) to BYU’s upset of the Sooners, it’s been an excellent and memorable beginning to the season. And what better way to end the day (just the third in a five day marathon of college ball) than by tipping back a couple brews.
The second beer this weekend is Trader Joe’s Vienna Style Lager brewed by the Trader Joe’s Brewing Company of San Jose, California.
TJVSL is my base lager this weekend, and, frankly, there’s nothing base about it. I tried it for the first time last night and it’s a damn good brew. I almost feel guilty for choosing it as a base; it completely outshines the traditional BotW, Shock Top (which, actually, isn’t hard). TJ’s makes a number of lagers and I was debating whether to buy the Vienna Style or the Bohemian Style. The Bohemian Style is a Czech Pilsner, a light and slightly hoppy brew more inline with what I usually drink as a base. But VSL is a Vienna Lager, which uses toasted malts and is a little darker.
Serving type: Six 12-ounce bottles. No freshness date; only a cryptic batch number.
Appearance: Poured a light amber, almost caramel. Two fingers of head developed and dissipated to leave a spotted lacing and ring around the outside.
Smell: Smooth toasted malts with a grassy, barnyard quality. I also picked up hints of coffee, milk chocolate, and citrus, mainly lemon. My first whiff reminded me of Red Trolley Ale.
Taste: The taste is an equally smooth caramel, though it’s not as evident as it was in the smell. The toasted malts also come through, and there’s a pleasant hop bite at the end. As it warmed I picked up the slight milk chocolate from the smell.
Drinkability: VSL is very drinkable, though it’s not a hot day, tailgate brew. It’s a high quality choice for a lager, on par with its neighbors in South Germany.
Fun facts about TJVSL:
-Price: I bought it Thursday night and threw away the receipt, but I think it was $5.99. When I first came to California (I left Iowa three years ago today), most of the beer TJ’s sold was priced at $4.99. I couldn’t believe I could buy a sixer of Mackeson (which they don’t sell anymore) for just five dillies! The slight price increase is probably due to a tag team impact of commodity costs. Not only has the price of fuel and transportation increased, but the price of hops is also on the rise, prompting brewers to increase the cost of their beers.
-Serving temperature: 40-45ºF.
-Alcohol content: 5.7 percent ABV.
-Food pairings: BA recommends Latin American and German cuisine, as well as pork and poultry.
-IBU: 20.
-Here’s an odd quirk about the “Vienna Lager” page on BA. The first paragraph reads, “Named after the city in which it originated,” but the second graph begins “Although German in origin…” Did it originate in Vienna (in Austria) or in Germany?
The Quiet Man’s grade: B.
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