Today is National Lager Day – and if you’re telling us you knew that – we’re calling bullshit on you. We write about things like this daily and the date might have escaped us, had it not been for a special Lager Day “care package” that showed up at the ACB compound yesterday…but more on that later.

…And don’t even think about hitting an IPA today!

National Lager Day Fast Facts (Anywhere, USA) – As those of you who brew professionally or at home know, brewing Lagers is no cake walk. They’re challenging, time-consuming, and expensive beers to brew. A typical IPA can take about two to three weeks to come to fruition – a lager can sometimes take 30 days or more to ready and when you brew professionally, time is money.

Lager Linguistics (Germany) – The term Lager comes from the German word “Lagern,” which loosely translates as “to store.” In the days before refrigeration, German brewers cooled their beers in Alpine caves.

Lagers VS Ales (Planet Earth) – More people than you might imagine don’t know the difference between a Lager and an Ale – so let’s hit on some basics. Ales brew at higher temperatures (60-50° F), while Lagers need colder fermentation temps (40-55° F). Ales use top-fermenting yeast; Lagers use bottom-fermenting yeast.

Lager History (Washington, DC) – In the beginning, it was all about Ales – they’ve been around for over 7,000 years. Lagers are relative “newcomers” to the brewing scene that first appeared in Bavaria in the 1600s. America’s first Lager wasn’t brewed until somewhere around the 1840s and it soon became the country’s most popular and widely brewed beer style. And let’s not forget that it was Boston Beer’s Lager that kick-started craft beer’s revolution. Samuel Adams Boston Lager was voted “the Best Beer in America” by consumers who attended the GABF back in 1985. It was this beer and other outliers at the time that helped reignite the public’s passion for serious beer.

What We’re Drinking Today (Washington, DC) – We’d like to thank all of the American breweries who ship us beer from time to time. It’s great to be able to sample the brews that we write about and it helps us have a better feel for what’s happening out there. And yesterday, the Anheuser-Busch crew sent us a very special “small batch” brew (at least by their standards) that’s currently only available on draft at their St. Louis brewery. Faust is an American-style Pilsner that was originally brewed in 1884 for Tony Faust’s St. Louis Oyster House and Restaurant. The brewers at Anheuser-Busch brought the archived recipe back to life as part of the city’s 250^th anniversary. Faust is a terrific 5.5% ABV dark amber brew – and a perfect way to celebrate National Lager Day!

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