Profiled by Maria Devan
Jacks beer has what you might say is a soapy but authentic head for a pilsner and for a CAP and for an AAL. Slight haze, golden color. Pours uniform bubbles , a thick head that retains fantastically well. Then as it falls it becomes creamy . It clings and streaks the glass. Beautiful! The hops are fresh and vibrant on the nose. He is using Cluster and Hallertau Mittlefruh. Cluster is for bittering, the Hallertau for aroma and flavor. One of those hops is fruity and why do I think it’s the bittering hop?
The nose on this beer is floral and spicy with hops. No diacetyl, no fruity esters form yeast. The corn smells like earth, husky and a little bit golden. But corn smells like corn and so it’s not dms but there is a hint of it on the palate. Dms opens the finish of the pils with a few bubbles. This one has bright carbonation so I would say just a small bite.The six row malt gives breadiness to the nose but these hops are so forward! Hallertau are spicy and bold. They twinkle like their cousin Galena.
The taste is bold. The malt has a sharp definition because of the bittering hop. That’s even the fruity one. There is just a hint of that fruit on the nose and on the palate. It is a temptation that is not ever fully realized but does seem to captivate your attention. No diacetyl. Clean, crisp, dry finish with a strong and lingering bitterness. The six row malt gives firmness to the palate and the malt finishes creamy. That is why it is world class. Hops resonate in just the right place on the palate to tell you this beer is exciting. They twinkle with spice and dry herbal and linger in the finish as the malt is soft and round.
4
Welcome to the PGA beer rating system: one beer “Don’t bother.” Two: Eh, if someone gives it to you, drink. Three: very good, go ahead and seek it out, but be aware there is at least one problem. Four: seek it out. Five: pretty much “perfecto.”
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Maria Devan lives in Ithaca, NY and is a great beer writer. That’s Maria in the middle. The other two are not, but they are lucky to have her as a friend.